Design the Mentoring Plan and the Apprenticeship Plan
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In this section we answer the question: “why is it important to design-coordinate the mentoring and apprenticeship plan?”. It makes sure, that the company, apprentice and the learning centre have correctly understood the objectives of the apprenticeship. Therefore it is important to design and coordinate the mentoring and apprenticeship plan together with the apprentice. It helps companies to understand and to get a better overview about the background and previous knowledge of the apprentice.
Now back to the question “how to design a mentoring and apprenticeship plan?”.
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Firstly we must find out how much knowledge the apprentice already has to perform different work tasks. eg knowledge about special software, planning projects etc.
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The next step would be to design, together with the apprentice, a daily work plan, with rules for different work procedures, deadlines for tasks, meetings, and communication rules with the mentor. The apprenticeship should make sure, that the apprentice is making daily incremental progress and development.
It’s important to see that the mentoring plan and apprenticeship plan are dynamic document, subject to revision as necessary.
Watch
In this video the design of a Mentoring plan and an Apprenticeship plan is further clarified:
Mentortrain video 1.5 (duration: 6:16)
Do
Meet with the apprentice, to:
- Discuss the objectives of the apprenticeship;
- Find out the expectations for the apprenticeship;
- Try to get as much information as necessary about the apprentice’s knowledge and experiences, including what is relevant and important for your company;
- Introduce your organization and people;
- Review the apprenticeship and mentoring plan together with the apprentice;
- Write down small steps not huge objectives;
- Make sure, that the apprentice has enough information how to get and give feedback about their development/problems etc.;
- Ascertain ways to assist the apprentice in personal development e.g. extra training in excel, English language etc.;
Don’t forget that our attitude for the meeting is very important and it requires enough time and preparation, as the first impression is always the most important.
Additional Resources
For further examples of designing a mentorship plan, see:
https://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/2018/02/19/step-step-design-effective-mentorship-program-part-2/
https://www.riversoftware.com/mentoring-software/how-do-i-design-a-mentoring-program/