Webinar on Mentoring Up for the National Postdoctoral Association - slides and handout

2. •
•
•

9. PROBABILITY OF SUCCESS
DECISION
QUALITY
COORDINATION CONFLICT
MANAGEMENT
Dierdorff & Rubin, March 2015 HBR.ORG
High self-
awareness
teams
Low self-
awareness
teams
32%
68%
27%
73%
35%
65%

11. 


12. Take-Home Lesson
Assess
Apply
Assess yourself &
others accurately
Apply your
assessments
strategically
&

13. 







15. 


16. 







17. 










18. 













19. • NRMNet.net
• Sign up as a mentor or mentee
• Connect with others through myNRMN
• Receive online training and view webinars
• Participate in trainings in your area
• Access resources and research on mentoring
Supported by the NIH
U54 GM119023
National Research Mentoring Network

20. Main Lesson
Assess
Apply
&

22. •
•
•

24. 
o



o







25. 









26. Questionnaire for Aligning Expectations in Research Mentoring Relationships
Mentor / Supervisor: Mentee / Student:
Time Period: Dept / Program:
Read each pair of statements and estimate your position on each. For example with statement pair #1, if you believe the
ideal mentoring relationship focuses on the research interests, select 1, 2, or 3. Or if you think the ideal relationship
focuses on the working and communication styles, select 4, 5, or 6. Avoid filling in “3.5” for your responses.
Early Stages of the Mentoring Relationship and Choosing Mentors/Mentees
1
For an ideal mentoring relationship, it’s important for
both mentor and mentee to have similar research
interests
1 2 3 4 5 6
For an ideal mentoring relationships, it’s important
for both to have similar working and communication
styles
2
In an ideal mentoring relationship, mentors should
provide close supervision and guidance 1 2 3 4 5 6
In an ideal mentoring relationship, mentors should
provide much freedom and independence for the
mentees to explore and learn themselves
3
Mentors should only accept mentees when they have
specific & deep knowledge of the mentee’s research
topic
1 2 3 4 5 6
Mentors can provide overall guidance, and so should
feel free to accept mentees from a broad range of
disciplines
4
A personal and friendly relationship between mentor
and mentee is important for a successful relationship 1 2 3 4 5 6
A professional relationship is advisable to maintain
objectivity for both mentee and mentor during their
work
5
The mentor is responsible for providing emotional
support & encouragement to the mentee
1 2 3 4 5 6
Personal counselling and support are not the
responsibility of the mentor
6
It is the mentor’s responsibility to select a research
topic for the mentee
1 2 3 4 5 6
The mentee is responsible for selecting her/his own
research topic
7
When choosing research topics, I prefer to work on
projects with potential for high payoffs, even if it
involves high risk
1 2 3 4 5 6
When choosing research topics, I prefer to work on
projects that have a strong & safe chance of success,
even if the payoff is low
8
The mentor should decide how frequently to meet
with the mentee
1 2 3 4 5 6
The mentee should decide when she/he wants to
meet with the mentor
9
The mentor should provide the rules and guidelines
for the program or dept to the mentee
1 2 3 4 5 6
It is the mentee’s responsibility to gather and learn
the rules and guidelines of the program or dept
10
The mentor is responsible for finding funding until
the mentee graduates or completes the program
1 2 3 4 5 6
Mentees are responsible for finding their own
sources of funding
Middle Stages of the Mentoring Relationship
11
The mentor should be the primary guide for the
mentee in their academic and professional goals
1 2 3 4 5 6
The mentee should gather multiple mentors as they
work toward their academic and professional goals
12
The mentor should be the first place to turn when
the mentee has problems with the research project 1 2 3 4 5 6
Mentees should try to resolve problems on their
own, including seeking input from others, before
bringing a research problem to the mentor
13
The mentor should check regularly that the mentee is
working consistently and finishing tasks
1 2 3 4 5 6
The mentee should work independently and
productively, and not have to account for their time
14
The mentor should develop an appropriate plan and
timetable of research and study for the mentee 1 2 3 4 5 6
The mentee should develop their own plan and
timetable of research and study, and seek input from
the mentor only as needed
Advanced Stages of the Mentoring Relationship
14
The mentor should initiate the preparation of
presentations, thesis, papers, and reports
1 2 3 4 5 6
Presentations, thesis, papers, and reports should be
initiated by the mentee
15
The mentor should insist on seeing all drafts of work
(presentations, thesis, papers, etc) to ensure that the
mentee is on the right track
1 2 3 4 5 6
Mentees should submit drafts of work
(presentations, thesis, papers, etc) only when they
want constructive criticism from the mentor
16
The mentor is responsible for providing career advice
and professional connections to the mentee 1 2 3 4 5 6
Because professional options these days are
numerous, mentees should seek career advice and
connections from other sources

