Mentorship FAQ

 

 

Mentorship FAQ

 

Question: How many mentees should I mentor?

There is no limit on how many mentees you should mentor, it really depends on your bandwidth for this program.

Question: How long is the mentorship process?

On average, a mentorship process lasts from 3 to 6 months, but it really depends on how many goals you plan to achieve with your mentor/s and how you decide the flow of your relationship. We suggest a 90-day mentoring journey, but it’s up to you how long you make it.

Question: How does UiPath do the matching?

The app matches you with people who have expertise on your area of interest, while being mindful of time zone differences.

Question: Who can be a mentor?

Nowadays, there are several different types of mentoring. Traditional mentoring was the act of a senior and experienced individual in an industry acting as a support and adviser to someone less experienced. Indeed, the Oxford English Dictionary’s definition of mentoring is just this - “An experienced person in a company or educational institution who trains and counsels new employees or students.” And while this is largely still the case, there are other mentoring techniques and types popping up, such as reverse mentoring. Reverse mentoring is, as it suggests, where new, junior and less-experienced individuals’ mentor those who have been in the industry or a specific company for considerably longer. The idea behind this is that those with a fresh, new perspective can help to push change. Almost everyone is ultimately capable of being a mentor. Anyone who believes they have experience or insight and can offer valuable support and advice to another individual can be a mentor.

Question: What are the benefits of mentoring?

A mentor can help with a huge number of aspects of an individual's career, their challenges and their achievements too. A mentor could help you with interview training, updating your resume or CV, providing insight into a certain industry, assisting you with staying connected to industry trends and standards, office or individual conflict, management challenges and a whole host of additional aspects of the working world. Some people question why a mentor is a better option than a friend. We firmly believe that it is important to keep the right work/life balance. With mentoring, professionals can help to provide an outside, unbiased, fair and experienced opinion, advice and support, where friends and family might not be able to. Being able to speak to someone more experienced who can guide one through their career is so important. Equally, for a mentor, it can be hugely rewarding training and aiding a mentee. Passing on one's experience, knowledge and insight is a great way of giving back and can even help personal growth too.

Question: How long should a mentoring relationship last for?

There is no fixed time period for mentoring. Some mentoring programs and schemes like to implement a fixed-term for them, such as 6 months or a year. However, most mentoring relationships last for anywhere from a few months to a few years, based on an individual’s needs, challenges they’re facing and how they wish to manage their mentorship. We would recommend aiming, initially, for a 3-month mentoring relationship, as a general guide. However, if you are looking for a mentor to assist you with a specific challenge or aspect to your career development, it is likely that within this there will be a clear time-frame, defined by results (such as overcoming the challenge in question).

Question: Why should someone become a mentor?

Typically, the benefits are seen to be far clearer for the mentee, however, the benefits for a mentor are significant too. Being a mentor is a fantastic way to learn, develop and grow in one’s own career. By mentoring someone else, a mentor will typically learn a lot by offering their support to a mentee. Learning about different roles within an organisation, specific challenges an individual may be facing and improving their own interpersonal skills at the same time. Often, mentoring is seen as a great first-step on the management ladder too. Being able to mentor someone can help an individual to learn skills they will similarly require as a manager.

 

Question: How often should I meet with my mentor or mentee?

We would recommend a mentoring meeting every other week, so twice a month, as a general guide. This, however, is ultimately best decided and agreed upon with both a mentor and a mentee, during the introductory meeting, where expectations are set. Some mentoring relationships that go on for longer work best with fewer meetings, whereas mentoring relationships focused on shorter-term goals or challenges might benefit from meeting more frequently.