This document underlines the policy of the mentorship program including the do and don’t expected from both mentors and mentees. By agreeing to this policy, you acknowledge that you abide to the policy throughout your participation in the mentorship program.
Do’s
- Act with respect and integrity: misbehaviour will lead to the exclusion of the mentor/mentee and to further exclusion actions if necessary.
- Value each other’s time and keep the agreed contact commitments. The occasions when work or personal commitments conflict with a meeting, make sure your mentor/mentee is advised of the situation.
- Set expectations early on to understand what you and your mentor/mentee want to achieve, and how you will interact (e.g., medium, cadence).
- Keep an open mind and learn about each other – effective mentoring is a conversation to offer valuable insights. The mentor should strive for providing positive and constructive feedback to the mentee. In turn, the mentee should not regard such feedback negatively but as a sincere advice and guidance on how to improve and advance.
- Maintain openness yet preserve confidentiality.
- Mind personal and professional boundaries.
- Be conscientious and considerate of issues that may arise across boundaries of gender/race/ethnicity/sexual orientation/culture/religion.
- Leave your educational and professional comfort zone – discover and learn something new!
Don’t’s
- Ask or expect the mentor/mentee to help with: jobs, scholarships, recommendation letters, etc. This program is designed to foster relationships and allow our members to connect with experienced professionals, and is not intended to be a recruitment platform. Discussing career goals and seeking advice is however encouraged.
- Assume your schedule has a higher priority – both sides are volunteering time.
- Impose your own opinions or assume your advice will be followed.
- Complain about personal problems.
- Hesitate to contact the mentor/mentee if you have not heard from him/her in a while, unless he/she has clearly expressed that he/she did not wish to continue the mentoring relationship.
When connecting within the SGAC network, please also mind the SGAC Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy that all members must abide to.
If you have any questions or concerns in the course of this program, please do not hesitate to reach out to the mentoring program at [email protected].
Last Updated 20 Nov 2018