Who changed your career?
One day a year the whole conversation is already about mentoring. It is the easiest invitation you will ever send to your people, and the best day to turn a quiet programme into a visible one.
- Date
- 17 January
- Session length
- 30 minutes
- Live within
- 30 days
Why this date works for mentoring.
The most directly relevant date in the calendar. Mentoring is the subject, not a stretch.
Ask one question
"Who changed your career?" Colleagues answer it publicly, and most of them realise they could be that person for someone else.
Thank a mentor
People name the person who gave them a break. It costs nothing and it fills a feed with real stories.
Recruit in a day
Mentor sign-ups spike when the ask is tied to a date. This is the date.
Start the year properly
January is when people are deciding what to change. A session lands harder now than in June.
From sign-off to a number you can report.
- 01
Six weeks out, pick the number
Agree how many 30-minute sessions the day is aiming for, and who they are for.
- 02
Four weeks out, open sign-ups
One link goes out internally. Colleagues say yes in a minute and pick nothing else.
- 03
Two weeks out, we match
Mentees are matched on subject and time zone, and sessions land straight into diaries.
- 04
On the day, it runs
Sessions happen, the counter climbs, and your people see the total move in real time.
- 05
The week after, you report
A wrap-up with sessions, subjects, countries, hours given and trees planted.
What partners actually do on the day.
A short film of five colleagues answering "who changed your career?"
A leadership post naming the mentor who mattered, not the programme
A live counter on your intranet showing sessions booked that day
A thank-you note sent to every mentor who has given a session so far
An open invitation: give 30 minutes before the end of January
The things people ask first.
Is one day long enough?
The day is the moment, not the whole mission. Sign-ups open weeks before and sessions run for as long as you want after.
What if we have no mentors yet?
Then this is your recruitment day. Most partners launch with an Academy event and take sign-ups on the spot.
Who do the sessions go to?
Whoever you choose: people outside the business through Give, or your own colleagues through Insider.
Make International Mentoring Day count this year.
A 15-minute call is enough to agree the date, the target and who the sessions go to.