1. Strategic alignment (how does mentoring contribute to the strategic direction and goals of your organisation?)
2. Sponsorship from senior levels (advocates for your programme)
3. Criteria for quality professional practice (what is the level of quality practice expected of staff across the organisation that guides what mentoring will support, develop and enhance?)
4. A clear purpose (without this, your programme is rudderless)
5. Mentor selection criteria (the right mentor makes or breaks your programme)
6. A process for identifying mentees (who needs support in your organisation? For what purpose?)
7. Mentor and mentee training
8. An effective mentor-mentee matching process
9. Programme coordination (an individual or team of people who look after the programme)
10. The mentoring partnership (expert-novice; peer mentoring; group mentoring; mentoring hubs)
11. A mentors’ Community of Learning Group (CoLG) (as an additional support mechanism for your mentors – ‘Mentoring for Mentors’)
12. Ongoing professional development opportunities for mentors and mentees (mini training sessions, shadowing)
13. Programme and partnership conclusion strategy/process (how will the programme finish? How will the mentors and mentees conclude their partnership?)
14. Programme evaluation (monitoring, progress, impact, influence, outcomes)
15. Reporting (to sponsors/senior exec team)
16. Refresher training (for mentors and programme coordinators)
17. Succession plan (when your mentees become mentors)
18. Review and return to no. 1 (next programme period)