The Magic of Mentoring

The Magic of Mentoring

The HDN Staff Mentoring Programme opens for Mentee registration on 19^th April and it’s one of the biggest days in our calendar.

The programme is a cornerstone of our strategy to help housing organisations thrive, by nurturing their staff at all levels to work with confidence and commitment and in the knowledge that their contribution is truly valued. Every member of staff can make a difference, but not everyone realises that until they have spoken to someone who has been there and done that, though not necessarily has bought the T-Shirt.

Our mentoring programme can impact on a wide range of organisational objectives around learning and development, and embedding diversity, inclusion and talent management into their culture. Meanwhile, our mentees have the opportunity to be guided by senior professionals from a range of sectors, and build contacts and relationships with colleagues from different organisations while they see their confidence, self-awareness and resilience grow day by day.

Our mentors provide the experience and knowledge that will help mentees to develop themselves and climb the career ladder more swiftly; and they do this by listening far more often than telling. By involving the mentees every step of the way the process is constantly meaningful and impactful. Mentors have skills which enable their mentee to mould themselves, by asking questions and setting goals based on the answers given, and this is afforded the amount of time needed by the mentee. Going away to think about an answer is generally more useful, and gives a more insightful response, than a gut instinct.

The Staff Mentoring Programme provides a safe environment to work in, with trusted advisors who operate with the utmost discretion and sensitivity; they are objective and can help mentees to see the wood from the trees but they will also act as a sounding board for ideas. They create a working atmosphere which helps the mentee to be totally open, and that enables them to find solutions together. And the mentor can provide a totally unfiltered opinion, not hampered by an organisation’s entrenched ideas or office politics. They help their mentee to become accountable for their goals by staying focussed and tracking progress, with time management skills readily transferred.

With a dual role as a guide and a network facilitator, a mentor can open up access to other people from different organisations, who have the same hopes and strategies, but may have different experiences, which can be valuable for both individuals and their organisation. The mentor can help the mentee to access events which they may otherwise have missed and, crucially, they will always be on hand to help their mentee to avoid the mistakes they once made.

Mentoring is such a powerful tool and can have magical outcomes on a personal and professional basis, and we’ll be celebrating the achievements of the 2021/22 cohort at our flagship June SMP celebration. We can’t wait to see you all on 9^th June at Thinktank, Birmingham Science Museum, for a day of celebration, networking and fun, hosted by Shuang Qi and Stu Wilkin and with key-note speakers and contributions from the stars of 2021/22.

And remember; the 2022 – 2023 Staff Mentoring Programme opens for mentee registration on 19^th April and closes Thursday 30^th June. Look out for more details next week.

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