Mentoring Program Playbook

Set up a mentoring program that develops your people over six to twelve months: clear purpose, prepared mentors, fair matching, useful meetings, regular check-ins and a proper close.

Who it is for

• HR and L&D professionals asked to start or relaunch a mentoring program.

• Managers who want to grow future leaders from within their teams.

• People who run a small business and want to develop and keep their best employees.

• Operations leaders connecting people across departments, shifts or locations.

The problem it solves

Most mentoring programs start with enthusiasm and fade within a few months. Pairs are matched without a clear purpose, mentors are not prepared, meetings drift into general conversation, nobody checks in, and the program ends without anyone knowing what it achieved. This playbook takes you through eight steps: setting the purpose and design, recruiting and preparing mentors, inviting mentees fairly, matching, starting well with an agreement and a useful first meeting, running meetings with PULL™, a proprietary method of KA Company, checking in and handling problems, and closing and evaluating each cycle.

Mentoring here means longer-term development led by the mentee. It is different from a buddy or peer trainer program, which helps new employees settle in and learn tasks.

What is inside

• Copyright and License (page 2; 1 page)

• Part 1. Mentoring and the eight steps (pages 3 to 5; 3 pages)

• Part 2. Step 1: Purpose and design (pages 6 to 9; 4 pages)

• Part 3. Step 2: Mentors (pages 10 to 14; 5 pages)

• Part 4. Step 3: Mentees (pages 15 to 18; 4 pages)

• Part 5. Step 4: Matching (pages 19 to 22; 4 pages)

• Part 6. Step 5: Starting well (pages 23 to 28; 6 pages)

• Part 7. Step 6: Meetings (pages 29 to 35; 7 pages)

• Part 8. Step 7: Check-ins and support (pages 36 to 41; 6 pages)

• Part 9. Step 8: Closing and evaluation (pages 42 to 49; 8 pages)

• Part 10. Worked examples (pages 50 to 51; 2 pages)

• Part 11. Variations by setting and size (pages 52 to 53; 2 pages)

• Part 12. 12-week launch plan (pages 54 to 55; 2 pages)

• Part 13. Mistakes and FAQ (pages 56 to 57; 2 pages)

• Editable Word version of everything above (51 pages)

• Excel tracker (.xlsx) (8 sheets: settings, mentors with capacity, mentees, matches with automatic end dates, check-in dates, meeting counts and gap warnings, meeting log, check-ins and a program summary, with a worked example)

Worked examples come from a manufacturer, a multi-location bakery chain and an accounting firm (including group and reverse mentoring), with a short example from a nine-person salon and variations for retail, restaurants, trades, clinics, offices, warehouses, remote teams and very small businesses.

How to use it

1. Read Part 1 to see how mentoring differs from training, buddy programs and manager coaching.

2. Work through Steps 1 to 8. Each step explains what to do, why it matters and how to do it well, then gives you templates and filled-in examples.

3. Follow the 12-week launch plan for your first cycle.

4. Track pairs, meetings and check-ins in the Excel tracker.

Where the playbook touches on confidentiality and its limits, or recognition and pay, check your company policy and the rules for your location. It gives general good practice; it is not legal advice.

Formats and file types

• Printable PDF (57 pages), US Letter.

• Editable Word file (.docx, 51 pages) with all fourteen templates and filled-in examples.

• Excel tracker (.xlsx) for up to 60 matches and 1,000 meetings, with automatic check-in dates, meeting counts and warnings for pairs that have stopped meeting. Works in Excel and in spreadsheet programs that support MAXIFS, COUNTIFS and EDATE.

Frequently asked questions