Associations large and small can offer members the opportunity to get advice, support and develop professional networks through mentoring programs. Mentoring software can help manage an existing member mentoring program or start a new pilot program easily. Mentoring can be a significant value adding benefit that also helps drive annual subscription renewals.

Non-profits that mentoring software can help include:
* Industry / Professional Associations
* Professional Certification Organizations
* Charities & Foundations (Public & Private)
* Labour Unions & Employee Benefit Funds
* Museums & Arts Organizations
* Religious Organizations

Benefits include:
* Low setup and on-going costs – easy to pilot
* Data locked to specific regions using Microsoft Azure Cloud Security
* Measurement of program ROI – Read More >> 

Typical uses for association members include:
* Intern mentoring / Apprenticeship
* Student member mentoring
* Pre-certification mentoring
* New member mentoring
* Peer-to-peer mentoring
* DEI mentoring
* Newcomer mentoring
* Startup programs

Non-profit mentoring programs can help your organization with:

1. Recruiting Members

1.1. Intern Mentoring / Apprenticeship
As companies hire student interns, associations can help match that student with a professional in the industry to helps them learn more about that career path and industry in general. Since not all companies offer mentoring for interns, industry associations can fill in that gap in the market. By helping the student at that pivotal stage in their career – this can also lead them to become a member of the association later on. Internships are usually short term and this is a unique opportunity to help students.

1.2. Student member mentoring
Many associations offer a free or discounted student membership option. Students usually learn about it close to their graduation as they are looking to learn about career options. Similar to intern mentoring, by offering student member the opportunity to connect with a professional in the industry can be very helpful and provide useful insights and that make a difference in the students future career direction. This can also lead to the student later on becomng a paid member of the organization.

1.3. Pre-certification mentoring
Some professions require certification and even require to be matched with a mentor for some time as part of that process.

1.4. New member mentoring
Beyond student, regular industry professional who decided to join the association often can also benefit from being matched with a more senior expert in the field. New members often join specifically in order to meet people and are interested in both formal 6 or 12 month mentoring programs and informal mentoring like a “Coffee Chat Mentoring Program” where they just meet once to ask a few questions.

2. Supporting & Engaging Members

2.1. Peer-to-peer mentoring
For regular members of the organization, enabling them to connect with other members in a formal way through a mentoring program helps break the ice for younger or more introvert members.

Support your members in their professional transition and development, whether it’s a career role move, maternity leave and return or other situations where they need help getting back to work. Offer short-term mentoring to help solve a specific problem or issue.

Healthcare organizations also offer peer-to-peer programs for patients to connect with someone who recovered from the same illness to get feedback and support.

2.2. Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI)
Support your organization’s interest groups with mentoring programs that can be easily managed. Matching can be personalized based on demographics or other interests. Common programs are Women in Leadership, Accessibility, Veterans, LGBT and Cultural backgrounds.

2.3. Newcomer mentoring
Help newcomers integrate in your industry. Matching new immigrants with other immigrants who have been in the country for many years can help them make friends, get help and join the and industry and culture faster.

2.4. Startup programs
Support startup entrepreneurs and small businesses with mentoring programs that connect founders with successful business owners and executives. Entrepreneurship programs often collaborate with government-funded startup business incubators and accelerators.

MentorEase mentoring software helps industry associations, non-profits and foundations easily manage their mentoring programs.

MentorEase also offers Multi-Chapter Mentoring. Each chapter has the ability to have its own mentoring landing page, or you can host multiple programs from one page. Learn more here >>

After enrolling 70+ mentors and mentees in a program, the matching effort becomes a lot of work – that’s where MentorEase can help you save time and effort.

If you are looking at launching or already offering a regional or national mentoring program for your association or nonprofit contact us to learn how we can help.

Find the Perfect Mentor for Each Mentee Using AI
American Society of Association Executives™ (ASAE)
October 21, 2024 | By Gil Katz, MentorEase

Building a Sustainable Mentoring Program at your Community College
Texas Community Colleges Teachers Association (TCCTA)
MentorEase Webinar | Nov 3, 2022

MentorEase listed in HR Tech Outlook – Top 10 Mentoring Solutions Companies – 2023

MentorEase supports mentoring programs for:
* Executive Director
* Chapter Relations
* Membership
* Member Engagement
* Professional Development
* Education Programs
* Association Management

Research insights: (from third-parties)
* The ROI of Association Mentoring Programs
* Create a Mentorship Program to Provide Unique Value to Members
* The Complete Guide to Mentorship Programs for Membership Organizations
* Developing Authentic Mentorship Through Professional Organizations
* 6 Tips for Finding a Mentor in the Event Industry