Mentoring Best Practices

1. Mentoring Best Practices Alliance for the Advancement of Florida’s Academic Women in Chemistry & Engineering Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University May 13, 2010 Presenter: Tine Reimers, Ph.D. Special Asst. to the Provost for Fac. & Program DevelopmentUniversity at Albany, (SUNY) creimers@albany.edu

2. Introductions • Name • Title, (office, unit where you work, role) • University • Most pressing concern/question about mentoring, mentoring programs

3. The Written Record See the handouts in the binder.

4. The Written Record What questions do you have (and how would you find the answers)? • Did Julie stop publishing because of the award? • Were there other things going on that stopped Julie from being productive? • What were the criteria used for the decision? • Do all faculty members vote, and do they use the same criteria? • What was the process to document Julie’s progress? • Are mentors involved in the documentation of process? • What is the chair’s role here?

5. The Written Record • What advice do you have for Jordan? • What should you as mentor do to help Jordan?

6. Goals of AAFAWCE • Recruit women and have programs in place for them that create a sense of community • Involve at least 20-30 mentees at each campus over three years • Retain junior women faculty • Involve senior men and women faculty in mentoring and community building • Promote women into leadership positions

7. Goals of today’s workshop • Explore reasons why to implement a mentoring program • Discuss how to create buy-in • Consider formats for mentoring programs • Plan for training of mentors and mentees • Plan for preparing senior faculty for leadership • Plan for evaluating your mentoring program

8. What are elements and characteristics of ‘good’ mentoring ? • Participants’ answers: • Mentor sends clear consistent message that reflects reality • Mentor acts as an advisor • Mentor is responsive and listens well • Mentor is well-respected in the field • Relationship established with cameraderie • Mentor is a ‘critical friend’ • There is a clear role for the mentor—all parties know what is expected • Mentor is knowledgeable about the process • Both mentee and mentor are pro-active

9. Mentoring… …comprises more than just telling people what to do… It includes: • Actions • Attitudes • Relationships

10. Some Definitions... • A mentor is a wise and trusted counselor, a guide and teacher (Homer) • A mentor coaches, teaches, advises, supports, guides and helps the mentees achieve their goals…furthers his or her charges’ personal and professional identities…teaches both how to get things done, and what not to do. (Bernice Sandler) • Mentoring is a tool that organizations can use to nurture and grow their people…Protégés observe, question, and explore. Mentors demonstrate, explain and model. (http://www.managementhelp.org) • Mentoring is a personal as well as a professional relationship (Jo Handelsman, “Entering Mentoring”)

11. Turn to 2-3 people around you: make a list:What are likely problems or challenges in mentoring relationships? • Participants’ responses • Role conflict—is the mentor an evaluator or a mentor? • Personality clash, ‘chemistry’ • Mentee not open to criticism • Outside distractions • A dictatorial attitude on part of mentor • Due to external realities, the rules are changing • Trust not established • Mentor sees role as only advocacy, mentoring is more • Inappropriateness in action or words • Lack of confidentiality • Mentor not a role model

12. Discuss with your group: What are likely solutions to these problems? • Solutions included • Clear expectations for the mentor and mentee • Enough meetings early on to establish trust • Clarity from institution/program on rules for tenure success • Effective selection of mentors • Training for mentors so that they have tools at hand to deal with problems brought by mentee. Includes: • Definitions of mentoring • Effective communication strategies • Information on need for confidentiality in mentoring • Effective ‘fact-finding’ and triangulation strategies for both mentors and mentees to help develop multiple options in challenging situations

13. Why have a mentoring program? • Advances organizational culture • Provides professional stimulation • Empowers faculty (senior and junior) • Achieves higher rates of satisfaction and retention • Can develop leadership potential Stops wasting talent!

14. Why have a mentoring program?It costs a lot to lose a faculty member! • The financial cost for recruitment, hiring and orientation of a faculty member is estimated at $100,000 in the first year of employment, depending on the discipline. • When including all start-up costs, hiring cost estimates have gone as high as $1.2 million per faculty member. • It can take 6-8 years for the average faculty member to pay this back (in grants, tuition $$, etc)!

15. Why have a mentoring program?Because it improves quality, and quality-of-life • Studies show “Embeddedness” and early positive perceptions of institution lead to lower turnover. • A recent COACHE study on “Gen X faculty members” : they value community and stability. • Studies show women and underrepresented minorities do not have access to the same networks as white males. • Studies show women and minorities are held to higher standards than their counterparts: they need to be more productive to be seen as equally productive.

16. Research on Mentoring and Gender • Mentoring is related to greater career satisfaction, career commitment, career planning, organizational socialization, self esteem at work, job satisfaction, job involvement, and lower turnover intentions. • Women are less likely than men to receive personal support, job-related information, and developmental support from their supervisors. • Professors with mentors from within their organizations have the highest levels of objective career success. • Assistant professors with multiple sources of mentors yield significantly higher levels of career success than do those with single sources or no mentor. • Women faculty are more likely to downplay their accomplishments until helped by a mentor.

