| I've got a quick question for you: what is the next | | | | * Be Sensitive - Not everyone that you talk to is |
| step in your career? What do you want to get | | | | going to want to be your mentor. It's going to be up |
| promoted to? In fact, as long as we are talking | | | | to you to take the time to pick up on the message |
| about that, what comes after THAT promotion? If | | | | that they are sending your way. Few people will |
| you want to become a CIO, then career ladder | | | | actually come out and say "no", so it's up to you to |
| generally goes: IT worker, manager, director, | | | | detect those folks who would like to decline the |
| executive director, CIO. Got a plan on how you are | | | | opportunity. |
| going to get to that next step? | | | | * It's The Takeoff That Counts - when you've found |
| The Problem With Career Mentors | | | | someone who is willing to be a member of your |
| It used to be that what you needed in order to climb | | | | mentor network, then you've got to be willing to |
| out of an IT postition was a mentor - someone who | | | | make an extra effort to make sure that your initial |
| would take you under their wing and guide you during | | | | interactions with that person go very well. They will |
| your career. Bad news - those days are long gone. | | | | set tone for the rest of your relationship. Show up |
| It wasn't that there was anything wrong with the old | | | | early for meetings, follow up quickly on actions, and |
| way, it's just that the world started to move faster. | | | | pay attention when they are talking. |
| Nowadays nobody stays in a given position long | | | | * Be Prepared - make sure that you get ready for |
| enough to act as a mentor to you for any | | | | every meeting with someone who is in your mentor |
| reasonable length of time. Even if they did, they are | | | | network. Research what you want to ask them, |
| probably too busy to spend enough time with you | | | | make sure that you can show that you are making |
| keeping your career on track. | | | | progress in your career, and come prepared to ask |
| The old way of picking a mentor and having them | | | | questions about challenges that you are currently |
| work with you over time to shape and guide your | | | | facing. |
| career is gone - things move too fast and change | | | | * Information Is The Key - you need to be willing to |
| too often to allow this to work any more. Instead, | | | | share information with your mentoring network. This |
| you need to discover how to create networks of | | | | does not mean that you have to tell them all the |
| mentors that they can use to provide the career | | | | details about what you had for breakfast today, but |
| guidance that you will need over the years. | | | | rather that you be willing to lay out your current |
| If you thought the old way was tough, just wait until | | | | challenges and failures that you've had - you know, |
| you try to figure out how to do things using the new | | | | stuff that can be hard to talk about. |
| way! | | | | * It's A Two-Way Street - if someone agrees to be |
| The New Way Of Managing Your Career | | | | a part of your mentoring network, then you have |
| Dr. Dawn Chandler (CA Polytech State University), Dr. | | | | agreed to do your best to help them out also. This |
| Douglas Hall (Boston University) and Dr. Kathy Kram | | | | means that you have a responsibility to help your |
| (Boston University) have spent some time looking | | | | mentors out whenever you have an opportunity to |
| into this problem with the modern workplace and | | | | do so. This can be as simple as passing on |
| they've got some ideas about how we can fix things. | | | | information that you run across to actually doing |
| Since there is really no way for you to get a single | | | | work for them. |
| individual to agree to act as your mentor for the | | | | * Be A Nice Person - Nobody want to work with a |
| 40-45 years that your IT career is going to last, | | | | jerk and they certainly don't want to mentor one. No |
| instead you are going to have take a different | | | | matter what kind of day you've had, always be on |
| approach. You are going to have to create a | | | | your best behavior when you interact with a |
| network of mentors that you can use to accomplish | | | | member of your mentor network. |
| what you need to get done. | | | | * Be Positive - how you choose to view the world is |
| Oh, there is one small problem with this clever | | | | a key part of how others see you. If you have a |
| solution: most of us are not all that good at creating | | | | positive attitude you will naturally attract people to |
| a mentor network like this let alone trying to maintain | | | | your mentor network and you'll be able to keep |
| it. It looks like you are going to need some | | | | them there. If you've got a negative attitude, then |
| suggestions on how best to do this. | | | | nobody is going to want to lend you a helping hand. |
| Building And Maintaining A Mentor Network | | | | Final Thoughts |
| One of the first things that you are going to have to | | | | As a member of an IT department, you are |
| realize about building your mentor network is that the | | | | undoubtedly busy. However, it turns out that you |
| people that you are going to ask to be a part of | | | | have yet another job on top of your "day job" - |
| your network will not all be the same. This means | | | | managing your career. You can't do this by yourself |
| that you are going to have develop a special set of | | | | and so you're going to need to have someone guide |
| skills in order to be able to (1) find them, and (2) | | | | you - a mentor network. |
| create relationships with them that will make them | | | | Creating and maintaining a mentor network is no |
| want to mentor you. | | | | easy task. However, if you go about doing it in the |
| Here is what you are going to have to do in order to | | | | right way it can become a powerful force that will |
| create a mentoring network that will help your IT | | | | cause your career to shoot ahead and make sure |
| career move to the next level: | | | | that you don't get left behind. |
| * Talk, Talk,Talk - you are going to have to be willing | | | | CIOs (and those who want to become a CIO) who |
| to take the initiative and reach out to those people | | | | are able to build and maintain a good network of |
| that you want to be a part of your mentoring | | | | mentors will boost their careers and by doing so will |
| network - they aren't going to contact you. Once | | | | have found a way to apply IT to enable the rest of |
| you've contacted them the first time, then you are | | | | the company to grow quicker, move faster, and do |
| going to have to work at maintaining contact with | | | | more. |
| them so that they don't forget about you. | | | | |