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Responsibilities of a mentor

Responsibilities of a mentor

The role of a formal mentor is often misunderstood; this shifts the responsibility of setting the expectations back on the mentor.

Mentors focus on contextual advice, recommended resources, and directed help when it comes to the transmission of knowledge.

Mentorship is also a two-sided relationship: While a curriculum-based relationship usually delivers knowledge from the senior to the junior, a mentorship often ends up being a growth opportunity for mentor and mentee.

Coaching, Tutoring, Mentorship

Tutors are the best example of a one-to-one relationship that’s mostly one-directional and curriculum-based. Tutors are most likely bound to a curriculum.

This is more distant than mentorship, which aims to directly lead a mentee to their goal. The main goal of a tutor is to prepare a student for a qualification process of a certain curriculum, such as an exam.

Coaching is a much more pragmatic, focused approach to learning. Coaches are often doing so professionally, as their role is more of a teacher than of a professional in the field.

Coaches tend to focus more on goals and measurable progress — getting you from A to B — rather than on their relationship with you.

Given all that information, here is what makes a mentor a mentor:

  • 1-on-1 personal relationship
  • No or light curriculum
  • Highly individual
  • Topical advice and personal growth
  • Mentors are ‘active’ professionals, typically

What about consulting?

Mentorship turns into consulting when the knowledge delivered is used to create value across an organization, as opposed to the mentee themselves.

Consultants often have more involvement in a company or organization as they are supplying their knowledge across departments.

It’s also not uncommon for consultants to roll up their sleeves and make big changes themselves.

When a designer is looking to grow in their position, that’s mentorship.

When an entrepreneur asks you for your advice on building a business, that’s mentorship.

If an executive team asks you to restructure their engineering team, that’s consulting.

Setting expectations

Your goal is to lead your mentees closer or all the way to their goal. On a high level, you should lead your mentee and help them to get unstuck.

On a more practical note, mentorship usually consists of the following:

  • Quick responses to issues and messages
  • Regular check-ins, depending on a pre-defined schedule
  • Potentially offering to glance over their work
  • Honoring the subscription plan
  • Potentially setting up deliverables and deadlines

Mentorship is a two-way street and both sides have to keep their side of the deal up. Just as much as it’s not OK for you to ghost your mentee, it’s also not OK for mentees to miss promises.