17. Different Types of Turnover* • Avoidable versus Unavoidable • Unavoidable: retirement, spousal/partner job transfer, career changes • Desirable versus Undesirable • Desirable: some level of turnover is good, poor performers should engage in turnover • Voluntary versus Involuntary • Involuntary: Mandatory retirement, tenure not granted • Voluntary: left for another institution, retired early • Turnover versus Turnover Intention *Thanks to Dr. Marcus Crede, Asst. Prof Psychology, University at Albany for turnover research

18. Two Ways of Thinking About Turnover • Turnover as the end of a process, progression • End result of long-term dissatisfaction, other types of withdrawal behaviors, protracted job search • Turnover as reaction to sudden, unanticipated event • Unsolicited job offer for self or spouse/partner • Negative workplace event (e.g., sexual harassment)

19. Predictors of Turnover • Dissatisfaction with job • Pay, Work and Promotion Opportunities (Very strong predictor of search for alternate employment) • Existence of alternative sources of employment • Low levels of attachment to organization and/or community • Organizational commitment (esp. affective commitment) • Job embeddedness • Community embeddedness • Poor person-organization fit • Values, expectations, work patterns • Organizational climate and culture • Low standards in the organization • High turnover exists in the organization • High performers not valued

20. Factors that have been shown to reduce turnover • Realistic job previews • Good socialization and orientation efforts • Facilitates embeddedness in organization and community • Effective mentoring programs • Desirable job characteristics • Skill variety, doing complete work, task significance, autonomy, feedback, role clarity, lack of role overload and role conflict. • Fairness of procedures and information quality • Low levels of job insecurity • Hiring individuals who are not turnover prone

21. Creating Buy-in • Use data to your advantage • Use leadership in the institution to help • Send positive messages consistently • Clarify priorities • Develop rewards • Do your homework on potential mentors • Invite and flatter, liberally and honestly • Reward expected behavior • Mentoring doesn’t ‘just happen’

22. Program Formats • “Traditional” mentoring • Team mentoring • Peer mentoring • Mosaic or multiple mentoring

23. “Traditional” Mentoring • Format • one-on-one relationship • assigned mentor or a process for choosing a mentor • ‘internal’ mentor • Advantages • guarantee of a mentor • useful within-discipline information and acculturation • low-cost solution • Disadvantages • may not ‘gel’ • no outside sources of information or help • potential political conflicts of interest • danger of non-confidentiality • isolation of mentor • lack of understanding of whole institution by mentee • shortage of qualified mentors

24. Peer mentoring • Format • network of junior faculty only • Advantages • effective troubleshooting • sense of community • supportive arena, room for confidentiality • choice of participation • low to medium-cost solution • Disadvantages • potential lack of institutional context • lack of within-discipline information • Lack of institutionalization: relies on willing junior faculty if not centrally administered

25. Team mentoring • Format • at least 2 ‘external’ mentors, multiple mentees • Advantages • peer mentoring: cohort community • mentors have peer support • larger institutional context • external advocates • choice of participation • uses fewer mentors to greater effect • Disadvantages • difficult to get group together • not as specific information regarding disciplinary realities • high-cost solution (if administered centrally)

26. Mentoring within the discipline… • Establishes the norms and expectations within a discipline—research productivity, kinds of presentation and documentation of research, etc. • Connects mentee to the right people nationally • Informs mentee about local realities, politics etc.

27. Mentoring outside the discipline • Establishes the norms and expectations within the institution • Connects mentee to the right people across the university • Informs mentee about institutional realities, politics etc • Offers mentee a safe place to escape from a poisonous environment

28. “Mosaic” or “multiple” mentoring • Format • as many different kinds of mentoring formats as possible • Advantages • choice of participation and format by mentee • Disadvantages • relies on mentee initiative • qualified mentors are scarce • central administration of a program is a high-cost solution

29. A word about matching…(what the research shows) • Arbitrary pairings and pairings across disciplines work as well as self-chosen pairings • Working toward ‘ideal’ matches is ineffective • Requiring regular meetings increases effectiveness of relationship • Pairs who interact in monthly group meetings interact on a broader set of topics • Same-sex or same-race pairings are as effective as pairings without regard to sex or race, but have different benefits • No single approach will work for all • Multiple mentors/approaches are more effective than single mentors

30. Programming options (for any format) • Formal meetings (centrally motivated) • Opportunity for mentoring partners to meet • Presentation of topics of interest/use to mentoring partners • Mentor and Mentee training (early meetings & midway follow-up) • resources, tools , reflections • commitment document • Mentees-only topical brownbags(regularly scheduled) • Rewards and recognitions events(end of year)

31. Program Content • Orientations to mentoring • responsibilities, challenges, reflection on mentoring needs • tools, resources, guidelines • Professional expectations • strategies for research, teaching, service • Strategic balance • professional & personal • Leadership development • for positional leadership • for personal leadership

