Anniston Army Depot

Anniston Army Depot initiates mentorship program

Staff Reports
ANAD Mentorship Team

The ANAD Mentorship Program team holds a round table discussion to establish expectations of the program and the impact it will have on employee development.
U.S. Army Photo by Mark Cleghorn

The Mentorship Program creates an unbiased environment for individuals to share knowledge in pursuit of professional growth, unlocking their full potential. Mentoring is a valuable tool for developing and showing value to our people who have the greatest responsibility in supporting our organizational goals, thus establishing the Anniston Way of Work. A successful mentoring program depends on the relationship of the mentor and mentee, sharing common goals, interests, and expectations; a commitment to the mentoring practice; showing mutual respect; extending and receiving trust. The relationship of the mentor and mentee is a give and grow relationship throughout the mentoring process.

Mentees should come away from their experience with improved leadership and communications skills, a new mind-set in how they look at and do things, and a network to share knowledge and skills with other members of the organization.

Mentors, through self-evaluation and a review of accomplishments and challenges, will serve as a reminder of lessons learned throughout your career. The mentor will share their expertise to help develop ANAD’s leaders for the future. Being a mentor will give you the opportunity to define your legacy - it is not about the decisions you make or the processes you enable; your legacy will be defined by the people you inspire around you to pursue their full potential and the impact you have on them to be more than they believed possible. This also gives the mentor an opportunity to review and re-energize their own personal career goals.

The ANAD Mentorship Program is a formal 6-month program. Participates must meet a minimum of (1) hour and not exceed (3) hours per month. Mentees will be paired with a mentor who is strong in the categories they are hoping to develop. The mentee will gain knowledge and confidence in the strengths they are hoping to improve. Applicants will be randomly paired based on the mentor’s strengths and the mentee’s professional areas of interest. One important aspect of the program is that it is not promotion based, and there is no guarantee of a promotion when an applicant finishes the program.

Participants must fill out the application in its entirety. If application is not complete, it will be returned to the applicant. All participants must complete pre-requisite training through Army eLearning. Certificates of completion must be included with submission of applications. All participants must attach their current Individual Development Plan (IDP) with submission of applications. Participants must have their supervisor’s approval and signature on the application form (included in the application for mentors and mentees).

To learn more information on the Mentorship Program and the application process, the Mentorship Program Team will host an open house, 26 October in building 123 from 0900-1100. To attend the open house, please register in TED ANAD Mentorship Program (ANAD23-049).