• Learning Consultant: The mentor must help the learner to clarify his goals and identify the learning style needed.
• Coach: The mentor should have the will to help the learner explore the problem and try new ways of working.
• Counselor: When the learner is struggling to think, the mentor could listen, reflect, and clarify to help the learner gain insight.
• Adviser or Information Resource: Share insights with the learner for faster and better understanding.
• Role Model: Sometimes, the learner does not only learn from what the mentor teaches, but from how the mentor acts.
• Critical Friend: The mentor can also simply be a friend, however, it is the most difficult because it requires the willingness to listen, encourage, draw out, reflect, challenge, and provide feedback about ideas.

Mentoring is about being able pass knowledge to someone who would benefit from it.

Mentoring programs usually have four key elements:

• Improving performance
• Career development
• Counselling
• Sharing knowledge