GitLab's L&D team kicked-off the 2nd iteration of our Company-Wide mentorship program! Applications for mentors and metees open on 2022-09-15. Keep reading this page for additional program details and timeline. {: .alert .alert-warning}
| Program Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Mentor/Mentee Training | Completion of the self-paced How to be a Good Mentor or Mentee course is required of all mentors and mentees. If you prefer text-based learning or don't have a LinkedIn Learning license, you can instead review these slides. We ask that all mentors and mentees also complete the DIB training certification prior to the start of the program. |
| Initial program kickoff | Async kickoff discussion with mentors and mentees. Participation is strongly encouraged. |
| Mentorship Sessions | Mentors and mentees meet sync or async every other week for ~30-minutes for a total 5 months, (with the option to extend). Sessions are led by the mentee and should be focused on specific goals. Participation is required. |
| Mentor/Mentee Workbook | Mentorship resources are available for all mentor/mentee pairs, including suggested articles, strategies for goal setting, and sample meeting agendas. Use of resources is encouraged. |
| End of Program Celebration and Feedback | Async discussion to share mentorship success. Participation is strongly encouraged. An end of program feedback form will be shared with all mentors and mentees and is required. |
This program includes an opt-in, async first structure to increase opportunity for team members in any time zone to pair with mentors company-wide. Async-first means that mentees can pair with mentors in any time zone. In order to be paired in an async mentorship, both mentor and mentee must opt in while applying.
Async first mentorship pairs should consider the following:
Review the program timeline below for the next iteration of this program which will run from 2022-10 through 2023-03. {: .alert .alert-warning}
| Date | Description | Related Resources |
|---|---|---|
| 2022-09 | Program planning | Planning Issue |
| 2022-09-15 | Call for Mentors Application Opens | Application Here |
| 2022-09-15 | Call for Mentees Application Opens | Application Here |
| 2022-09-30 | Applications Close | |
| 2022-10-07 | Mentorship pairing complete and communicated to applicants via Slack | |
| Week of 2022-10-09 | Mentor/Mentee pre-program coffee chats + async kickoff discussion and poll | |
| Week of 2022-10-16 | Mentorship sessions begin | |
| 2023-03-20 | End or program async discussion + End of program feedback form shared | |
| 2023-03-31 | Mentorship sessions end and feedback form due |
As a mentor, you benefit from:
Applications will be prioritized based on:
Applications are currently closed.
Applying for a mentor does not guarantee you a spot in the program and eligibility will be evaluated based on criteria above and program need.
If you've participated in a previous GitLab mentor program, you are welcome to apply again!
As a mentee, you benefit from:
Applications will be prioritized on many points including:
Applications are currently closed.
Applying for a mentee does not guarentee you a spot in the program, and eligibility will be evaluated based on criteria above.
If you've participated in a previous GitLab mentor program, you are welcome to apply again!
Can I participate as both a mentor and a mentee?
Yes, this is a possibility. It's important that team members talk with their managers to discuss their capacity to participate in both roles in this program. Participation in both roles will require a 2hr commitment per month (two 30 minute sessions as a mentor and two 30 minute sessions as a mentee).
It's possible that we will have a shortage of mentors and be unable to complete all mentor/mentee pairs. If there is a shortage of mentors and you've applied as both a mentor and a mentee, you will be assigned only as a mentor in this program.
I'd like to participate but I can't commit the entire length of the program. Can I still apply?
If you cannot commit to the 5 month program, please consider applying for a future mentorship program at GitLab. It's important that both mentors and mentees are available for the full 5 month program to achieve the best results.
I'm not eligible to be a mentor or a mentee in this program. What are my options for future participation?
Team members are always encouraged to build mentor/mentee relationships independently. You can find resources and a list of available mentors in the Learning and Development handbook
Questions, comments, and feedback can be posted in the #mentoring slack channel. To stay up to date about future iterations of this program, please complete this interest form
Mentors and mentees will complete a pre-program and end of program survey to collect feedback, assess skills, and determine if goals set during mentor/mentee relationships have been set.
Success of this program will be measured by:
| Metric | FY23 Q1/Q2 | FY23 Q3/Q4 + FY24 Q1 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Participants | 86 | 110 |
| Mentor/Mentee Pairs | 47 | 66 |
| Total Mentors | 39 | 48 |
| Total Mentees | 47 | 63 |
| % participants who would recommend this program | 95% |
What mentors and mentees learned from the program:
To drive change for myself and be confident - ask the questions you need to get what you want from your career.The differences in communication styles and values between sales and engineering.Learned more about the intersection of XDR and sales teams.See every question or feedback as an opportunity to learn and grow.How engineers can help non-engineers be successful in the company.We don’t know everything. Don’t be afraid to say I don’t know.