CISI Mentoring Scheme

The CISI mentoring scheme is a benefit available to all CISI members, offering the opportunity for members to support one another. We hope that through building strong and trusting relationships, aspiring members can gain the knowledge, confidence and self-awareness that will empower them and further their careers.

We facilitate both traditional mentoring and "reverse mentoring", which is designed to help senior professionals understand the workplace from another viewpoint or learn new skills.

Our innovative mentoring platform, hosted by Perform Learn Development Ltd, matches mentors and mentees using advanced algorithms and offers exclusive career development and tracking programmes to monitor personal progress against agreed goals.

The mentoring platform will facilitate a structured exchange of knowledge and experience to benefit both mentors and mentees and encourage mutual growth.

Now includes reverse mentoring

Why take part?

Mentoring can be highly advantageous for all those who participate, either as a mentor or mentee. It provides a real opportunity to gain perspective on a shared area and uncover aspects of your profession you have never thought to explore. By partaking in the CISI mentoring scheme, both mentors and mentees will discover that there are several tangible and intangible benefits, some of which are immediate and others that will be recognisable in the long run.


Sign up for the CISI Mentoring scheme today

Benefits for mentees

  • Exposure to new ideas and different perspectives
  • Guidance on professional development and advancement
  • Discuss challenges and aspirations with a neutral person
  • Gain insight from a more experienced practitioner
  • Increased visibility and recognition within the company
  • Opportunity to develop new skills and knowledge
  • Increased self-confidence
  • Develop strong communication skills
  • Grow a personal network
  • Increased job satisfaction
  • CPD

Benefits for mentors

  • Recognition as a subject matter expert and leader
  • Positively impact the performance and career development of someone else
  • Build leadership skills and develop skills in developing others
  • Exposure to fresh perspectives, ideas and approaches
  • Opportunity to reflect on their own goals and practices
  • Development of their personal leadership and coaching styles
  • Increased self-confidence
  • Communication skills development
  • Improve feedback delivery skills
  • Improve listening skills
  • CPD

The mentoring platform

Firstly, both prospective mentors and mentees will need to register their details on the mentoring platform and create a profile. The platform will then use an algorithm to match the mentors and mentees based on functional skills, industry and career interests and other attributes. Once matched, either party can approve or decline the request. If the request is accepted, both parties can start to make use of the administrative facilities for arranging meetings, setting agendas and goals, as well as using various training tools and guides.

The platform operates through self-driven activities, therefore it is the responsibility of both the mentors and mentees to collaborate to take advantage of all the tools the platform offers and gain the most out of this benefit.


What is reverse mentoring?

Your mentorship profile enables you to choose to participate in the 'mentoring' or 'reverse mentoring' programmes. You can choose to participate in both.

Reverse mentoring is similar to traditional mentoring, in that it involves one professional helping another develop. However, reverse mentoring is intended to encourage 360° knowledge and perspective sharing, removing traditional hierarchical barriers and recognising that we can all learn from one another at any point in our careers.

For example, a more experienced professional may benefit from being mentored by a more junior individual who may be able to give insight on specific areas such as digital skills, generational perspectives or inclusivity in the workplace.


The platform features include:

Matching

  • Separate portals for mentors and mentees
  • User friendly, client specific, profiles and search facility
  • Advanced matching algorithms
  • Ability to run multiple programmes through the same platform

Mentoring process

  • Mentor and mentee online training support through videos and PDFs
  • Flexible user journey allowing configuration by client
  • Mentoring guides
  • Downloadable templates and checklists

Career development tool

  • Setting and achieving goals
  • Career SWOT analysis
  • G-STAR model offers a useful structure to mentoring conversations


Sign up for the CISI Mentoring scheme today

Become a mentee

You are eligible to register as a Mentee if you hold an active CISI membership, no matter what stage of your career you are at. However, for safeguarding purposes we do not permit users under the age of 18 to join the Mentoring Scheme.

Mentees should have a passion for development and the drive to take charge of their own progression through the mentoring programme. The mentee should also have an open mindset for mentor feedback and be available for regular meetings/catch ups.

By signing up, you are giving your consent for the CISI to pass on your email address to a mentor. Parties are then free to contact one another.

Become a mentor

You must hold an Associate-level membership or higher with CISI to register as a Mentor, and we would strongly encourage you to register as a Mentor if you hold an MCSI designation or above and have considerable years of experience under your belt. Student members cannot join the scheme as mentors. The exception to this is for reverse mentors looking to share their skills and knowledge with more senior professionals.

Mentors are free to advise as many mentees as they wish, however we advise you not to commit to more than three mentees, to allow adequate time and support to be dispersed to each individual.

By signing up, you are giving your consent for the CISI to pass on your email address to a mentee. Parties are then free to contact one another.



Sign up for the CISI Mentoring scheme today