The member to member mentoring scheme is a voluntary relationship between a mentor and a mentee, set for one year (maximum). A mentoring partnership allows the mentee to gain access to objective knowledge, experience and advice from a mentor who is usually more experienced than themselves, and to explore their career objectives and professional development goals.

During your mentoring partnership, you will be encouraged to set specific objectives and goals for the duration of the relationship and beyond. Mentoring can take place via skype, video and phone calls, emails and face-to-face.

The mentoring scheme is only available to paying members. Please check out the Buddying scheme if you are a student member studying a CIH qualification. 

Mentors

Your mentee(s) will look to you for advice and experience on issues they face in their working life and advise on career development.

To become one of our mentors:

• you should be either a current chartered or fellow member of CIH
• your membership will have to stay current during the duration of the mentoring partnership
• you should have a broad experience and knowledge of the housing sector, with significant work experience in the industry
• you should have excellent communication and personal development skills and a sound understanding of professional development in a housing context

Mentees

Your mentor's sole aim is to help you develop and grow. In order to gain the full benefits from the partnership, you will need to be ready, willing and able to work with your mentor.

You should be ready to:

• make a commitment to your own personal development
• accept that it is your responsibility to set the agenda for your mentoring relationship
• have an open mind and a flexible approach to learning and development opportunities
• be open and honest about your behaviour and feelings so that you can take feedback constructively

As a mentee, you can select up to 3 potential mentors via the mentor application form. Our admin team will match you with the most suitable out of your selection. Once the match is confirmed, we will connect you with your mentor/mentee.

During your first meeting with your mentor/mentee, you will discuss your objectives for the mentoring relationship. A mentoring agreement form will be provided to help structure your conversation. This document will mark the official start of your partnership, you must send this document back to us. This is very important as it will give focus to your meetings and let you know when the relationship has run its course. Objectives should be reviewed regularly and adapted if circumstances change.

We value the time our mentors put into the mentoring partnerships. Once signed up as a mentor, you will receive a digital mentor badge and be added to the list of current mentors for mentees to select from.  To ensure that your skills are highlighted on the mentor listing, we encourage you to update your details with us regularly.