A coach or mentor matching service for in-company, professional network and public mentoring programmes.
This is hosted service using our coach and mentor matching software which is highly customisable and easy to implement.
Matches are made on relevant criteria tailored to each individual scheme or service. This service is recommended wherever a sophisticated but automated matching service is required to support the creation of successful in-company coaching or mentoring programmes.
Key benefits
- Improve the profile of coaching and mentoring programmes: act as a focal point for self-service web-based support resources.
- Simple and straightforward implementation – we host it for you so there’s no need for in-house technical development.
- “Look and feel” and content is customisable – tailored to your company programme and brand.
- Quick and easy matching of mentees’ requirements to mentors.
- Self service or administrator run matching.
- Mentors can update, activate and deactivate their profiles on-line.
- Cost-savings and scale are gained through:
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- Reducing in-house development and support costs.
- Speed of matching and reduction in manual administration overheads.
Service Description
Conducting a search: the user’s perspective
The Matching Service offers three methods of searching: a simple keyword search, search by name or company/department to provide quick access to a specific individual, and an advanced questionnaire-based search which provides the most accurate matching. It is this last option which is described below.
Additional programme support and information pages may also be hosted to provide guidance for mentors and mentees.
The coachee or mentee experience
You want to find a mentor. You are guided through a series of questions and tick the options that best reflect your requirements. You can add any relevant keywords to further hone your search. On completion of the questionnaire you are presented with a list of suitable mentors, ranked according to how closely they meet your specification. Each mentor has a detailed on-line profile, optionally accompanied by a photograph, enabling you to choose the right mentor for you. Choice of mentor is typically based on practical suitability – skills, location, experience etc – and personal rapport. The combination of questionnaire and profile allows the best all-round match to be made.
Having selected your preferred mentor, you complete an online Mentoring Request Form, including some details about yourself and what you are looking for, and the request is sent as an email to the mentor with a request to respond within a specified timeframe.
You and the mentor then set up an introductory conversation and, assuming that you both decide to go ahead, the mentoring commences.
The coach or mentor experience
To set up as a mentor you create a username and login and set up your profile. This includes selecting the criteria which best match what you offer as a mentor and writing (or copy and pasting) a biography. Optionally, you may include a photograph and links to intranet / internet pages.
At any time you may login and amend your profile, including making yourself unavailable if necessary, for instance if you have taken on a mentee and do not have spare capacity. If you forget your login details, there is an automated ‘forgotten password’ process to reissue your details.
Once a mentee selects you as their preferred choice of mentor you will receive an email with their details and what they are looking for. You may choose to accept or decline working with them. If you decide to go ahead then you will log yourself as matched with the mentee.
The administrator’s experience
The system is designed to minimise the otherwise time-consuming manual overheads associated with registering and matching mentees. Once the service is live, you can choose the degree of automation and monitoring you require, for instance:
- View mentor profiles and amend / activate / deactivate profiles if needed.
- View search log data including search criteria selected and mentor request forms sent.
- Receive a copy of each mentor request form by email so you can monitor activity as it happens. Data can be exported to e.g. Excel.
Optional services
- Capture mentor-mentee matches that have been accepted (not just requested). Mentors log that they have accepted the mentee and the date the relationship commenced.
- Send automated email(s) to mentors and mentees at designated timepoints for feedback on programme value. The email contains a link to an online survey or an internal process for capturing feedback as defined by you.
Try it for yourself via our public referral service and remember that all questions, answers and format are fully customisable.
Want more information?
To discuss your requirements, for more information, demonstration and pricing information please send us your details