Orientation for Mentors and Mentees

Orientation for Mentors and Mentees COAA Apprentice Mentoring Program

Today’s agenda • Purpose and objectives • Why create a program • Components • Partners • Value determination • Audit • Other

Purpose and objectives • To give an overview of the apprentice mentoring program (AMP) • To provide a historical perspective • To highlight the value of the program • To give insight into the administration of the AMP • To discuss why industry should support an AMP • To solicit comments and feedback

Mission statement The AMP has been developed to create an environment that encourages experienced journeypersons to mentor new apprentices to become safe, skilled, competent, effective journeypersons and leaders

Vision statement A program that helps employers choose the best journeypersons to act as mentors and provides the mentee with additional tools and skills to maximize the value of the experience for both parties. The outcome is that the program is recognized and supported by industry as a desired and effective tool that produces highly effective journeypersons, thereby maximizing safety, employee job satisfaction, efficiency and productivity for all stakeholders.

Purpose and objectives • To address the key success factors, challenges, and potential opportunities for the AMP • To garner owner and contractor management support for the implementation of the AMP • To contribute towards the development of sufficient numbers of highly skilled, qualified apprentices for Alberta industry

Why create a program • Future projected shortage of skilled tradespeople • Future construction and maintenance demand • Aging workforce • Transfer of journeyperson experience • Future development of supervisory and management candidates • Investment in the future • Highlights stakeholders’ commitment and support • Enhances stakeholder credibility • Cost effective/cost benefit determination • Increases competitiveness present and future

Why create a program (cont’d) • Improves industry image • Enhances workforce development • Social and business responsibility • Broadens industry support • Moral obligation • Youth under-employment • Increases opportunities for women, Aboriginals and visible minority employment • Fewer dropouts equates to less turnover • Improves safety performance • Quality work

Components of the AMP best practice • Executive summary • The need for mentoring • History of mega-project AMPs • Mission statement • Purpose of an AMP • Objectives of mentoring • Benefits of mentoring (i.e. safety) • Key ingredients for a successful AMP • Stages in a mentoring relationship • Removal from the program • Roles and responsibilities

Components of the AMP best practice (cont’d) • Implementation of the AMP • Administration of the program • Communications • Program evaluation • Barriers to effective mentoring • Managing the Blue Book • Appendices

Partners • Government (Federal/Provincial) • Owners • Institutions • High schools • Labour providers • Contractor associations • Organizations promoting Aboriginals in the trades • Organizations promoting women in the trades

Partners (cont’d) • Teachers/educators • Community leaders • Parents • Journeypersons • Apprentices • Ambassadors • Media

Benefits • Improves health and safety performance • Helps new workers recognize strengths and weaknesses • Assists new workers to develop new skills and insights • Increases confidence, self-esteem, enthusiasm, commitment • Promotes teamwork and environment of mutual cooperation • Enhances transfer of experience from experienced leaders • Creates a supportive and trusting relationship for apprentices to vocalize issues and opinions • Powerful tool for personal and professional development • Improves competencies, leadership skills, self-awareness, morale • Promotes an inclusive work environment • Enhances mentor coaching, feedback, communication skills • Provides opportunity to learn in low-risk environment

Barriers to effective mentoring • Organizational business goals must be clearly articulated by senior executives as program evolves so modifications and adjustments can be implemented quickly • Some experienced tradespeople are not prepared to mentor and offer few training opportunities to bridge gap • Others are reluctant to pass on their wisdom • Some mentors see new entrants as potential competitors • Turnover of employees – journeypersons and apprentices • Daily pressures on work productivity • Some employers are concerned about cost of training • Mentee’s reluctance to participate in the learning process • Mismatch between mentor and mentee • Unrealistic expectations • Breaches of confidentiality

Roles: Owner • Visible, engaged champion of AMP • May make AMP a contractual requirement • Provides contractor sufficient resources to develop, implement and administer the AMP • Senior management provides AMP testimonials as to the value of the program • Participates in orientation of mentors and mentees • Participates in AMP recognition and awards program • Gives open, honest, constructive feedback on the contractor administration of the AMP • Supports the contractor’s efforts in finding and providing new and challenging opportunities for the mentee

Roles: Engineering procurement construction manager • Visible, engaged champion of the AMP • Provides contractor sufficient resources to develop, implement and administer the AMP • Participates in the orientation of mentors and mentees, when requested • Participates in the AMP recognition and awards program • Gives open, honest, constructive feedback on the contractor administration of the AMP • Supports contractor’s efforts in finding and providing new and challenging opportunities for the mentee • Keeps stakeholder management apprised of the AMP and its impact on the project • Encourages contractor participation in the AMP • Looks for ways to improve the AMP

Roles: Contractor • Assigns senior manager to be AMP champion • Markets AMP to potential mentor and mentees • Arranges for orientation for and between mentors and mentees, and ensures they understand respective roles • Participates in the AMP recognition and awards program • Assigns someone to manage the AMP • Encourages potential mentors to participate in the AMP • Matches mentors and mentees • Keeps the EPCM management apprised of the AMP and its impact on the project • Monitors the AMP and suggests changes to enhance program effectiveness • Supports efforts in finding and providing new and challenging opportunities for the mentee and mentor

Roles: Labour providers • Are visible champions of the AMP • Encourage individual mentors and mentees to participate in the AMP • Encourage contractors to participate in the AMP • Monitor the AMP and suggest changes to enhance program effectiveness • Participate with the EPCM and contractor in the AMP implementation • Promote the AMP in their newsletters • Participate in AMP recognition program, when requested