32. Possible specific topics… • Balancing research, teaching, service • Documenting successes • Effective public presentations • Time management • Publishing, getting grants, handling rejections • Teaching efficiently • Choosing service strategically • Power and politics • Effective communication • Negotiation • Student and assistant management • Self-promotion and building a national reputation • Balancing work and personal life • Leadership and developing social networks

33. Benefits for Mentees • honest criticism and informal feedback • clarity on expectations and strategies for setting professional priorities • knowledge of informal rules for advancement (as well as pitfalls to be avoided) • new skills for showcasing one’s work • an understanding of how to build a circle of friends and contacts within and outside the institution • a perspective on long-term career planning

34. Benefits for Mentors • Satisfaction in assisting in the development of a colleague • Ideas for and feedback about the mentor’s own teaching / scholarship • A network of colleagues who have passed through the program • Retention of excellent faculty colleagues • Enhancement of department quality

35. Myths about Mentoring • Mentoring is a one-on-one relationship • Mentoring only works when it is ‘organically’ chosen • Mentoring only works within gender or ethnicity pairings • Mentoring is a one-way street • the only benefit is from experience to inexperience • Mentoring is for weaklings • we’re just “enabling” them and they won’t get tough on their own

36. Reflection: Your Mentoring Program • Who will be ‘sponsoring’ the program? • Role? How kept in the loop? • Who will be implementing the program? • Point person, coordinator, director? • Time/effort calculation? Pay, reward, ?? • How will you get leadership involved? (Provost, Deans, Chairs) • What will their roles be? • Who will the mentors be? Who will the mentees be? • How will they be selected? • What format is most interesting to you? Why? • Traditional one-on-one • Peer mentoring • Team mentoring • Other?

37. Plan for training of mentors and mentees

38. Designing Mentee Orientations • Topics possible in mentoring relationships • Collect and discuss mentee concerns • Give warnings about what can go wrong • Give tips on doing it right • Provide foundational documents (see Mentoring Handbook)

39. Potential Problems in Mentoring Relationships • Miscommunication • Lack of communication • Lack of confidentiality • Unrealistic expectations • Lack of preparation (on either side) • Sense of hierarchy • Unclear guidelines • “Match” or “Chemistry”

40. Designing Mentor Orientations • Start with ‘get to know you’—connect the mentors • Facts and figures • # of women (in discipline, at your university) • why mentoring ? • social and career challenges for women in the sciences • “Mentors in my life” discussion • Mentor concerns

41. What are Mentor Concerns? • Participants’ responses: • What happens if the mentoring doesn’t work? • Time management: how much time will this take? • How is success measured? • What is my role? What is my responsibility? • How personal should we be? • What happens if the relationship is fraught due to male/female pairings or cultural differences? • Politics • Legalities • Confidentiality on the part of the mentee—what if she shares things I tell her? • Am I objective enough to be a good mentor? • Am I knowledgeable enough to be a good mentor?

42. Mentor Concerns: what if… • We don’t get along? • She doesn’t listen to me and makes mistakes? • I don’t have an answer for her questions? • She doesn’t make it? Is that my responsibility? • It’s not the right profession or institution for her? • Her chair or senior faculty are a problem? • She isn’t proactive, doesn’t respond to invitations? • She is too dependent, can’t stand on her own? • She doesn’t need my help?

43. Mentor Orientations • Expectations • what are the expectations of mentors? (theirs and yours) • What are expectations of mentees? (theirs and yours) • What is the program structure? • List of topics, activities they might engage in • Share foundational documents

44. The times, they are a changin’ • Divide up into ‘Roxana’ and ‘Mentor’ groups (at least 4 per group): prepare a conversation. • Should the mentor talk with the chair? • Should Roxana be present? • Divide up into chair and mentor groups (or Roxana and chair groups): prepare a conversation between them.

45. Mary’s Muddle • See handouts in binder

46. Maintaining relationships The key to mentoring is… communication, communication, communication! Mentees -- Mentors Mentors -- Mentors Mentees -- Mentees

47. Best practices for mentoring communication (for Mentors…and for Mentees too!) • Look at people like you’re seeing them for the first time each day… (Because you are!) • Listen like your spouse/partner/mother would like you to listen… (You’ll hear things you didn’t expect) • Keep your eye upon the doughnut, not upon the hole… (Keep the larger goals in mind: it keeps you from getting lost in details) • Love your job… (Enthusiasm is the best way to engage others in your conversation)

48. Best Practices for Mentoring Communication • Make it personal (Get to know your mentoring partner(s)) • Make it frequent (Set up regular times to get together) • Get specific (Have specific goals and activities planned for each session) • Use Time and Silence as friends

49. Phases of Mentoring Relationships • Orientation: Building the Base • The Middle Period • Loosening of the Relationship • Redefining the Relationship

50. Orientation: Building the Base During the first three to six months, both the mentor(s) and mentee(s) are getting to know each other, and building trust. At this time, both the mentees and the mentors are developing expectations of each other. The interaction which occurs at this stage lays the foundation for a strong and beneficial relationship.