Role title

RTPI Mentor

Outline of role

The RTPI global mentoring programme offers members the opportunity to acquire new skills and reach their full potential. It fosters a reflective experience, allowing both mentors and mentees to exchange knowledge, explore diverse practices and apply these insights to their own professional situations.

A mentor plays a crucial role in guiding and supporting a mentee's personal and professional development. Here are the key roles of a mentor:

• Provide direction and advice to help the mentee(s) navigate challenges and opportunities.
• Share knowledge, insights, and experiences to facilitate learning.
• Help the mentee(s) develop specific skills or competencies.
• Offer constructive feedback to improve performance.
• Demonstrate professionalism, integrity, and best practices in the field.
• Help the mentee(s) expand their professional network.
• Guide your mentee(s) towards becoming more critically reflective of their own practice and progress.
• Give your mentee(s) support and advice on professional matters.

Eligibility Criteria

All RTPI members, both in the UK and internationally, are welcome to register as mentors in areas where you feel confident in supporting other planning professionals. To participate, all you need is a commitment to the mentoring process, a bit of your time, and a constructive, open, and honest approach. You'll be asked to agree to the mentoring agreement when you create your mentor profile.

Minimum time commitment

This can vary depending on the relationship and what both parties agree at the start. As a rule, typically no more than one hour a month. The RTPI scheme is primarily all online. Regular, reliable contact builds trust and momentum so we would recommend some form of interaction at least every other month.

Length of term

Again, this can vary depending on the mentee’s needs and the mentor’s availability; this should be agreed at the outset of the relationship. Short term mentoring arrangements typically last around 3 – 6 months; whilst standard mentoring relationships often run for 6 -12 months. Some mentoring pairs choose to continue informally even after the official programme ends, keeping in touch for updates and to share progress.

Impact of the role

As mentor, you will be helping to empower mentees to grow in confidence, skills and career direction as well as developing your own leadership and communication skills. Both mentees and mentors will gain a fresh perspective on the industry, building community connections and promoting a culture of support and knowledge sharing. The main outcome is that you will be supporting talent development and gaining personal fulfilment helping others succeed. Depending on your own learning and development goals, mentoring can contribute to your CPD hours.

How to get involved

• Sign up using the link provided on the web page: RTPI Mentoring - using your RTPI membership to login. You will be able to access our introductory videos and guidance to help you make the most of your mentoring experience.
• Identify your goals: Consider the areas you'd like to offer guidance on as a mentor.
• Create your profile: When ready, create your profile. This information will be used to match mentors with mentees, based on shared interests and expertise.
• Edit anytime: You can update your profile as often as you like.

Start date

This is an ongoing opportunity; you can start at any time.

Find out more

For full guidance, including key skills for mentors and useful resources please refer to the content found at RTPI Mentoring.

Should you have any questions about becoming a mentor or being mentored please email mentoring@rtpi.org.uk or call the Membership team on 0370 774 9494