Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring

1. Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring Diana Bilimoria, PhD KeyBank Professor Weatherhead School of Management diana.bilimoria@case.edu November 2011

2. Objectives • Identify what is important to junior faculty and senior faculty re: mentoring • Recognize the benefits of different forms of faculty mentoring • Identify best practices in mentoring at CWRU and other universities • Determine next steps in implementing a mentoring program in our department D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

3. Definition of a Mentor One who facilitates professional and personal growth in an individual by sharing insights, providing encouragement, and opening doors “Mentor” dates back to ancient Greece when Mentor, a wise teacher and trusted advisor, was asked by his friend Odysseus to watch over his son Telemachus, as he embarked on the lengthy voyage to fight the Trojan war. D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

4. Mentoring Needs of Junior Faculty January 2011 Focus group with Assistant Professors at WSOM for less than 3 years • Career Success • Input to work out a plan for key career evaluation points (e.g., 3rd year review, tenure review) • Timely feedback on early outputs (submissions, papers, grants) • Academic Performance • An independent advisor to provide perspective and guidance on problems or concerns in the classroom, lab, or department • Advice to help determine priorities and avoid pitfalls in research • Networks • Assistance in building networks at CWRU and in the discipline • Institutional Navigation • Tacit knowledge about School history, priorities, norms, structures, practices, and resources • Service – when to say “yes” or “no”, at what levels to participate • A meaningful relationship, and a sense of inclusion • Advocacy for the issues all junior faculty face D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

5. 2011 Focus Groups of Women Faculty Across the UniversitySource: Susan Freimark, Women Faculty Leadership Development Institute, CWRU Associate Professors • Lack of clear guidelines for advancement • Committee “fodder” • Lack of time for research • Getting credit for service • Mentoring • How to find and use mentors at this career stage Full Professors • Goals and plans for “life at the top” • Lack of recognition and rewards • More recognition outside the university • Cumbersome university system • Transparency in appointments of administrative positions Assistant Professors • Tenure and Promotion • Getting department specific help and guidance from the chair • Grants and Publications • 0btaining more administrative support • Developing peer review committees • Department Climate • Overcoming silo climate • Negotiation strategies regarding work loads and resources • Mentoring • How to find and use external mentors D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

6. Desirable Mentor Attributes Case School of Engineering Junior Faculty Survey (2010) • Accessible • Interested in helping • Offeringcriticalassessment • Encouraging, open • Knowledgeable, with wide contacts • Able to offer experience, wisdom and advice Source: Dwight Davy & Ica Manas-Zloczower, Presentation to CWRU Department Chair Leadership Forum, 9-20-10 D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

7. Mentor Roles Listen patiently Build a relationship Nurture self-sufficiency Establish protected time together Share yourself Provide introductions Be constructive Don’t be overbearing Mentee Roles Listen patiently Have a positive attitude Share with your mentor reasons for your decisions Be prepared to learn from your mentor Actively seek advice from your mentor and others both in and out of your department Act on advice from your mentors Roles Source: “Advisor, Teacher, Role Model, Friend”, National Academy of Sciences National Press, Washington DC Need to discuss expectations and balancing of these roles early on D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

8. Difficulties Sometimes Reported By Mentors and Mentees • Time challenges • Mentor expects too much too soon and is disappointed that mentee does not do exactly what the mentor says • Mentee feels pressure or guilt • Mentee feels that mentor does not prioritize meetings • Mentor feels burdened with responsibility for mentee’s success • Finding the right balance of roles • Department chair not closely involved • Hidden agendas • Inappropriate behavior and gendered expectations between men and women • Not knowing how to end a mentoring relationship D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

9. Mentoring Process Guidelines Sought by Senior Faculty Case School of Engineering Senior Faculty Survey (2010) • Clearly stated goals for mentoring • Mutual understanding of the process by mentor(s) and mentee • Having multiple mentors for each mentee • Defined process for matching mentors and mentees • Expected time commitment • Rewards for mentors • Means of measuring outcomes Source: Dwight Davy & Ica Manas-Zloczower, Presentation to CWRU Department Chair Leadership Forum, 9-20-10 D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

10. Career Development Workshops Complement One-On-One Mentoring Case School of Engineering Targeted Workshops (2010-11) • Strategies for development of research resources • Strategies for teaching excellence • Targeted grant writing (NSF/NIH/DOD) • Developing a 3rd year review portfolio • Developing a tenure dossier • Networking and development of research collaborations Source: Dwight Davy & Ica Manas-Zloczower, Presentation to CWRU Department Chair Leadership Forum, 9-20-10 D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

11. A Spectrum of University Mentoring Practices Formal Select senior faculty are chosen and specifically trained in mentorship All junior faculty are formally paired with a senior faculty mentor School-wide mentorship kick-off dinner to start the relationship Bi-annual mentorship gatherings for discussion of career progress Quarterly workshops on career development, grant writing, achieving tenure, Protégés receive annual written feedback from mentors D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011 Informal Chairs meet with junior faculty and new faculty to discuss their learning needs Chairs then discuss potential appropriate mentors, and facilitate appropriate connection Mentors and protégés work out the details of this relationship

