CPRS Hamilton Mentorship Program
We are taking applications from September 19 to September 30 for the 2011-2012 CPRS Mentorship program. Successful applicants will be contacted in mid-October.
Who says you have to wait until next May to plant a healthy garden? The 2011-12 CPRS Hamilton Mentorship program is sowing its seeds now. Our program is designed to nurture and grow the public relations profession by matching senior practitioners with intermediate to junior practitioners and PR/communications students.
Starting in October, more than a dozen mentor-mentee relationships will begin to bloom. We already have mentors signed up for this year and we’re looking for mentees to join our successful program. On or after September 19, use this form to apply. Recruitment closes Friday, September 30, 2011.
What are the benefits to this program?
How is the mentorship experience structured?
How can I join the mentorship program?
Group Events
What have previous years’ mentees liked best?
What have previous years’ mentors liked best?
Profile of the Ideal Mentor
Are Coaching and Mentoring the Same Thing?
What are the benefits to this program?
Being a mentee can help you develop personal and professional skills and insights that will help you advance in your career. As a mentee you’ll gain:
- Access to an intermediate or senior practitioner in your field of interest who can serve as a guide and confidant as you progress in your PR career.
- An opportunity to gain valuable industry skills and knowledge.
- Building essential networking skills, as well as, establishing a network of PR contacts through your mentor.
- Guidance with writing your resume, developing your portfolio or other career advice.
Being a mentor can be a highly rewarding and satisfying experience. Some of the benefits to you include:
- An opportunity to enhance your communication and leadership skills.
- A chance to broaden your own network as you become engaged in the world of an intermediate or junior practitioner or PR student.
- A sense of accomplishment and pride as you participate in the successes of your mentee.
Increased recognition from your peers and professional society for your contributions to our profession. - Learning through the knowledge of your mentee and the other mentees and mentors in the program.
How is the mentorship experience structured?
CPRS members who participate in this program are asked to make a seven-month commitment (October to April) to their mentor or mentee. It is expected you are committing time to building a two-way relationship. This requires monthly contact with each other to keep connected. Together, the mentor and mentee will develop a set of goals based on your needs and interests. For instance, as a mentee you may look to your mentor for guidance in different kinds of PR work and workplaces that exist, or you may need advice about a career move. Once goals have been developed, you and your mentor need to determine how these goals will be reached. The Mentorship committee will provide you with event programming and support to help build your relationship.
Important: Mentees are expected to attend, at the least, four out of five mentorship events and together, will actually plan one of those events for the mentors (reverse mentoring).
Mentees, in effect, agree to join not only a program – but a professional ‘community’ of other mentees and mentors, for which the mentee’s contribution and involvement is a requirement. You’ll find that the greater the involvement, the better the experience and learning!
How can I join the mentorship program?
Complete the appropriate form below:
For more information:
Mentees, please contact:
David Rowney APR FCPRS
Co-Chair, Mentorship Committee
W 416 365 8858
rowney@sympatico.ca
Mentors, please contact:
Bruce Stock APR FCPRS
Co-Chair, Mentorship Committee
519-770-4178
Brucestock2010@gmail.com
Application deadline is Friday, September 30, 2011, and should be sent to the attention of David Rowney at the email address above.
Group Events
Five group events take place during the program that you are expected to attend.
- Mentorship Orientation, Speed Mentoring & Goal-setting
- Humbug
- Expert Panel – open to membership at large
- Reverse Mentoring
- Program Feedback & Wrap-Up Party
Please Note: The program is open to CPRS members only. Membership information is available on our Membership page. Students from Sheridan and Niagara Colleges are automatically enrolled as student members. The rate for student membership is $30.00.
What have previous years’ mentees liked best?
- Networking and hands-on advice
- Building a professional relationship
- Getting more familiar with CPRS Hamilton
- Close guidance, supervision and friendly advice of my mentor
- Opportunity to share skills and knowledge
- Learning about the different areas within PR
- Access to a good cross section of mentors – able to provide tailored experience
- Being able to swap stories and ask questions to increase comfort level with my career
What have previous years’ mentors liked best?
- Really well organized
- Opportunity to meet and work with emerging PR practitioners
- Opportunity to share expertise and knowledge of the profession
- Opportunity to give back to the profession
- Having something to do for my profession that wasn’t directly related to my work
- Meeting & talking with the students – exchange of ideas
Profile of the Ideal Mentor
By R. Bruce Stock, CD, BA, APR, FCPRS
Bruce Stock shares his wisdom on the kinds of qualifications and skills today’s mentor requires to be effective and some of the many inherent rewards that mentoring offers. Bruce was named 2009-2010 Mentor of the Year at the CPRS Hamilton Pinnacle Awards Gala. Bruce has served as a mentor for both CPRS Hamilton and CPRS Toronto and is an active member of the CPRS Hamilton Mentorship Committee.