Roles: First-line supervisors (i.e. foremen) • Are visible champions of the AMP • Encourage individual mentors and mentees to participate • Encourage development of apprentice training schedule/plan • Ensure apprentice is assigned meaningful work • Meet regularly with mentor and mentee to ensure objectives of program are being met • Monitor the AMP and suggest changes to enhance program effectiveness • Participate with employer in AMP implementation • Promote the AMP in group settings • Participate in AMP recognition program, when requested

Roles: Mentor • Is visible champion of the AMP • Is positive example and leader, and is safe in all things • Encourages individual mentors and mentees to participate • Ensures apprentice is assigned meaningful work • Demonstrates willingness to commit to mentoring process • Attends formal mentoring training, progress reviews, forums • Participates in open, honest discussions with stakeholders • Develops an action plan • Meets or connects with mentee on regular basis • Monitors the program and suggests changes to enhance it • Participates with employer in AMP implementation • Promotes the AMP in group settings • Participates in the recognition program associated with the AMP, when requested

Roles: Mentor (cont’d) • Participates with employer in AMP implementation • Promotes the AMP in group settings • Participates in the recognition program associated with the AMP, when requested • Assumes four main coaching roles: • Teacher – assist mentee in setting goals and plans to achieve them • Consultant – discuss work-related concerns impeding performance or career growth • Guide – share organizational knowledge gained from experience • Challenger – provide objective and honest feedback

Roles: Mentee • Demonstrates willingness to commit to mentoring process • Ensures supervisor knows about and supports mentoring • Attends formal mentoring training, progress reviews, forums • Participates in open, honest discussions with stakeholders • Completes mentee application • Attends mentee and mentor orientations • Develops, follows and completes an action plan • Defines specific goals and objectives – identifies short and long-range objectives that lead to achieving goals • Stays linked with compatible mentor • Meets or connects with mentor on regular basis

Roles: Mentee (cont’d) • Discusses goals with mentor, and asks for challenging assignments • Monitors the program and suggests changes to enhance it • Participates with employer in AMP implementation • Promotes the AMP in group settings • Completes evaluations (initial, quarterly and final) and gives honest feedback • Participates in AMP recognition program, when requested • Is positive example and leader, and is safe in all things

Value determination • Local supply • Appraisals • Recruitment costs • Statistics • Knowledge transfer • Supervisory candidates • Workforce development

Value determination (cont’d) • Safety performance • Productivity • Company and owner reputation • Number of entrants • Number of graduates • Turnover • Mentor and apprentice feedback • Manpower availability

Stages in AMP • Phase one • Both mentor and mentee are getting to know each other, building trust and developing expectations of each other. The interaction that occurs at this stage will lay the foundation for a strong and beneficial relationship • Phase two • Typically the most rewarding time for both mentor and mentee. The mutual trust that has developed between the two can give the mentee the confidence to challenge the ideas of the mentor, just as the mentee’s ideas will be challenged by the mentor

Stages in AMP (cont’d) • Phase three • Typically, the relationship begins to draw apart. It is important that the mentor step back from the formal relationship to discuss with the mentee how they wish to continue their relationship • Phase four • Thementor-mentee relationship enters a new phase where both parties can regard one another as equals. They continue to have some form of interaction, although on a more casualbasis

Removal from program (mentor or mentee) • Talk to your partner about continuing or terminating the mentorship • Get help from AMP coordinator or other trusted advisors • Discuss issues with AMP coordinator • Determine logically and discreetly whether mentorship can be saved, is worth saving or should be concluded • Decide whether the mentor and mentee are candidates for a future relationship and record in the AMP file • Note: all partnerships are voluntary – no fault termination

Overview of mentoring action plans (MAP) • Before entering into a mentoring partnership, mentee must define goals and objectives • Mentor and mentee work together to complete a MAP • Developmental goals define the desired direction for the next timeframe • Objectives are small steps necessary to progress toward developmental goals. Use “SMART” to make sure they are: • Specific: well described, do you know what has happened? • Measurable: quantifiable or qualitatively, how will you know you achieved it? • Attainable: resources and ability, is it realistic? • Relevant: important to goal, does it help attain the goal? • Time-bound: specific timeframe, what is the suspense date?

Communication plan • Purpose • To inform all EPCMs, contractors and labour suppliers working on the project, of the AMP • To encourage ongoing support and participation in the AMP of all apprentices, potential mentors and supervisors working on the project

Communication plan (cont’d) • Internal stakeholders • Company senior management • Project construction manager • Construction managers • Managers of Labour Relations, Human Resources and Public Affairs, where applicable • Labour provider leadership • EPCMs, where applicable • Mentors and mentees • Construction supervisors/foremen • External stakeholders • Labour providers • Training institutions • Apprenticeship and Industry Training • COAA • Contractor associations as applicable

Recognition program and administration • Recognition program for participants of AMP • Recognition in company newsletters • Graduation ceremony • Mentor/mentee dinner, etc. • Administration • Structure to administer • Keeping record of participants (databank) • Audit materials and findings • Blue book administration • Update process

Why audit? • Measure to plan • Value targets achieved? • Checklist • Incentive to support • Provides a base to recognize performers • Shows commitment by stakeholders • Opportunities for improvement • Enhanced credibility

Other • Need targets for utilization of apprentices by trade, area of work, stage of project (women, Aboriginals and visible minorities) • Identify areas of high opportunity for use of apprentices and skills acquisition by apprentices • Consider developing, where practical and feasible, a training plan for each apprentice • Establish a policy regarding schooling attendance • Support alternate schooling mechanisms • Establish a policy regarding wage payment • Local focus

Orientation for Mentors and Mentees