As a part of mentor program evaluations, the proteges from two organizations were asked to comment on how their first year went and on their opinions of the mentorship program they experienced. These proteges' remarks may provide insights for those who coordinate mentoring programs as to what a mentor program could provide that would make their mentoring experience an even better and more growth-oriented process.

The following are quotes from their answers.

• "When I found out I had a mentor, I thought my mentor would really be 'turned off' by all my questions. Not only has my mentor always successfully answered my questions, but has continuously made me feel as though every question was pertinent to being a good employee (even when I knew they weren't).
• "Having a mentor has been one of the best experiences of working here. I am proud to call my mentor a good friend and I know that it will always be that way as long as we both are employees."
• "My mentor is a wonderful person to confide in. I hope everyone has had as great a "mentor experience" as I did. Thanks to my mentor for making my first year in this job so successful."
• "Having a mentor has been a very positive experience for me."
• "My mentor has helped me both professionally and personally. It's been great having someone with more experience in the areas where I needed to grow who can answer all my questions. More importantly, it's been a real morale boost to have my mentor pop in just to say, 'Hello'. and to extend guidance and help".
• "My mentor has tried very hard to take the "new" out of my being a new employee."
• "I've enjoyed working with my mentor. It has been nice to have somewhere to go with questions. The fact that my mentor is not in my department has helped me to meet more colleagues outside my own area and it has not been the problem that i originally thought it would be."
• "Even though I am not new to the organization, I am new to the position of Department Head. My mentor has been a good source for me to go to in an informal setting for that new role. Thank goodness she was available to help me."
• "The Mentor program has helped me through some trying times. When I have felt unsuccessful, that I wasn't productive as I wanted to be, or even that I would never be a good manager, my mentor always had some appropriate story with which to cheer me. I feel that I am making progress toward becoming and effective manager because of her."
• "The primary differences between now (May) and September when I was first hired, are in the pace and the change in my feelings of desperation. It's far less hectic now because I have come so far and learned and grown so much. A great deal of the cridit goes to my mentor who has been on this journey with me the whole way. Thanks for a great program. I owe my success today to my mentor!"
• "I wish I could have more opportunity to observe veteran managers at work. I was told "If you get a chance, you might find it helpful," but tell me how I was supposed to make that happen? I would have loved to do it! I was just so busy all the time. I gues it should have been made a requirement and then I would have done it. I know it could have helped me see others' management techniques, especially with those very prescribed and formal processes that are a part of this department."
• "My mentor helped me with so many management techniques--that's what I needed help with most of all! It's so hard to learn how do we manage all of this!"
• "My greatest satisfaction is making it through the first six months. Thanks to my mentor for helping me to do that! Now there's time to evaluate what I did, and with the opportunity to dp some tasks for a second time again, I can refine and improve my skills and better anticipate and avoid the problems. I'm in much better shape now too emotionally speaking, and I feel better about a lot of things. My greatest discovery was 'there's always another day'. Now that I'm doing things a second time I find that I have more time than I thought to improve what I do."
• "For a new manager, the biggest problem is managing 'all the information', getting to know the system, the building, the people and their strengths and needs, and the work flow. No one can remember all that we are told in the orientation week. It just takes time to get acclimated. New managers simply must be patient when they feel information overload. It all becomes clear over time. What I found was, as my mentor told me, 'As you need it, you can learn it'."

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