Mentees will be drawn from, and located, across the UK. It is anticipated (and an aspirational requirement) that consultants selected to participate in the Programme will become ambassadors for the NDCMP, Association of British Clinical Diabetologists, and, over time, themselves become mentors on the programme.
Individuals seeking a place on the programme should be seen as a ‘talent’; that is, somebody who, with development, has the potential to undertake in the future challenging leadership roles at regional, national and international level. While consultants applying for a place on the programme will need to demonstrate some specific individual skills, knowledge and experience, the support of their employing Trust will play a part in their suitability for participation on the NDCMP.
SKILLS KNOWLEDGE AND TRAINING
- Self-motivated
- Confident
- An effective communicator
- Willing to learn
- Possess a positive mental attitude
The entry requirement in terms of experience will be that an individual has spent 3 years or less as a consultant or, in the case of a specialist registrar, will be in their fifth year, waiting for an appointment to, or about to take up, a consultant post.
RESPONSIBILITIES
It is expected that you will:
- Be self-motivated and confident;
- Possess a positive mental attitude.
- Be willing to try new ways of learning and be open and truthful;
- Be ready to work, keep to your commitments and inform your mentor when things are not working for you;
- Understand that your mentor is there to stimulate your thinking, challenge and support you; and,
- Honour the ‘contracting’ arrangements.
Application
- Gather evidence of commitment to personal development
- Identify benefits of participation
- Obtain Trust approval/reference
- Submit application
Induction and orientation
- Mandatory attendance at orientation workshop
- Submit statement/confirmation/CV document
- Review prospective mentors
Mentor matching
- Select mentor
- After approval make contact with preferred mentor
- Liaise with mentor
- Reach agreement
- Notify programme committee of agreement to proceed
- Proceed.
Attendance at meetings
- Attend at least one meeting per year
Evaluation
- Complete feedback forms
- Provide feedback at facilitated meetings
- Submit articles for professional journals
APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCESS
The key principle underpinning the application and selection process is that mentees must already be actively engaged in personal development and be able to demonstrate this. It is a fundamental tenet of the NDCMP that the mentee is someone who is proactive. Specifically, each mentee must own be prepared to take ownership of the opportunity presented by the one-to-one mentoring available on the NDCMP.
In terms of evidence of engagement, the mentee will be expected to provide a Personal Development Plan (or something similar), and demonstrate that he or she is compliant with local Trust procedures and practices (including but not limited to appraisal, Continuous Personal Development and other forms of performance management).
Application is undertaken via online application. The application will comprise reasons for submitting the application, the benefit the applicant anticipates deriving from participation in the NDCMP, evidence of personal development and a letter of support from their clinical line manager. This application will be submitted electronically to the ABCD Operations Team. All applications will be passed to the programme lead who will conduct the initial ‘sift’ of applicants before reviewing with the programme committee each application submitted. A list placing all applicants in rank order will be drawn up. Those applicants that are considered suitable will receive an invitation to participate in the NDCMP
The Programme Committee will have the authority to consider applications from prospective mentees who would not ordinarily be eligible. For example, the Panel might in special circumstances consider and approve an application from a more senior consultant where the Panel identifies that the individual would benefit from participation and is suitable in all respects, were it not for their seniority as a consultant.
Where a prospective mentee is already on a NHS talent management programme, there should be no bar to his or her participation in the NDCMP, since the NDCMP is a mentorship programme specifically for diabetologists. In obtaining support from their employing Trust, prospective mentees should focus on the specialist nature of the Programme.
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF BEING A MENTEE
Preparing for mentoring sessions
You will benefit most from mentoring when it is on an on-going basis over an agreed number of sessions and an agreed period of time. This will enable you to set specific goals, review your progress and monitor how close you are to achieving your goals. Beware of the temptation to want to achieve everything immediately, it may be unrealistic and could put undue pressure on you.
The following questions are for you to consider before you start the Mentorship Programme and they apply equally to each session:
- What is the most important thing you would like to achieve as a result of (today’s) mentoring?
- In which areas would you like to grow over the next 12 months?
- What are your greatest talents and natural abilities as a consultant in the diabetes and endocrinology speciality?
- What are the key issues that inhibit your ability to perform at your best?
- Where do you add the most value as a consultant?
- What habits or behaviours do you need to develop or change to achieve your goals?
Before each mentoring session, you should:
- Make sure that a suitable venue has been agreed. Please check you have the right date, start and finish time as you or your mentor may be travelling significant distance to meet;
- Make sure that nobody will interrupt you and that your phone is switched off throughout the session;
- Ensure that you have eaten or have snacks available – some people have been known to come straight from a meeting and may have missed lunch which can interrupt concentration;
- Invest in a special ‘mentoring notebook’ and jot down specific thoughts, actions and any other relevant notes. This will aid reflection and enable you to review your progress as you go along
- At least 10 minutes before your session, ensure you are in a place both mentally and physically that is ‘switched off’ from the rest of the world. This is your time!
- Other mentees have found it useful to build in adequate space for reflection immediately following the mentoring session in order to continue creative thinking and embed learning and development. This may not be possible, however, it’s highly recommended.
- Agree arrangements for the next meeting having agreed that it is appropriate, relevant and constructive for the Mentee / Mentor relationship to continue.
You may agree to action certain points in between sessions and these will be discussed between you and your mentor. It’s important that you are honest and open with your mentor and a brief review session at each meeting will provide opportunity for both parties to discuss what is working and any changes that could help things work more effectively.
