What does mentoring mean to supervisors?
Supervisory support is essential to a successful mentoring partnership. We recommend having a discussion with your employee before a mentor is acquired. This will help facilitate the partnership between the mentor/mentoree. You can provide resources for the partnership to flourish (e.g. IDP, suggested identifying potential mentors, etc.). Reassuring and encouraging the mentoree to acquire a mentor emphasizes that the mentor is not trying to take your place as a supervisor. Encourage your employee to keep you informed on how the partnership is evolving. We recommend mentors do not meet individually with you without the mentoree’s permission. Funds should not be expended for most mentoring relationships. There may be some statewide programs which provide training for mentors/mentorees which may have funding support.
