At Femme Palette, we care about the experience of our mentees, and therefore the quality of our mentors. That’s why we have recently made changes to our mentor recruitment to make the process more selective. This blog post will guide you through the steps and show you what to expect. Here is the ultimate guide to becoming a Femme Palette mentor!
The process starts with the potential mentor filling out the mentor application form.This is a straightforward process which should take no more than ten minutes to complete. The application begins with sharing some basic information including job details, years of experience, expectations from mentoring and motivation to apply.
The second part of the application is about self-assessment in areas which are vital for being a good mentor. Here the applicant scores themselves in four mentor competency categories.
Active listening - active listening and responding to the mentee is essential to developing mutual understanding.
Building trust - in order to openly discuss challenges and overcome them, establishing trust is vital in a mentor-mentee relationship.
Establishing and following up on goals - mentees seek out mentors to help them reach their career goals. Therefore, a good mentor should not only help them set up these goals according to the SMART framework, but also keep track of their progress and help them along the way.
Providing feedback - one cannot progress without constructive feedback. Strong feedback skills are the cornerstone of good mentorship.
Motivation and building confidence - lack of self-confidence is one of the most common problems mentees face. A great mentor must help them believe in their abilities.
Applying mentoring skills in practice - mentoring skills will be used on a regular basis. Knowing how to apply them effectively is key.
Creativity and problem solving - unexpected and unusual challenges can arise any time. A great mentor is able to find a creative and effective solution.
Efficient communication - effective communication is essential to building a trusting and strong mentoring relationship. Paying attention to non-verbal communication (eye contact, tone, facial expression, body language), applying open and closed questions in the right rhythm, as well as consciously utilizing vocal skills, is a huge asset in a mentor.
Ability to be a role model - mentors are the ultimate role models. By showing their mentees how they once dealt with similar challenges and worked their way up to where they are now, all while showing the right behavior, will motivate a mentee to do better.
If the applicant meets the bar, the applicant will be invited to a video interview with our Mentor Success Manager. This will give them the opportunity to get a better understanding of mentoring with us - they will learn all about the program and get to ask about anything that may interest them.
At the same time, the interview serves as an additional step of the evaluation process. The applicant will be asked to talk about their work background and experience and the approach they would take to supporting your mentee. They will also be invited to tell us a bit more about their feedback skills. If the applicant achieves 70% of the mentor criteria, they are selected to become a mentor.
And that’s it - those are the steps to becoming a part of our mentor community! For anyone wondering if they’d make a good mentor, we recommend taking our Mentor quiz to see if they have potential!
