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5 Strategies for Mentorship Success

Mentorship is a powerful tool for professional growth and development, allowing individuals to broaden their career prospects. When implemented with thoughtful planning and coordination, mentorship can significantly change one’s career trajectory, unlocking new pathways and possibilities that may not have been accessible otherwise.

Mentors and mentees who are part of SITE’s Young Leaders Mentoring Program shared their best practices and successes to help make mentorship more successful.

1. Meet Regularly and Be Prepared

Jenn Glynn, managing director at Meeting Encore, mentors Jeffrey Fehr, client engagement manager with Destination Canada. Since July, They have done a Teams call every 4-5 weeks and met for lunch in October during IMEX America. Fehr will send an email before they meet with a proposed agenda and what he thinks his next steps will be.

“We started with a blank slate, and no preconceived notions about what I was going to do for him,” Glynn said. “I'm truly impressed with the work that he puts into the time we have together. I appreciate that because our time, for both of us, is very valuable.”

2. Set Measurable Goals

According to Glynn and Fehr, it’s important to determine metrics and realistic timelines.

For example, one of Fehr’s goals was to identify specific public speaking opportunities in 2025. Another was to grow his network in the incentive industry—but he framed it as ‘I want to connect with 100 new people in the incentive industry.’

Rhonda Brewer, VP of sales at Motivation Excellence, mentors Brittney Cerrillos, her company’s travel program coordinator. For Cerrillos, who is serving her first year on the SITE Chicago chapter board as VP of Young Leaders, one of her goals was to build a Young Leaders community and foster awareness. She was able to launch a new initiative called ‘Co-Work Day’ for fellow Young Leaders, many of whom work remotely.

3. Work Toward Building a Relationship

Building a personal connection is an essential part of mentorship. Fehr wanted to get to know his mentor better “so I could see what her skill sets were and what her experience was, to see where there was a natural alignment where we could work off of each other.”

“I think that relationship-building is critical from the get-go—building that trust on a personal level,” he said. “That's where the magic happens.”

It’s the same for Cerrillos, who feels she has built ‘an amazing trust’ with her mentor. “Any time Rhonda and I are going into a meeting together, I'm always excited to speak to her, and I look forward to sharing what's going on in my work life but also my personal life. That trust has been really huge for me, being able to be transparent about the highs as well as the lows.”

4. Get Outside Your Silo

There’s value in mentorship opportunities with people from different sides of the business. “It gives you the ability to learn and understand all the various areas,” said Brewer, who has had previous mentees from the hotel and gifting industries.

“It’s an invaluable way to gain a much broader knowledge of our industry and to become more well-rounded,” she said. “Also, people often move from one side of the business to another, so you never know where you might end up.”

5. Keep an Open Mind

An ‘A-ha’ moment of the mentorship experience for Cerrillos was the realization that, in her career, anything is possible. For example, last summer, she was able to work in a hybrid role. “It has helped me realize that those are things I can actually do, and to expand on opportunities that I might not necessarily see for myself.”