Plan and Implementation of a Mentoring Program

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A. Executive Summary

This is the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Learning Strategy for 2019-2018. This is based on the skills assessment needs of Bake Sweets bakery to maintain the high-quality standards of the production of goods and enhancement the capabilities of the employees in the production line. The goal of the strategy is to uphold the competitiveness of the company through the appropriate knowledge and expertise of the team. Peer-to-peer learning is defined in the institution as the workforce educating each other (Albright 2018). Furthermore, according to Peer-to-peer Learning Can Help Employees Find Value (2019), advantages of this strategy would allow: (a) staff that are less frightened of the necessity to acquire skills when they can learn together with a peer, (b) encouragement to be independent, as well as improves cooperation and interaction between employees, which contributes to sustainable solutions and (c) workers to take more responsibility for their own professional improvement which in turn decrease the incidence of staff turnover.

Most often than that, the need for the Learning Strategy is dependent on the changing needs of society locally and internationally. The Cake and Pastry Manufacturing industry outlook for (2019-2024) states that “Players in the Cake and Pastry Manufacturing industry are anticipated to face challenging operating conditions over the next five years, due to increasing competitive pressures and changing food consumption trends. In response, operators will have to innovate new products and meet changing dietary and lifestyle trends. Health and nutritional concerns are anticipated to drive consumer choices, while trends in product convenience, durability and portability will also be important”. With that in mind, it is recommended that an approach will take place to the challenges the community poses. The peer-to-peer learning will tackle the : (a) daily routines of the bakery such as baking and decorating, (b) discuss the current trends of cakes and decorating but still include the classic and basic goods of the bakery, (c) marketing tactics to ensure the proper dissemination of information for the products offered.

The following plan will follow through with a suggested program for a peer-to-peer learning session to be able to attain a bakery that produces the best of quality cakes and pastries from scratch; and a working and learning area of skilled and capable bakers in the industry that honor the traditional and the trending needs of the society.

B. Management Structure

The mentoring strategy involves the company management: owner, production manager which is usually the chefs, coordinator, senior baker, and junior baker. The program will mainly focus on the production line of baking and decorating cakes and pastries from where the mentors are the most experienced such as the chefs and the senior bakers and the mentees are the junior bakers or novices.

I. Resources

The resources involved in the mentoring program are within the bakery. Modern facilities such as ovens that are good to bake twenty cake layers at a time, ten mixers of different sizes, a wide table located at the center of the room enough to fit a couple of products and baking materials are arranged around the room. Essential ingredients are included in the finance department budgeting that includes flour, sugar, dairy, flavorings, leaveners, fats, spices, decorating, and packaging products.

Moreover, the company also invests in future education as skills are essential to the attainment of goals. The senior staff is entitled to further training so as to conform to the ever-changing industry needs and as part of becoming mentors, human or emotional resources for the protégés in the future.

The Mentoring Capability Framework (2019) establishes that a considered resource is psychological support to the staff. Therefore, mentors also offer psychological and intellectual support to address the current and future stresses of the mentees.

II. Mode of Communication

The article Communicating with your Mentee emphasizes that communication should achieve three goals that are accomplishing set aims, expressing one’s emotions and feelings, and developing relationships. The communication of a mentor and a mentee should be active and interpersonal and attains the stated objectives.

More than one mentee method enables the company the chance to expand its mentoring activities and get in touch with more people in a time-efficient manner (thebalancecom 2019). Researches confirm that formal mentoring is beneficial to this program because it supports the psychological aspects of the mentee, which enhances socialization. This further creates a stronger commitment to the organization leading to retention that also shows effectiveness in meeting an organization’s defined goals (Ragins & Kram 2007).

C. Mentor and Mentee Selection Process

The selection process is crucial to the success of the program. Induction to the mentoring program means the first interaction and touch bases of matching the mentor and the mentee. One type of matching is Admin Matching. This allows the planning manager to build matches on part of the mentee wherein the company has defined particular participants and paired them to the needs of the program (Schnieders 2018).

