Needs assessment
According to (Jack, 2008) the reason why a needs assessment is undertaken is usually to aid learners figure out what they need to learn. This can be when they are trying to qualify for a job, they are trying to achieve an objective or goal in their career plan or they are trying to overcome a problem to do with performance.
I first had to do a gap analysis which entailed checking the current performance of Brentwood secondary college and also the people and contrasted that with the current standards and trends. I conducted the needs assessment by use of focus groups which involved holding meetings with all the relevant members of the wellbeing department. I chose this method as it directly involved the players and they were best positioned to outline the challenges they faced and also provide suggestions of how these challenges could be overcome. Some of the places that came out as needing to be addressed were those touching on the policies and procedures as everybody felt they were outdated or that they we not comprehensive; also they felt that parents were not fully aware of the effects of self-harm to their children. The problem that however came out strongly was that of the mentoring program where they felt that there was need for a formal mentoring program that would provide direction to the process of work placement. As such, I further discussed these needs with the supervisor and other department heads and it became clear the most pertinent issue was that to do with the mentoring program. It also turned out as the most viable project too.
Organizational context
This project is supposed to take place in Brentwood secondary schools wellbeing department and it will exclusively touch on the staff members of this department. Its expansion to other departments will be highly dependent on its success here. The project will be guided by the department managers and I will oversee and record progress throughout the project. We will make use of the current team of placement staff to carry out the project where they will be incorporated into the process of developing and effective mentorship program. Mentorship will be divided into programs where each placement student will be assigned to a mentor who will be able to cover the specific need of the student. This will be done on a rotational basis and progress will always be recorded so that repetition can be avoided and more can be covered in a realistic time span.
Relevant literature
More companies have been taking up mentoring programs but the problem with this has been that focus has largely been of the growth of the mentee with little or no significant impact at all the organization offering the program. (Baugh & Fagenson-Eland, 2007) state that organizations have more to gain from formal mentorship programs as they have a say over who will undertake the mentorship process and what skills and knowledge will be imparted on the mentee. This way mentees can learn some classrooms concepts using hands on approach this time while the mentors will benefit by getting updated with the new updates to the field. Georgia Chao (1992) states that the flipside of the coin when it comes to this approach is that there is difficulty when it comes to matching the mentors and mentees as there might arise friction and incompatibility issues. The mentorship process should be an all-inclusive process where even the senior staff participate because according to Allen and Eby (2007), both mentors and mentees will require training time.
Project rationale
Among the points of concern by the placement students at Brentwood secondary school has been the absence of any form of direction and structure during mentorship. The steadily increasing number of placement students and the lack of any formal structure have left both the mentors and mentees at a loss. Issues stemming from mentees constantly being assigned to one mentor and a few days being reassigned to another one and also mentors being unsure of how much they were required to cover in an unspecified timeframe took center stage. The placement staff said they preferred the same mentor for a few months.
Aims
This project is aimed at providing guidance and support to the placement students in order to help them learn more during the period they will be there. The students will each be assigned a mentor who will guide them all through the training up to the last day of training. The mentors will also receive mentorship training and be given guidelines on how to undertake the mentorship process.
Methods
The methods to be used will include:
Making comparisons with organizations that have already undertaken such programs.
Holding deliberative discussions with department heads on chances of the project being endorsed.
Holding talks with the members of the department to listen to their needs.
Gathering training materials and resources for the students.
Outcomes
This project will ultimately provide students with a sense of direction that help make the most out of their time in Brentwood Secondary school. This will be achievable as mentorship will be made hereditary where it will be passed from the mentor to the mentee whereby after that the mentee will also become a mentor to the incoming placement students. This will formalize the whole process as mentors will have clear guidelines on how they are required to undertake the whole mentorship process.
Timeline
Meetings will be held with the wellbeing department staff so as to find out the needs of the placement students
A formal proposal will be presented to the schools management.
Once approved, paperwork and procedure documentation on placement will commence.
Training manuals for the students will be made.
Mentoring guidelines and training will take place and also selection of the mentors.
Once the placement students arrive, the program will be rolled out.
Project proposal: Mentorship Program at Brentwood Secondary School
Background
Thie mentorship project at Brentwood secondary school is a project aimed at improving how mentees are able to learn skills within the school’s wellbeing department. It will provide an overview of what will be the functions of different staff members who will be appointed as mentors and what will be the outcome of the whole process. Unlike ancient informal mentorship programs, this program will provide a structured and layered approach to how placement students will undergo the mentorship program. The current mentoring program at the school does not have any capability to measure who effective their mentorship program and also they are not able to track how much the students have learnt. There is also confusing regarding how much a mentor is required to teach a student and the timeframe for which the training of a specific activity should be. As such there is disorganization in terms of how the mentorship process is supposed to be carried out.
