Have you been charged with setting up a mentoring program for your organization?  There is a lot to think about when you undertake such an initiative.  I have seen programs that aren’t successful because there was never any communication within the organization as to the purpose of the program.  Like any other well-run program, there is some up front work which needs to be done to ensure the success of the program.

Take the time to do the up-front due diligence.  Here are some steps to take to get yourself started on rolling out a program within your organization:

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How does your organization view the training group? Have you thought about it? If not, you should. I have spoken with a number of clients recently who want to elevate their organization’s perception of the training group and are trying to decide how to best go about it.

There are various reasons why they are interested in such an initiative; among them the desire to increase budgets for programs and investment in new learning technologies, and to play a more strategic role and add more value within the organization. For some, this has entailed a first step of “re-branding” as Learning & Development; a name that implies more than just training – which is frequently associated with offering instructor-led courses.

This is a good first step, but certainly does not work to fully change the organization’s perceptions of the group.

So…how does your organization view the group?

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There are immense benefits from conducting a structured training needs analysis to discover where your business or organisation can benefit most from the application of training. Often, an organisation or business sends people on regular training courses because they believe they are of value.

Training is a large investment and large investments require justification. One of the best ways of justifying the need to spend training dollars, is to carry out a training needs analysis. It’s very hard to argue against a training needs analysis indicates that 84% of all supervisory staff require training in performance management.

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As a leader, HR training can be useful in teaching you how to ensure ethical outcomes in the workplace. This should begin with an agreement between leaders and all team members that pledges to act in an ethical manner at all times. The agreement should also mention the importance of making sure team members always discuss issues as a group, rather than breaking into factions and holding discussions separately.

Team members should agree not to discuss group items outside of the group. If a leader does not put this into the agreement, there is a greater chance that the group will disintegrate. In cases where people don’t follow the agreement and will not adjust to more ethical practices, the leader should replace the person and take the person off of the team. This will show the team the importance of the agreement, of ethical behavior, and ensure an ethical workplace environment.

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Your new hire employees have to be up and running fast. Should you use on-the-job-training? Online courses? Classroom? You can bring them up to speed quickly with a new hire training program that combines all three. Here’s how.

Many organizations choose to train new hires strictly on-the-job (OTJ). This can be a good practice if the line employees have the time to bring a new hire up to speed – but how many of us can be assured that this is the case 100% of the time? But by using a formal new hire training program you can ramp up the new hire force much quicker than on-the-job-training.

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To provide an effective learning experience, you need to focus first on the needs of your trainees. The various people attending your session will have different needs, varying levels of skill or existing knowledge about the subject, and different expectations.

First, try to build a feedback mechanism into the training registration process. Ask potential attendees what they hope to learn. You do not necessarily need to cover all of the issues they raise, but you may see common expectations that will help you adjust your plans according to their needs.

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