Effective Mentoring…….. by Design?

Mentoring is a critical element of successful career development. Mentoring relationships can exist between individuals and teams; between staff, students and industry partners. Mentors may be seniors or peers. They may coach, counsel, pilot, accompany, oversee, train or brief their mentees...or they may just be there for coffee at the start of a job. Therefore, not one size fits all when it comes to effective mentoring arrangements. And when successful, both the mentor and the mentee benefit immensely from the experience.

This workshop aims to raise awareness of and share both successful and problematic mentoring experiences across different areas in RMIT. The discussions will explore a range of issues including:-

* The need for different levels of mentoring for staff at different stages in their career and the opportunities to customise mentoring arrangements

* How we can leverage our external stakeholders (industry/alumni) and adapt best practices from other fields

* The importance of building mentoring relationships both within and across disciplines, utilising a variety of approaches including formal/informal programs, and communities of practice

As an outcome from this workshop, a snapshot on the diversity of needs as well as approaches to mentoring across RMIT will be produced, with an integration of ideas on how we could potentially design more effective mentoring arrangements.

The workshop will be facilitated by Jonelle Bourke, Training and Development Manager, RMIT Human Resources, and will feature contributions from

* Prof. Calum Drummond, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research and Innovation

* Prof. Robyn Healy, Head, School of Fashion and Textiles

* Prof. Clare Renner, Deputy Dean VE, School of Media and Communication

* Prof. Kerry London, Deputy Head Research, School of Property, Construction and Project Management

* Dr. Reza Mohammed, Senior Coordinator, Research Development, Research and Innovation