27. Using the “Questionnaire for Aligning Expectations in Research Mentoring Relationships”
The Role of Expectations
Managing expectations between mentors and mentees can be challenging and is a common source of conflict in
mentoring relationships. Often the conflict relates to unspoken expectations that are not explicitly addressed, because
they are assumed or even unaware to the mentor or mentee. To help bring some of these expectations into the open
for discussion, using this questionnaire can help. This tool has been designed as a discussion starter for use by research
mentors and student mentees. Our experience suggests that the tool is especially effective when users of this form
recognize that:
• there are no “right” answers to the items on the questionnaire
• responses are likely to be different at different stages of academic or professional progress, i.e. for
undergraduate students, graduate students, postdocs, junior faculty, senior faculty, etc
• even identical numerical responses can correspond to different rationales and expectations
Although the misalignment of expectations can often lead to conflict, the expectations do not need to be identical (and
would be unrealistic) to develop a productive working relationship. However, a thorough discussion of expectations can
greatly increase the likelihood of a productive collaboration and minimize conflicts. Relevant expectations in the context
of research mentoring and supervision can relate to:
• understandings of what research is and is not
• appropriate roles and responsibilities of mentors and mentees, supervisors and employees, etc
• the benefits and advantages of working together as mentor and mentee
• what is considered to be professional and ethical behavior in your discipline
• how respect is expressed to the mentor and mentee
• how both the mentor and mentee can be pro-active and actively listen to each other
The goal of using this questionnaire is to provide a framework for a fruitful discussion about each person’s expectations,
and how to decide on appropriate ongoing actions as the relationship develops. Participants are free to pick and choose
which pairs of statements are relevant for their situation, and to even add statements or topics for discussion.
Furthermore, this form was created primarily created for mentoring relationships between research faculty mentors and
student mentees. However, we recognize that different disciplines and contexts may use other terms, e.g.
• PI (principle investigator), research or academic advisor, employer, supervisor
• student, trainee, employee, protégé
Suggestions for Use: We suggest the following process for using this questionnaire.
• make sure both parties have a blank copy of the questionnaire
• both parties fill out the questionnaire separately
• set up a meeting that will be focused on this questionnaire
• at the meeting, start by comparing the responses given for each statement by each person
• discuss thoroughly the significance of each response (i.e. answer what each response means for each person)
• provide suggestions on how you’ll address different responses and expectations
• consider repeating the process at various points (e.g. once per year, during critical transitions of the mentee’s
timeline, etc)
• consider sharing your responses to the questionnaire with peers at your similar stage, so that you can compare
how other people at your level respond to the statements
This document originated from Ingrid Moses (Centre for Learning & Teaching, University of Technology, Sydney), was adapted by
Margaret Kiley & Kate Cadman (Advisory Centre for University Education at the University of Adelaide), and was further revised by
Steve Lee (Graduate Diversity Officer for the STEM Disciplines at UC Davis; stnlee@ucdavis.edu).