In the second decade of the 21st Century, younger Public Relations practitioners are frequently graduates of postsecondary programs that provide important writing and PR planning skills. Their early careers are spent building a foundation in the practice of Public Relations and their involvement in professional associations, like the Canadian Public Relations Society, means they can develop a network and a knowledge-base by participating in professional development events, the awards programs (local and national), APR accreditation at the 5+ year milestone and via the mentorship program.
In response, CPRS Hamilton has created programming and, a superior mentorship program, which ensures our mentors are equipped and ready to deliver a quality mentoring experience. The mentorship committee seeks mentors who see mentoring as both a gift they can offer younger practitioners as well as, a privilege to participate and learn from today’s talent.
BASIC PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
To meet the intrinsic demands of being a Mentor, it is recommended the ideal Mentor candidate has achieved either the APR designation or a minimum of five to 10 years’ full-time experience in Public Relations.
A Mentor is . . .
- A path to learning and development - for the mentee but also for the mentor.
- A confidential sounding board for all types of queries, explorations or ideas.
- A person who enjoys sharing opinions and experiences for mutual enrichment, and;
- A source of guidance and support for another who is pursuing professional goals.
A Mentor is not . . .
- An expert with all the answers;
- A source of employment;
- An editor to write your resume or review your homework, and;
- A therapist to solve personal issues.
The Skills:
Through active listening and engaged mentoring, the Mentor exercises a mix of the following skills:
- Ability to listen and then tap into another’s strengths & desires;
- Strategies for overcoming professional obstacles such as fear of public speaking;
- Appreciation for confidentiality and an example of discretion;
- Maturity to address issues directly and quickly that may arise with mentee e.g. follow through on commitments;
- A source for current PR research, information or learning opportunities;
- Capable of setting goals with others and working toward plan;
- An model example of a ‘team player’, committed to CPRS Hamilton as a professional community, and;
- A life-long learner.
Mentors take on an important challenge since they ‘exemplify’ our profession’s commitment to ‘communications excellence’ and to two-way ethical communications. This selfless contribution does make a difference.
Are Coaching and Mentoring the Same Thing?
(reprinted with permission from Gord Neufeld)
We were recently asked by a prospective client “what was the difference between a mentor and a coach?” We answered that “the relationship between a coach and a client is fundamentally different than that of mentor/mentee. The coach is responsible for performance while the mentor is focused on the individual. Mentors have a bias that is toward the individual. If the mentor didn’t like the mentee it’s likely the relationship would not flourish. A coach on the other hand is more impartial; focused on improvement and understanding.” Coaches can certainly like their client - mentoring often begins with a friendship.
Have you ever had a mentor? I have just finished a rewarding experience as a mentor for a young woman in public relations. This mentoring relationship was through an organized program established by the Hamilton chapter of the Canadian Public Relations Society, to match mentors (experienced senior practitioners) and young practitioners embarking on a PR career. Some of the mentees were already starting their careers and others were just leaving school. I have been a mentor in the program for three years - with very different mentees. The process is always one of discovery for both mentor and mentee. In fact as part of the mentoring process I got a crash course in social media from a group of Gen Y mentees.
In my career I have had several mentors who have been extremely valuable in many ways. One helped to direct me toward a profession. Another helped to direct me away from same profession! (with a span of almost 15 years in between.) My mentors were always the unofficial kind, open to having a tea or a beer and helping to put things in perspective. Today I still have friends whom I would call mentors and I also have a coach with whom I meet virtually every two weeks.
“In Greek mythology, Mentor was the son of Alcumus and, in his old age, a friend of Odysseus. When Odysseus left for the Trojan War he placed Mentor in charge of his son, Telemachus, and of his palace. When Athena visited Telemachus she took the disguise of Mentor to hide herself from the suitors of Telemachus’ mother Penelope. As Mentor, the goddess encourages Telemachus to stand up against the suitors and go abroad to find out what happened to his father.When Odysseus returns to Ithaca, Athena (in the form of Mentor) takes the form of a swallow and the suitors’ arrows have no effect on him.” (wikipedia)
I love how the Mentor somehow is not affected by the suitors’ arrows. Mentors are protectors and nurturers while coaches are about soaring and reaching new heights.
Do you have a mentor? Has your company or organization established a mentorship program? Engaging your people in an activity such as mentoring can offer many possibilities for both parties. Take the above example of social media. The pairing of a more senior executive with a newer recruit can expand to a valuable knowledge transfer of company history, relationships and information. Turning it around allows the more experienced executive to be mentored on the possibilities of new media within the organization. The real value of course is in the learning. The type of learning: organized, spontaneous, unexpected - doesn’t change the outcome of knowledge expansion that is both deeper and broader across the organization.
Do you know someone who could benefit from a mentor with your knowledge? Offering your wisdom to a young leader reaps mutual benefit for both. Have you had someone who you have considered a mentor? If you have been lucky enough to have experienced this special relationship, a coaching opportunity would be: acknowledge their contribution to your success.
