Attending EERS Eastern Eval Research Soc mtg. What's changed in evaluation-parallels to #mentoring: A 2-way street

Interesting conversation led by Dr. G. Grob about how we have seen evaluation change over the audience's years of practice.

This resonated with me and my interest in mentoring. A key change I have seen in evaluation is the opportunity for and interest in mentoring and capacity-building for those with whom we are conducting evaluations. This for me is the key to mentoring as well. It is no longer necessary to have a formal mentor-mentee relationship built on a joint agreement to work together for the mentee to achieve certain goals. Mentoring also benefits from the do-it-now-because-I-need-it-now perspective (also known as instant gratification!) that we all live in nowadays. Theory and research to build an evidence base are important in any discipline - including evaluation and mentoring - but these do not define the way these are practiced. They guide and provide insight, but practitioners make them come alive. If you haven't found a mentor or mentoring opportunity that you are seeking, you have the opportunity to assess whether you have been clear in your needs and goals. But you also have the opportunity to make sure the mentors with whom you are in contact are clearly able to explain to you how they can help you, over what period of time, and with what outcome.

Are you on a 2-way street?

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Mentor: Linda Fogarty, Senior Director, Monitoring, Evaluation and Research, Jhpiego

Another feature of this blog is bringing you advice and perspectives from people who mentor, by answering 3 questions.
Here are Linda Fogarty’s responses.

What are mentees looking for?
They want someone to help them believe in themselves, clarify their strengths and passion and their own professional goals
Helping them understand what their best is and how they can be their best

What 1 piece of advice do you give every mentee you work with?
You need to fight for yourself. Understand your professional value and provide that to others.

Why are you interested in mentoring?
It’s very satisfying to see mentee growth and development and how they transform themselves.

Mentor: Barbara Rawlins, Monitoring and Evaluation Team Leader, Maternal and Child Survival Program

Another feature of this blog is bringing you advice and perspectives from people who mentor, by answering 3 questions.
Here are Barbara Rawlins’ responses:
What are mentees looking for? · Career guidance · Technical advice · Moral support · Advice on how to negotiate politically-sensitive or controversial situation
What 1 piece of advice do you give every mentee you work with? Figure out what they want to do (in the long term) and what steps they can take to get there
Why are you interested in mentoring? To support younger colleagues, especially women, to help attain their career goals

What Kind of Culture do YOU Want to Work in - And How Can You Decide If You Fit?

Most mentees I work with are pursuing a job – whether it’s getting a job or moving to a different job and/or company – and one area that mentees don’t routinely consider is that of a company’s culture. (See resources that describe “company culture” such as https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-company-culture-2062000.) Mentees focus on the job under recruitment and on the organization, but they don’t always take the time to understand the hiring organization’s culture – and the mentee’s fit in different company cultures.
There are many resources on categories of company cultures that provide job-seekers with ways to assess what categories they would best fit in. And these can be also used in an interview situation to determine culture. Organizational Culture Types https://www.ocai-online.com/about-the-Organizational-Culture-Assessment-Instrument-OCAI/Organizational-Culture-Types5 Types of Corporate Culture: Which One Is Your Company? https://blog.enplug.com/corporate-culture9 Types of Org…

Sue Mentors: Jobs, Careers, Lifework...

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