Before the matching, the selection of mentor and mentee is important in the peer-to-peer mentoring program. The mentor should be a more knowledgeable baker in the bakery. He must have an idea of the ins and outs of the company even unspoken regulations so as to be able to impart the knowledge to the mentee. His or her qualities should include: (1) Mentors are keen to cultivate the self. In the baking industry, the mentor is open to new ideas, especially from mentees with diverse backgrounds. (2) Mentors are skilled listeners. They are approachable hence mentees are not hesitant to raise inquiries whenever uncertain about the process or operation of equipment. (3) Mentors nurture those they mentor. They foster the skills of baking and knowledge that are cultured from them and enhance the mentee’s future well-being as a professional baker or chef (Murphy 2015). The mentees are usually the novices of the company. Though experienced bakers but are new to the system. The exposure of the mentee to the current and trending styles of cakes and designing will enhance the company’s tactics for success. The mentee’s profile should include (1) Keen to learn and curious about processes to meet the institution’s goals which include conforming to established policies and rules in cake baking and decorating. (2) Enthusiastic to become a team participant. He or she is willing to work with each and every department of the bakery to achieve positive outcomes such as the front of the house and management. (3) Respectful to the mentor and colleagues taking into consideration gender and cultural background (Mentee Roles and Responsibilities).

D. Support Structures

The methods that will enable the competitiveness of the staff in an ever-evolving market should involve proper education. Continuous learning is appropriate to update the mentor on the trends and pass it on to the mentee.

The facility which is the bakery should also be assessed by the management to ensure the quality and the wear and tear of equipment. The presence of updated machinery such as mixer and ovens guarantee quality outcomes. In addition, the safety of the premises of the company should be at par with the standards internationally.

Other resources that are essential to the program are documents consisting of the application and agreements between mentor and mentee, the recipe books of the bakery, and its confidentiality among the employees. A mentee action plan should be utilized to identify tasks and allow mentoring aims are addressed. The mentee completes the plan with the mentor’s assistance (Robinson, 2014).

Another tool to be used in the program is the assessment and evaluation tool. Assessment tools for the mentor and the mentee include the roles and responsibilities of each participant to ensure it is met or not. On the other hand, this is also considered an evaluation tool. A leaflet will also be designed as a means to collect customers’ feedback. It is designed with faces from sad to smiling faces which the purchaser will tick.

A problem that arises in peer matching is miscommunication which may lead to more conflict rather than cooperation within the company. This is observed most especially among peers of different backgrounds. A person with the same culture will channel better communication reducing the risk of misunderstanding but on the other hand, diverse cultured mentors enhance adaptability. Therefore, a respectful quality between mentor and mentee whether within or outside each other’s cultural background would be helpful.

E. Action Plan

The initial step in a mentoring program is the company assessing the needs and goals to be achieved based on trends in the market and the bakery staff. This will depend on the reports of management and supervisors of the company. Skills enhancement is essential to enable competitiveness therefore initiating a mentoring program as it provides more evidence of effectiveness.

Peer matching to be a mentor and a mentee is a crucial implementation for a mentoring program. Therefore, the first step is the application of the participants, the mentor, and the mentee. The management’s role is to find and assess appropriate participants for the program depending on the position and needs of the employed people. After which, matching occurs which will solely depend on the administration as per the Admin Matching method.

The broadcasting of information to the involved individuals will be through electronic mail, bulletin board posts, and even one on one meetings from the management.

Training is to be conducted especially to the mentors, who are mainly senior bakers, to allow the company to review their knowledge and even correct it if necessary. The mentor training is to refresh and enhance skills and baking information to confidently apply and demonstrate to the learners. In addition, social skills and communication should also be given emphasis to enable transmit knowledge with ease and create a positive bond to develop not only baking but life capabilities.

An orientation exists to explain the expectations of the parties involved. Also, the plan of activities is introduced to become aware of the timeline of goals to be met. For example, decorating skills training from mentor and mentee commences in the first week and is expected to be evaluated in the fourth week. The plan contains baking refreshers of existing products, new recipes for production, new designs, and strategies, and also the use of new equipment if the production and financial capabilities of the company are able.

The mentoring relationship commences and undergoes different phases. After a month-long mentoring program, an initial evaluation should be done to ensure that the plan is going on smoothly. It assesses the appropriate matching of mentor and mentee, equipment and if the goals set are achievable. Flexible changes should occur if a problem arises. For example, change of timeline if budget allows, the need for more mentors and the equipment if needs changes. Monthly evaluation should be set and assess if set goals are able to be met.

