Mentoring is a professional relationship in which an experienced mentor assists a mentee in developing specific skills and knowledge that will enhance the mentee’s professional and personal growth.
Mentoring is not exactly training, nor is it coaching.
ASFPM mentors transfer knowledge, provide insight, and share experiences to develop effective state floodplain management programs and capable floodplain management professionals. Mentors provide the link between knowledge and skills and the "day-to-day job" duties. Whether new to the profession or seeking to expand knowledge and skills, value will be provided through the mentoring exchanges.
Mentoring Approaches
- One-on-One: One-on-one mentoring is the traditional form of mentoring in which mentors provide guidance to all types of mentees: from brand new state staff who don’t know what they don’t know to practitioners with years of experience who are hoping to learn about additional topics or issues (due to expanding job duties, refocusing of program goals, seeking better floodplain management practices, etc.).
- Group Mentoring: Group mentoring is where multiple mentees are trained on a particular topic or issue with which they need help. It is particularly useful for bringing multiple staff members up to speed on a topic or issue. One or more mentors may participate in a group mentoring session. . ASFPM regularly holds group mentoring opportunities at workshops and conferences or through webinars and web-based training.
- Situational Mentoring: Situational mentoring is for mentees who are experiencing a challenging situation that requires prompt help. Situational mentoring is reserved for times when a mentee needs immediate guidance regarding a current problem or issue. This type of request could lead to a face-to-face or virtual interaction in which the goal is for the mentee to learn how to better deal with these types of issues in the future.
- Ask a Mentor: Ask-a-mentor mentoring is when a mentee poses a question to a specific mentor via the Mentor Finder section of the ASFPM Mentoring Program website. Answers to ask-a-mentor questions are typically provided by email. Examples of Ask-A-Mentor questions could be someone: needing perspective on a particular issue, asking how to deal with a specific task, or seeking clarification of a concept.
Ask-A-Mentor doesn’t require the “boots on the ground” support of the other mentoring types and is meant to be a short-term interaction.
Further information about the Mentoring Approaches is available in the Mentoring Handbook.
Mentoring Process
We learn and grow through relationships. Through the ASFPM Mentoring Program, state floodplain managers have the opportunity to work with dedicated and enthusiastic floodplain management professionals. The program provides a role for you, whether you are just entering the profession, looking to expand your knowledge/skills or a seasoned practitioner. Those interested in becoming a mentee or mentor can continue to learn more about and apply to the program on the Register as a mentee page or the Become a mentor page, respectively. Full details of the ASFPM Mentoring Program framework are provided in the Mentoring Handbook.
For further guidance, please contact the program manager.