Weekly Wonder: Establishing a Mentorship Program within Your CUG

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Happy Friday CUG Members!

Welcome to this week’s edition of Weekly Wonder! Today, we’re diving into something that can elevate your Company User Group to the next level: mentorship. Whether your goal is to foster knowledge sharing, support career development, or strengthen community bonds, launching a mentorship program is one of the most impactful ways to grow your group.

Why Start a Mentorship Program?

A well-structured mentorship program can:

• Spark skill-building and knowledge exchange

• Support personal and professional growth—for both mentors and mentees

• Foster deeper relationships and belonging within your group

• Promote a culture of learning, leadership, and engagement

Best Practices for Launching Your Program

1. Define Clear Goals

• Start with the “why.” Are you fostering leadership? Upskilling team members?

• Set measurable goals for success (number of pairings, engagement rates, feedback scores).

2. Recruit and Match Participants Thoughtfully

• Invite both mentors and mentees to participate—highlight the benefits for each.

• Use a simple survey or form to collect interests, skills, and goals and match pairs based on interests, expertise, and availability.

3. Set Expectations and Structure

• Provide guidelines for meeting frequency (bi-weekly or monthly is common).

• Encourage pairs to set shared goals and a meeting cadence in their first session.

• Share sample agendas and goal-setting templates to help pairs get started.

4. Offer Resources and Support

• Build a central resource hub with guides, templates, and recommended learning materials.

💡 Pro tip: Looking for inspiration? Consider utilizing group templates, best practices, and additional resources available in the CUG All-in-One Kit.

• Host a kickoff call and Q&A sessions to answer questions and build excitement.

• Keep support channels open—like a Slack or Teams space just for participants.

5. Encourage Feedback and Celebrate Success

• Send periodic check-ins to see how things are going.

• Share success stories and celebrate milestones to inspire others.

• Use feedback to iterate and improve the program for future cohorts.

Tools to Get Started

• Confluence: Create a mentorship program page with resources, sign-up forms, and FAQs.

• Trello or Jira: Track pairings, goals, and progress.

• Slack or Teams: Set up a dedicated channel for mentors and mentees to connect and share updates.

• Survey Tools: Use Google Forms or Qualtrics for sign-ups and feedback collection.

A mentorship program can turn your CUG into a stronger, more connected, and growth-minded community. Start small, iterate, and don’t forget to celebrate your wins along the way! Have you launched a mentorship program or participated as a mentor/mentee? Share your experiences and tips in the comments below!