Community Mentorship Deepens Connections

Professional associations have some responsibility to ensure that their members are receiving the benefit of career development as part of their engagement with the association. After all, that’s why we build out learning management systems and build continuing certification requirements around the certifications sour members earn with us. Additionally, chapters provide a level of local support that not only gives members face time with other professionals in their area, but connects them with others who can help them along their career journey.However, I think associations depend on chapters to carry the load of mentorship without remembering that not every member has the benefit of a local chapter in their area. Some members live an hour or more from their closest chapter and, if given the choice between making that drive after work on a Wednesday night versus going home to spend time with your family, most times they choose not to make that drive. And it’s not because they do not find value in the chapter, but when it comes to work/life balance an extra commute at the end of a workday is not a high priority.If your association has invested in online community, it’s important to understand where it can help fill in the gaps when it comes to member needs. An important benefit that online communities offer is the ability to connect with a larger professional base. But simply clicking the connect link on another member’s profile doesn’t always organically turn into mentoring relationships in the online space. Formal mentoring programs within online communities are important to community health and vibrancy and provide an added value to members. Associations have to be careful not to confuse the two. Here are a few things to remember when thinking about mentorship programs and online communities.Connections aren’t always meaningfulYou’ve seen it on LinkedIn, Twitter, and other social networking sites. People send you requests to connect or follow you with no introduction or indicator to let you know why they’re interested in connecting with you. Yet the number ticks higher and higher and out of the hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of connections people have, there are likely only a handful of those connections where meaningful dialogue and relationship building take place outside of that social space. In some cases, connections are linked to community gamification, causing that activity to lose any meaningful value. Connections help people find each other, but it doesn’t always help create mentoring relationships.Online community mentoring requires nurturingMentoring relationships are like flowers. You have to water them to see them grow. Putting intentionality behind forming great mentor/mentee bonds takes time, trust, and consistency. That can be a challenge in physical settings. Imagine the focus it takes in an online setting. When you open your computer you immediately have 20 different things that require your attention. Your e-mail is glaring at you and you have a myriad of social media notifications that scream “read me!” which then takes you down a black hole. By the time you’ve tended to the call of endless notifications, you’re ready to log off and disconnect for a while. In order for online community mentoring programs to work, it’s not as simple as setting it up and hoping people find each other for those specific opportunities. But it also shouldn’t be too incredibly prescriptive if you want it to work. Your program has to be strong, valuable, and enticing enough to make people want to participate. Higher Logic has a great post on what it takes to build a mentoring program if you’re looking for tips.Provide benefit for mentees and their mentorsWhen we think of mentoring programs, we tend to think of those new in their career that need guidance and/or support as they navigate their chose profession. For associations, this will always remain a group we look to attract as we want to be essential to their career development to help our associations grow, among other reasons. Because research tells us that the next generation of workers prefer to interact online, we think that we must build our mentoring program for that audience without thinking of those who will act as mentors in our online community. In conversations with long-time volunteers, they always indicate that they love to volunteer because it allows them to give back. Not only give back to the profession but give back to the association that has supported them throughout their careers. Simply allowing people to connect and expecting mentoring to “just happen” can make it more difficult your members across their career life cycle to find those valuable touch points. When designing your mentoring program, keep those audiences in mind.ConclusionOnline communities are the perfect environment for an association’s mentoring program. It allows associations to meet members where they are and find the right ways that work for them to get the guidance and assistance they need to take their career to the next level. It also offers your veteran volunteers and members to give back in ways that feel meaningful for them. These unique opportunities extend the value of what your association offers and creates a ripe opportunity for continued customer loyalty.