28. 1
Navigating your Research Mentoring Relationship with a MAP:
Mentoring Action Plan
Steve Lee (stnlee@ucdavis.edu); DRAFT
As a mentor and mentee begin their research mentoring relationship, both face multiple challenges
and opportunities for growth. It’s critical for both to communicate clearly and continuously, align
explicit and hidden expectations, anticipate and resolve conflicts, assess themselves and their
situation, adapt to new situations and surprises, and anticipate how the relationship will evolve and
grow in the future. Facing all these challenges can be daunting, but developing a Mentoring Action
Plan (MAP) can help to minimize conflicts and stress, and maximize the effectiveness of the
relationship so that both mentor and mentee succeed in their respective goals and needs.
Developing a MAP for your mentoring relationship is similar to an Individual Development Plan (IDP),
which can help plan your academic and professional career. Creating a MAP and IDP also helps
mentees to “mentor up”, i.e. to learn to pro-actively engage with their mentor (1-4). However,
creating these plans does not mean that you’ll be able to control all aspects of your mentoring
relationship and career. You’ll still need to be flexible and adapt to surprises and transitions.
As a mentor and mentee collaborate to develop a MAP, they may additionally wish to develop a
mentoring compact. In this mentoring compact, both sides describe their own responsibilities of how
they will contribute to the mentoring relationship and how they will commit to serving each other to
build a mutually beneficial relationship. Consequently, as they approach new mentoring relationships,
they will be further equipped to understand their own preferences for working with others and how to
adapt to new colleagues from different perspectives. Examples of mentoring compacts are found here
(5).
This MAP has two main sections:
 Part A: Seven Core Principles of Effective Mentoring Relationships
 Part B: Developing SMART Goals and your MAP for Your Mentoring Relationship
Suggested Guidelines for Use:
This MAP is provided to help both the mentor and mentee navigate through challenges and take
advantage of opportunities. Both should obtain a blank version of this MAP, so that both can complete
this form independently first. Afterwards, both can come together to discuss their desired SMART
goals, responses to the questions, and preferences for developing a process for resolving conflicts.
These discussions can help both develop a mutually beneficial plan.
Because there is often a significant power differential between the mentor and the mentee, the
mentor will need to take particular care not to dominate the discussion of how to proceed. The
mentee will also need to learn to pro-actively engage (i.e. to “mentor up”) in the discussions by asking
astute questions and providing suggestions.
Mentor / PI / Supervisor / Coach / Sponsor:
Mentee / Student / Employee / Protégé:
Academic or professional program:
Time Period (start and end dates):

29. 2
Part A: Seven Core Principles of Effective Mentoring Relationships
Among training materials for mentoring relationships, two evidence-based mentor and mentee
training programs have been nationally established and recognized: Entering Mentoring and Entering
Research (6-7). The curricula for these training programs have formed the foundation for materials for
the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN; https://nrmnet.net/), which is a nationwide
consortium of biomedical professionals and institutions collaborating to provide evidence-based
mentorship and professional development programming that emphasizes the benefits and challenges
of diversity, inclusivity and culture.
The Entering Mentoring and Entering Research curricula are based on seven core principles for
effective mentoring relationships, and address different aspects of the relationship. These principles
have also been used as the framework for applying the concept of “mentoring up” for mentees to pro-
actively engage with their mentors in academic research settings. Below are listed the core principles,
along with questions that should be addressed between the mentor and mentee.
The following questions are provided so that both the mentor and mentee can address them in
advance, to help reveal hidden and assumed expectations, and to minimize conflicts. Although it’s
impossible to anticipate all conflicts, discussing issues in advance can help to communicate
expectations and delegate responsibilities. All of the questions will not be relevant for every
mentoring relationship, and so you should focus only on relevant issues. Furthermore, these questions
should be re-visited periodically as the relationship progresses, surprises occur, and new issues arise.
As you go through the questions, you may wish to mark questions that have been resolved and insert
the answers, mark other questions that haven’t been resolved, and add new questions as you realize
they must be addressed. Irrelevant questions can be ignored. When the mentor and mentee come
together, they should compare their responses to see if they align, or if further clarification is
necessary. It may help to be aware that potential differences might arise in what each consider to
have been resolved, answers to questions, and what is considered to be relevant or irrelevant. All of
these differences may require further discussion.
1. Maintaining Effective Communication. Good communication is a key element of any relationship
and a mentoring relationship is no exception. It is critical that mentors and mentees seek to
understand their own and the other’s communication styles, and take time to practice
communication skills.
○ How often will you meet together?
─ Regularly: daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly?
─ Only as needed: How will you decide when meetings are needed? Who will initiate the
meetings?
○ Is there a preferred means of communication?
─ in person
─ email: What’s an acceptable timeframe to reply to most email messages?
─ phone: Are personal cell phone numbers shared, or are only work numbers shared? Will
you receive and reply to text messages?

