Mentor Match
Helping Members achieve their goals through sharing experiences and learning from others.
Mentoring is a learning & development partnership between a Mentor with vast experience and expertise, and a Mentee who wants to learn.
Introduction
The Mentor Match programme identifies and brings together Mentors and Mentees. A secure confidential place is then provided for both parties to engage in and track all aspects of the mentoring relationship. The programme, which is a joint collaboration of PM Forum and the Managing Partners’ Forum, is continuous with people able to join at any time and new matches shared daily.
Mentor Match is open to both PM Forum members and non-members and provides a range of benefits for both mentors and mentees and provides them with the tools and resources they need to succeed.
The programme is very flexible. Anyone can be a mentor and a mentee at the same time. A mentor can have multiple mentees and vice versa. For example, a mentee may choose to have a local mentor along with an international one.
Mentees can gain valuable guidance and support from experienced professionals, enhance their skills and knowledge, and expand their professional network.
Mentors can develop their leadership and coaching skills, build meaningful connections with the next generation of project managers, and give back to the industry.
To support learning activity between mentoring sessions, Mentor Match is fully integrated with the Skills Development Platform. Mentors can curate and share individual content items and bespoke playlists (collections of content items) with their mentees. Exclusively for the benefit of a specific mentee, mentors can add content items to the Platform or reference content on other Platforms. Mentors can track the time, comments and ratings of mentees for evaluated content items in shared playlists, but need to request their mentee to share equivalent data for other evaluations.
Mentees need to work for a PM Forum member firm (corporate by country) to access the Platform.
Benefits
For Mentees:
- Gain guidance and support from experienced professionals in the project management industry.
- Enhance your skills and knowledge through one-on-one coaching and mentoring.
- Expand your professional network and make valuable connections.
- Develop leadership skills and gain insights into the industry.
- Set and achieve career goals with the help of a supportive mentor.
- Gain access to resources and tools to help you succeed in your career.
For Mentors:
- Develop leadership and coaching skills by mentoring the next generation of project managers.
- Build meaningful connections with other professionals in the industry.
- Contribute to the growth and success of the project management industry.
- Gain insights into emerging trends and technologies in the industry.
- Learn from your mentee’s experiences and perspectives.
- Give back to the industry and make a positive impact on someone’s career.
How it Works for Mentees
STEP 1- Sign Up
Mentees sign up for the program and provide information about their career goals and interests. This information is used to match mentees with mentors who have relevant experience and expertise in their field.
STEP 2- Meet Your Mentor
Mentees and mentors meet regularly over a six-month period to discuss career goals, challenges, and opportunities. Mentees receive personalised career guidance and feedback from experienced professionals, which can help them accelerate their career growth and achieve their goals. Mentors have the opportunity to share their knowledge and expertise, and to develop their coaching and leadership skills.
Step 3: Reap the Benefits
The benefits of Mentor Match are clear. Mentees receive personalised career guidance and feedback from experienced professionals, which can help them accelerate their career growth and achieve their goals. Mentors have the opportunity to share their knowledge and expertise, and to develop their coaching and leadership skills.
Mentoring Principles
An effective mentoring program is based on close relationships and requires communication. In order for mentoring to be effective, it should last for at least six months with a minimum of monthly or more frequent sessions.
In a mentoring relationship, it is the mentee’s responsibility to articulate the areas in which they require guidance or direction.
Purpose
The programme helps people achieve their career and other goals through sharing experiences and learning from someone at a different organisation within a structured business relationship. An external perspective avoids the political issues that frequently dilute the value of intra-firm mentorships.
On-Boarding
Enrolment involves adding a pen portrait and your experience as a Mentor/Mentee, specifying areas for help and the preferred background of the other party (sector, seniority, expertise etc).
Training
Novice Mentors are encouraged to undergo formal training in being an effective Mentor. This is provided by Mentor Match on a commercial basis.
Matches
Potential matches may be identified by a proprietary algorithm, but the decision to notify either party to a match is always made by a human being. Initially, Mentors are requested to approve the suggested Mentee. Then the other way around.
Feedback
At the conclusion of each mentorship, both parties are encouraged to comment on the programme and also anonymously rate the performance of each other. Aggregate mentorship performance scores will be available as a selection criteria in due course.
Test session
Once mutually approved, Mentor and Mentee are encouraged to meet – either in-person or online – for a test session, before deciding whether to embark on a mentoring relationship.
Eligibility
Mentors are welcome from any professional services firm or relevant consultancy. Mentees in marketing roles must come from a PM Forum member firm; those from other disciplines are sponsored by the Managing Partners’ Forum. Anyone can be both Mentor and Mentee at the same time.
Testimonials
“PM Forum Mentor Match has been an incredible experience for me. My mentor has provided me with invaluable advice and guidance, and has helped me identify new career opportunities.”
“My mentee has shown great progress during our time together. It has been incredibly rewarding to help her develop her skills and achieve her goals.”
“I feel incredibly privileged to have access to such a phenomenal mentor and network as a part of my membership. With their guidance and support, I’ve made significant progress and am truly grateful for the opportunity. ”