Peer mentoring is a valuable way to foster learning, collaboration, and growth among your team. But how do you find and select the right people to become peer mentors? In this article, we will share some tips and criteria to help you identify potential peer mentors and encourage them to take on this role.
Peer mentoring is a form of informal learning where people with similar roles, interests, or experiences support each other through sharing knowledge, feedback, and advice. Peer mentors are not necessarily experts or senior leaders, but rather peers who have relevant skills, insights, or perspectives to offer. Peer mentoring can benefit both the mentors and the mentees, as they can learn from each other, build trust and rapport, and enhance their professional development.
Whilst naturally the peer group need to have similar roles or at least similar challenges to deal with, I would argue that it is better that they don't all have the same perspective. The value of a peer group is, for me, the alternative perspective. Diversity of views is important to identify the blind spots that others may not have seen and different interests and experiences contribute to that. I suggest that based on my own experience in a business leader peer group. As someone with a top degree and an MBA, I learnt most from the fellow member that had left school at 16 and I hope he did from me. His streetwise 'just sell' philosophy complemented my considered and planned strategic model for us both to become better overall.
I look for team members who excel in their roles, show strong communication skills, and are naturally supportive of others. Those with a positive attitude and a genuine interest in helping peers grow stand out as potential mentors. I also consider their technical expertise and problem-solving abilities, ensuring they can offer valuable guidance. Observing how they interact in team meetings and during collaborative projects helps confirm their mentoring suitability. Finally, I discuss mentorship interests directly with them to gauge commitment and enthusiasm.
Peer mentors can help you create a culture of learning and improvement in your team or organization. They can provide personalized and timely guidance, motivation, and support to their mentees, especially when they face challenges, opportunities, or transitions. They can also help their mentees develop new skills, solve problems, and achieve their goals. Peer mentors can also benefit from the mentoring relationship, as they can improve their communication, leadership, and coaching skills, as well as gain new perspectives and insights from their mentees.
Peer mentoring is, in my view, of benefit to all parties. There is a saying "If you really want to learn something, teach it" and that applies to peer mentoring in spades. I recently participated in a programme to help Spanish speakers learn English. It was fascinating. Obviously I learnt a lot about them and their country, but I also learnt a lot about English. Being asked "Why do you say it like that?" caused me to think about the reasons for my own instinctive choices and understand more about my own language.
Within an organization, it creates a network of trusted advisors and cross-collaboration that wouldn't necessarily happen otherwise. Use a program as an opportunity for people to leverage their strengths in multiple areas, make an impact at scale, grow as leaders, and develop new bonds. Ultimately, you will find efficiencies and other advantages over time to a more collaborative workspace where people feel invested in one another's careers.
In order to identify potential peer mentors, you should look for certain qualities and characteristics that make them suitable for this role. These include their willingness and enthusiasm to share their knowledge and receive feedback, their expertise and credibility in their field or domain, their communication and interpersonal skills, and their availability and commitment to the mentoring relationship. Peer mentors should be able to demonstrate their skills in a confident way and give constructive feedback. They should also be able to dedicate enough time and energy to the mentoring relationship and be responsive to their mentees' needs.
Within our team, we use a chart that everyone fills out. It's marked with your expertise and subjects that you would like to learn more about. When team members have some additional bandwidth, they reach out, and I connect them with a peer who has expressed interest in learning more about a certain subject. With mentors and mentees changing depending on the subject, this creates a very collaborative team environment.
Once you have identified potential peer mentors, you need to approach them and invite them to join your peer mentoring program. To do this, explain the benefits and expectations of the role to them. Provide training and resources to help them prepare for their role as peer mentors, and offer ongoing support and feedback like regular check-ins, recognition, and incentives. Match mentors with suitable mentees using a process that considers the skills, interests, goals, and preferences of both parties. Additionally, track and measure the progress and results of the mentoring relationships. Lastly, solicit feedback from both the mentors and the mentees to improve your program.
To retain peer mentors, you need to keep them motivated and engaged in their role. Acknowledging and appreciating their contributions and achievements, as well as celebrating their successes, is a great way to do this. Additionally, providing them with opportunities for recognition and rewards can be beneficial. It’s important to challenge and develop them by offering new or different mentees, projects, or topics. Encouraging them to seek feedback and improvement and helping them set and achieve their own goals is also important.
Creating a sense of community and belonging among the peer mentors, facilitating networking and collaboration among them, and providing access to support and resources are all key components of keeping peer mentors engaged.