30. 3
○ Are there times when you will not be available, e.g. during evenings, weekends, holidays,
vacations, and sabbaticals?
○ Confidentiality
─ Will the conversations between the mentor and mentee be kept confidential?
─ Who else will be informed of the discussions?
○ Will an agenda be developed before each meeting? If so, who will initiate it?
○ Will meeting minutes and/or action items be developed after each meeting? If so, who will
initiate it?
○ How will records of communications be maintained as the research and mentorship
progresses?
2. Aligning Expectations. Another key element of effective mentor-mentee relationships is a shared
understanding of what each person expects from the relationship. Problems and disappointment
often arise from misunderstandings about expectations. Importantly, expectations change over
time, so reflection, clear communication, and realignment of expectations are needed on a regular
basis.
○ The mentor and mentee should consider working through the Questionnaire for Aligning
Expectations in Research Mentoring Relationships (in appendix), or a similar exercise.
○ Does the mentor have other responsibilities that might impact the mentoring relationship, e.g.
committees, teaching, plans for coming up for tenure, family obligations, etc?
○ Does the mentee have other responsibilities that might impact the mentoring relationship, e.g.
coursework, teaching or graduate assistantships, family obligations, etc?
○ If both the mentor and mentee have regular meetings or commitments, they may wish to share
their schedules or calendars.
○ Research topic: if a research topic needs to be created, how will it be developed? Who will be
responsible for developing the ideas? How much will the mentee contribute to creating and
developing the ideas?
○ Funding: if the mentor and mentee will be working on research projects, how will the research
be funded?
○ Publications and presentations: as research is conducted, how will the results and
achievements be disseminated?
3. Assessing Understanding. Determining what you understand as well as if someone truly
understands you is not easy, yet is critical to a productive mentor-mentee relationship. Developing
strategies to self-assess and assess others’ understanding is an important part of being an effective
mentor and mentee.
○ Review Process: how will the mentee receive feedback so that they can improve and grow?
─ Will there be a formal process for how the mentee will be reviewed for their progress? If
so, how they will be evaluated? What are the criteria for this evaluation?
─ Has the mentee been provided resources to achieve the goals?
─ Are there review steps required for an academic or funding program?
○ Promotion: are there opportunities for the mentee to advance in their status or role? If so,
what are the expected goals required to achieve the advanced role?
○ Individual Development Plan: will the mentee work through an IDP with the mentor?

31. 4
○ Assessment of communication and working styles: will the mentor and mentee take a self-
assessment (e.g. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, StrenthsFinder, etc) and share their results to
discuss different communication and working styles?
○ Will the mentor assess themselves, e.g. with the Mentoring Competency Assessment (8-9) to
gauge how they are developing their mentoring skills?
4. Addressing Equity and Inclusion. Diversity along a range of dimensions offers both challenges and
opportunities to any relationship. Learning to identify, reflect upon, learn from, and engage with
diverse perspectives is critical to forming and maintaining an effective mentoring relationship.
○ Will the mentor and mentee discuss their multiple aspects of their identity? Their aspects
might include race and ethnicity, gender identity, socioeconomic status, age/generation, sexual
orientation, class, religion, etc.
○ Are there some personal aspects of identity that should remain private in this mentoring
relationship?
○ Training and resources: Are there opportunities for the mentor or mentee to be trained in how
their multiple aspects of identity can affect their mentoring relationship? Are there
professional development workshops that address topics of diversity, inclusion, and equity?
5. Fostering Independence. An important goal in any mentoring relationship is helping the mentee
become independent; yet defining what an independent mentee knows and can do is not often
articulated by either the mentor or the mentee. Identifying milestones towards independence and
setting goals are key strategies to fostering independence in a mentoring relationship.
○ How do you anticipate the mentoring relationship will evolve or progress?
○ Are there upcoming milestones or transitions for the mentee, e.g. qualifying or cumulative
exams? If so, how will the mentor support the mentee to succeed in these transitions?
○ Will other people be involved in this mentoring relationship to help the mentee grow and
become more independent? If so, identify their names and roles, e.g. students, lab managers,
postdoctoral fellows, program coordinators, faculty, thesis committee members, etc.
○ Since multiple mentors help each of us to grow, are there other potential mentors for the
mentee, e.g. dissertation committee members, other faculty, professional or informal coaches,
sponsors, peer mentors, etc?
6. Promoting Professional Development. The ultimate goal of most mentoring situations is to enable
the mentee to identify and achieve some academic and professional outcomes after the training
period. It is the responsibility of both the mentor and mentee to identify and articulate these goals
and to strive towards them together.
○ Training: are there opportunities for the mentee to gain professional skills (e.g. communication,
mentoring up, self-assessment, etc), and technical and discipline-specific skills?
○ Professional conferences and meetings: are there any upcoming professional meetings, which
could provide opportunities to present research results, network, and consider future stages for
the mentee?
○ Networking: are there any upcoming networking events where the mentee could connect with
key contacts?