F. Program Evaluation

Evaluation helps organizations to continue carrying out training programs and adjust or discontinue if not working effectively. Program evaluation refers to a structured data collection to respond to questions as to whether training goals have been met and/or whether the achievement of those goals has led to increased performance at work (Salas et al. 2012).

The critical accomplishments of the system are focused on how well one can analyze the success, fix any flaws, and demonstrate that it fulfills the goals and objectives set. Evaluations reflect the determination of effective practices, the reduction of error occurrences, and the improvement of overall business growth (How to Build a Successful Mentoring Program Using the Elements of Effective Practice 2005).

There are several ways evaluation is conducted. The mentoring relationship assessment can be done through simple questionnaires wherein mentors and mentees answer specific questions regarding their interaction. Another is written reports and interviews can also be utilized (Migrator 2012). In addition, the return demonstration of the mentee and judging through the quality of the baked products produced is also a form of appraisal.

Monthly reports of the bakery are also useful in the evaluation of the production and sales of the company. The coordinators and managers are also in charge of creating a written report for the program itself. Consumers also can give feedback through social media, or on-site comments through ticking faces on flyers distributed within the location.

G. Conclusion and Recommendations

The mentoring session along the way may or may not meet problems that can either terminate or continue the program. Different factors may occur such as poor matching, misappropriation of resources, and even the attitude of the participants. The firm participation of the management is important to give insight when these troubles come about.

Due to the rising demands of the consumers, the company may also consider an outside person who is not from the company to encourage and teach positive changes to be able to adapt to the trends. These matters may occur during the training of the mentors before the program commences.

At the end of the session, it is appropriate to provide collective suggestions and improvements to further develop the mentoring program of the bakery business. Various research has shown how effective a mentoring program is in many aspects of daily living. However, each study also suggests further and more understanding and research regarding this matter. It is a dynamic and ever-changing activity that progresses and improves over time.

Various approaches suggest different ways to implement a program however, every institution is unique. A technique is successful to one but not to the other. It may also be a matter of trial and error because nothing is perfect and ideal at one point or another.

References

Albright, D 2018, What Is Peer-to-Peer Learning?, viewed 6 November 2019,
COMMUNICATING WITH YOUR MENTEE n.d., viewed 7 November 2019,
How to Build A Successful Mentoring Program Using the Elements of Effective Practice A STEP-BY-STEP TOOL KIT FOR PROGRAM MANAGERS 2005, www.mentoring.org, MENTOR/National Mentoring Partnership, viewed 16 October 2019.
https://www.facebook.com/thebalancecom (2019). Group Mentoring in Business Gives Employees Meaningful Ways to Connect. The Balance Careers viewed 07 November 2019.
IBISWorld, I. (2014). Market Research Reports & Analysis | IBISWorld AU. Ibisworld.com.au. viewed 6 Nov. 2019 < https://www.ibisworld.com.au/industry-trends/market-research-reports/manufacturing/food-product/cake-pastry-manufacturing.html>.
Lecturer Notes: Salas, E, Tannenbaum, SI, Kraiger, K & Smith-Jentsch, KA 2012, ‘The Science of Training and Development in Organizations’, Psychological Science in the Public Interest, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 74–101.
Mentee Roles and Responsibilities n.d., viewed 16 October 2019.
Migrator 2012, Mentoring programs: monitoring, evaluating and reviewing, nibusinessinfo.co.uk, viewed 7 November 2019.
Murphy, T 2015, Qualifications of a Mentor: Four Crucial Skills for the Best of Mentors – Leadership Design Group, Leadership Design Group, viewed 07 November 2019.
‌Peer-to-Peer Learning Can Help Employees Find Value 2019, Spark, viewed 6 November 2019.
‌Ragins, BR & Kram, K 2007, The Handbook of Mentoring at Work: Theory, Research, and Practice, Google Books, viewed 07 November 2019.
Robinson, J n.d. 2014, MENTORING PROGRAM Guidance and Program Plan viewed 8 November 2019.
Schnieders, 2018, 4 Steps to Matching the Right Mentors and Mentees, Chronus, viewed 7 November 2019.
The Victoria State Government (2019). MENTORING CAPABILITY FRAMEWORK. Department of Education and Training Melbourne, viewed 7 November 2019.

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