MENTORING GUIDELINES ISSUED IN THE UK

Patricia Layzell Ward, Convenor, Library Link

The UK�s Library Association has published guidelines for mentors, learners and managers in a new leaflet entitled Mentoring for Staff in Library & Information Services under the banner of its Personnel, Training and Education Group. The advice is based on research carried out by Nankivell and Shoolbred (1996) and funded by the British Library Research and Development Department.

The essential feature of mentoring is described as being "a focus on a one to one relationship between mentor and learner which ensures individual attention and support for the learner" and indicates that a mentor can provide this support in many different roles - facilitator, counsellor, role model, friend/buddy, challenger, advisor, coach, guide, co-ordinator and opener of doors. A case study is provided. The benefits to the individual, the mentor and the organisation are listed. Types of schemes - formal and informal - are discussed. An emphasis is placed on the need for mentoring to take place within a structure, and the key issues to be addressed in the relationship are listed. These include objectives, boundaries, methods for communication, frequency and length of meetings, location, the need for an agenda, reviewing progress and arrangement for ending the relationship. The latter point is vital when a formal system is in place - in earlier times we gravitated to those whom we thought could give good advice, and if we felt it wasn�t right, we were able to drift away. A system of mentoring requires firmer guidelines which can be challenging to both parties.

A section focuses on points about mentoring in organisations and includes useful comment on the need to consider organisational objectives as well as personal ones, and the vital questions of recruiting learners and mentors, and matching partners. Key issues include gender and ethnicity - indicating that it is a matter of personal preference. It closes with points about good practice covering skills, training, potential problems and a list of UK resources.

This is a good start but could have been enhanced by reference to well-established overseas practice. See, for example, the collection of documents in Mentoring Programs in ARL Libraries, which is reviewed in this month�s reviews in LibraryLINK. One of the factors that has made mentoring successful in Australia is the way that it has been organised by local groups of the national association. This has been of benefit to solo librarians, and those who prefer to have a mentor from outside their information or library service. This issue can be critical at time of pressure from change, or if the learner hits a point of difficulty in the workplace. Sometimes talking this through informally with a third party can prevent a difficult situation from escalating.

Mentors, or advisors, can be a valuable part of career development - I have benefited from one who has written some very accurate references, and gained from the comments made. In the growing competitive workforce with attendant stresses and strains, a mentor is vital.

Patricia Layzell Ward

Reference

Nankivell, C. and Shoolbred, M. (1996), Mentoring in Library and Information Services: an Approach to Staff Support, British Library Research and Innovation Report 20, BLRIC, London.

Note

At the time of writing the guidelines were not available on the Library Association Web site, but check www.la-hq.org.uk for availability or write to Information Services, The Library Association, 7 Ridgmount Street, London WC1E 7AE, UK.

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