12. A Spectrum of University Mentoring Practices Formal Administered centrally Expectations shared and monitored More people participate in the “matching” Time-bound mentoring Non-voluntary Written feedback Process and effectiveness are evaluated D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011 Informal No administrative oversight Expectations may be shared informally Fewer people participate in the “matching” Indefinite Voluntary Informal feedback No formal evaluations

13. Forms of Mentoring • One-on-one mentoring • Committee mentoring • Zone mentoring (by area of expertise) • Peer mentoring • E-mentoring • Travel support to meet disciplinary mentor outside the university • Annual review meetings with chair and mentors • Seminars, panel discussions, academic performance and career development workshops • Professional academic coaching – long and short term D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

14. Selected Mentoring Best Practices at CWRU • School of Dental Medicine – 2011 • Each Assistant Professor in consultation with the Department Chair forms a Mentoring Committee (MC) of at least two full time faculty members within the first four months of a new appointment or promotion. • Mentoring Committee guidelines developed • Administrative oversight and annual program evaluation • Weatherhead School of Management – 2011 • Mentoring program for faculty under 3 years • Junior faculty matched with one senior faculty outside their department – with input from department chairs and junior faculty • Goals – School orientation and navigation, career advice, relationship building support • Time bound (8-12 months) and voluntary • Evaluation of mentoring process and effectiveness • Case School of Engineering – 2011 • Launch committee for each newly hired faculty member • Operates for 1 year; transfer to a Mentoring Committee after first year • Launch Committee consists of hiring advocate, Department Chair, and one other search committee member • Checklist of actions needed to be accomplished by the Launch Committee in four areas: Lab space, funding, lab personnel and hiring, and integration in the university. D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

15. Selected Mentoring Best Practices at Other Universities • U Michigan – • Dept. chair and new faculty member develop a mentoring plan addressing teaching, graduate supervision, and research • Chairs fill out a section on mentoring in their annual reports. • Annual college-level meeting open to all tenure-track faculty to discuss the requirements for tenure and promotion and the P&T process • U Penn – • Each school designates a senior faculty person responsible for the management of the faculty mentorship program • Specific responsibilities and expectations of the mentor are clearly stated in the school’s policy and distributed to the junior faculty member along with the school’s promotion guidelines • Faculty mentoring considered as one of the university citizenship criteria for promoting senior faculty from Associate Professor to Full Professor • Stanford Medical School – • Mentor assigned as soon as faculty member is hired; others may be added later by the faculty; mentors meet every six months with mentees D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

16. Gender Related Insights from Research on Mentoring • Relational support within the department is twice as important for job satisfaction of women faculty than men faculty(Bilimoria et al, 2006) • In a study of corporate high-performers: (Ibarra, Carter, and Silva, 2010) Women mentees: • Were mentored mostly about: • Psycho-social support (understanding themselves and the ways they operate, navigating politics, and work-life issues) • Developmental advice (guidance about ways to change themselves) and extra work assignments including extra travel and meetings • Had mentors with lower clout (mid-level managers), after controlling for lower post-MBA starting position Men mentees: • Were mentored mostly about: • Career functions (planning next moves, how to take charge in next roles, and figuring out how to achieve career goals) • Received active sponsorship by the mentor (advocacy, resources, visibility, opportunities, network connections) • Had mentors with higher clout (executive team level) D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

17. Expectations for Cultivating the Mentoring Relationship • Interact with respect and professionalism • Build trust by articulating and fulfilling expectations • Engage in partnership building activities and exchange of learning rather than one-way advice • Build mentee’s sense of self-efficacy • Time management • Set a schedule of meetings (e.g., monthly, twice a semester) • Co-develop an agenda for each meeting • Discuss a time frame for relationship closure/ renewal D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

18. Mentoring Challenges & Actions to Address Them • Time challenges: the best mentors are very busy; and mentees sometimes don’t perceive their own time investment to be worthwhile Action: Set a schedule of meetings and co-develop each agenda • Mentors and mentees to informally manage on their own Actions: Establish guidelines and expectations, provide oversight of the process, increase accountability • Perceptions and expectations of mentoring differ between senior and junior faculty Action: Discuss expectations early and often • Culture does not always support mentoring Actions: Involve department chair and senior faculty throughout the process; periodically discuss mentoring in dept. faculty meetings • Department size: sometimes just not enough senior faculty mentors Action: Use a variety of mentoring practices • Associate to full professor mentoring often falls through the cracks Action: Provide formal mentoring for associate professors D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

19. Some Conclusions about Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring • Research has shown that structured mentoring efforts, where appropriate senior faculty are matched with faculty mentees and there are established guidelines and expectations, are effective. • To maximize the effectiveness of faculty mentoring, department chairs and a mentoring program coordinator should be deeply involved and check in with mentors and mentees periodically. • Utilize an array of mentoring practices: one-on-one; committee; peer group; zone; e-mentoring, seminars, workshops and panel discussions; annual review sessions with chair and mentors; travel support; professional coaching. D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011

20. Additional Readings • A comprehensive source for readings and resources on faculty mentoring, including by discipline: http://www.crlt.umich.edu/faculty/facment.php • A detailed description of the department chair’s role in faculty mentoring: http://provost.asu.edu/academic_personnel/mentoring/practices/departmentchair D. Bilimoria, Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring, 2011