32. 5
7. Cultivating Ethical Behavior. Mentors and mentees must engage in and model ethical behavior,
while openly discussing issues dealing with gray areas. Moreover, it can be important to
acknowledge when a mentoring relationship includes an unequal power dynamic and any
additional ethical considerations it raises.
○ Is there a formal course or seminar in RCR (Responsible Conduct in Research) that’s required?
○ Are there other official requirements in safety and ethics (e.g. ethical treatment of animals)?
○ What are the resources for reporting unethical behavior with confidentiality at your institution?
Part B: Developing SMART Goals and your MAP for Your Mentoring Relationship
As you consider your mentoring relationship, carefully consider vital questions: what are your main
goals in this mentoring relationship, and in your research and collaboration? What do you want to
achieve by the end of the relationship? How will this relationship prepare you for future steps?
As the mentoring relationship begins, it’s critical to develop SMART goals. Developing SMART goals will
avoid the common mistake of stating vague goals that can seem significant (e.g. “improve
communication skills”), but will be difficult to achieve without specific steps and resources. In contrast,
developing SMART goals (e.g. “improve written communication skills toward writing proposals for
funding by attending a writing bootcamp”) will help direct your path and help achieve your goals.
 Specific – What is the specific goal? Try to state the goal as concretely and simply as possible.
 Measurable – How will you measure or evaluate the goal, to determine whether or not you’ve
achieved it? Take note that evaluating the goal doesn’t always require a quantitative
measurement.
 Assignable – Who’s in charge of what? How will tasks be delegated? Do you need to reach out
others to achieve your goal?
 Reasonable – Can we actually do this? What resources or people might need to be brought in
to achieve your goal? What are potential pitfalls and how will you address them?
 Timely – When does each task need to be done? What’s a realistic timeline to achieve your
goals?
As you develop SMART goals, it will be helpful to consider all aspects of the mentoring relationship, as
outlined above in the seven principles of effective mentoring relationships. Review the questions that
need to be addressed and use the following table below. The table is provided as a template that can
be completed by the mentor and mentee separately, and then together during discussions.

33. 6
Specific Goal Measurable Assignable Reasonable Timely
What is the specific goal?
Keep the goal simple and
concrete.
How will this goal be
evaluated? How is success
determined?
Who will do each task?
How will tasks be
delegated?
How will the goal be
achieved? What resources
are needed?
When are the deadlines?
What is the timeline?
Example:
improve communication by
sharing a Google document
as a record of our
communication and action
items
both the mentor and
mentee will be held
accountable to update the
shared Google document as
an agenda and to do list
the mentee will update the
meeting minutes during the
weekly meetings, and the
mentor will check and give
feedback as needed
a shared Google document
will be used to create an
agenda for our weekly
meetings, and our action
items; a Google folder will
be created by the mentee to
store the document and any
other files
by a day before our weekly
meetings, both mentor and
mentee will insert
suggested agenda items;
during the mtgs, both will
provide updates and action
items; as work is
completed, updates will be
inserted

34. 7
References and Resources
1. Lee, Steve; McGee, Rick; Pfund, Christine; Branchaw, Janet “Mentoring Up”: Learning to Manage
Your Mentoring Relationships. Book chapter in The Mentoring Continuum: From Graduate School
Through Tenure, Syracuse University Press, Glenn Wright, editor, 2015. This book chapter, along
with other chapters, is posted for free here.
2. McGee, Rick; Lee, Steve; Pfund, Christine; Branchaw, Janet; “Beyond “Finding Good Mentors” to
“Building and Cultivating your Mentoring Team” Book chapter in National Postdoc Association’s
“Advancing Postdoc Women Guidebook”
3. Kearns, H.; Gardiner, M. “The Care and Maintenance of your Advisor” Nature, Vol 469, 2011, p 570.
4. Jensen, David “Managing Up: An industry skill you can learn in academia”, Science, June 8, 2016.
5. Example Mentor Compacts from the University of Wisconsin at Madison’s Institute for Clinical and
Translational Research
6. Handelsman, J.; Pfund, C.; Lauffer, S. M.; Pribbenow, C. “Entering Mentoring: A seminar to train a
new generation of scientists” (the first edition is available for free and 2nd edition is out)
7. Branchaw, Janet; Pfund, Christine; Rediske, Raelyn. Entering Research: A Facilitator’s Manual. W.H.
Freeman and Co., 2010.
8. Fleming, M.; House, S.; Hanson, V. S.; Yu, L.; Garbutt, J.; McGee, R.; Kroenke, K.; Abedin, Z.; Rubio,
D. M. (2013). The Mentoring Competency Assessment. Academic Medicine, 88(7), 1002–1008.
9. Example Mentor Evaluation Forms