Objectives
Some of the end results that are expected to be achieved from the mentorship project are:
Providing a systematic and well-structured mentorship program where students will be incorporated in a well-defined mentorship process. There will be guidelines, timeframes and expectations for all the procedures that are undertaken and the effectiveness and success of every stage will be measured in order to gauge on the relevance or irrelevance of a specific process. The placement students will also be asked to assess the training they have received and state if it has been beneficial to their molding.
Equipping mentors with the know how to undertake the mentorship process. They will be trained and given specific guidelines on how to impart knowledge to the learners. The mentors will be trained to conform to the students’ specific needs and they will be matched and assigned to their mentees by gauging the level of their compatibility. Bell and Treleaven (2011) stated that pairing the right mentor and mentee was a way to positively impact on the mentee and the organization. Their social behavior will be assessed and monitored to make an informed decision on whether they are fit to be mentors or not.
This program is also geared towards easing the pressure on mentors by coming up with a transitional system where the more experienced students will act as mentors to the new placement student students. This will allow more time for the permanent staff to attend to their responsibilities and less time mentoring (Janice, 2009). Some mentoring obligations will however be strategically left to the experienced working staff. As such, the older placement students will be in a position to show and exercise what they have learnt from their mentors.
Scope and timeframe
The end result of the project is supposed to be a well-defined and properly structured mentorship program that will benefit both the placement student as well as the organization. The procedure of mentorship will offer the staff ample time to undertake their duties while also offering students enough training and exposure. It will pay attention to the learning needs of a placement student from the moment they join the school all the way to the point where they finish their placement period.
Timeframe
Phase one:
The learning needs of the student will be put into consideration and training manuals and guidelines will be prepared to assist in the mentorship process.
The student placement enrolment will take place.
Mentor and mentee matching will be made so that compatibility and good relations can be encouraged between the two parties.
Phase two:
The placement students will be welcome into the school and they will be acquainted will the department staff, rules and procedures.
The handing out of mentorship guidance pamphlets will take place as mentees are assigned to their respective mentors.
The mentorship process will officially begin as the mentors and mentees embark to their various work stations.
Phase three:
Mentoring will be marked by demonstrations by the mentors to the mentees and verbal instructions. The mentor will be required to explain everything he/she does to the protégé.
Routine checks and evaluations will take place to assess the progress of the program and the gains it is yielding the company. Informal meetings will be conducted to ensure the students and staff is content.
Stake holders
The key stake holders in this project will largely be the wellbeing staff and the placement students. They will be the most active players as other players will be the management as it will offer logistical support as well as financial and technical support.
Monitoring and evaluation
The project will be monitored by the department heads. Routine and random checks will take place in order to ascertain the relations between mentors and mentees is cordial. After a period of three months an overall analysis of the whole project will be undertaken to ensure whether project is beneficial to the mentees and the organization. According to IRSC (2011), basing on the findings a decision will be made on whether the project should carry on or it should be overhauled. In the event it is carried on, another overall analysis will be made at the end of the six months placement period of the student.
Conclusion
The development of mentorship programs for students has been supported by (Allen, Eby, & Lentz (2006) who have cited it as more beneficial to the students as well as the organization at large. It not only benefits the students but also he management as it learns from the students as well and thus develops flexibility in terms of operational procedures and new methods (Hegstad and Wentling, 2005).
References
Shaw J. S. (2008). Assessing Your Training Needs. Needs Assessment to Training Goals
Allen, T. D., Eby, L. T., & Lentz, E. (2006). Mentorship behaviors and mentorship quality associated with formal mentoring programs: Closing the gap between research and practice. 91(3), 567-578.
Chao, G. T., Walz, P. M. and Gardner, P. D. (1992) Formal and informal mentorships: a comparison on mentoring functions and contrast with non-mentored counterparts, Personnel Psychology. 45(3)
Baugh, S. G., & Fagenson-Eland, E. A. (2007). Formal mentoring programs: A “poor cousin” to informal relationships? (pp. 249–271). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
B. R. Ragins & K. E. Kram (Eds.), The handbook of mentoring at work: Theory, research, practice (pp. 249–271).
Bell, A., & Treleaven, L. (2011). Looking for professor right: Mentee selection of mentors in a formal mentoring program. Higher Education. 61(5), 545-561.
Hegstad, C. D., & Wentling, R. M. (2005). Organizational antecedents and moderators that impact on the effectiveness of exemplary formal mentoring programs in fortune 500 companies in the United States. Human Resource Development International, 8(4), 467-487.
Allen, T. D., Eby, L. T., & Lentz, E. (2006). Mentorship behaviors and mentorship quality associated with formal mentoring programs: Closing the gap between research and practice. 91(3), 567-578.
The international organization of the Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. 2011. Project monitoring and evaluation guide
Janice Tingum. (2009). The advantages of mentoring in the work place.
