My name is Doug Lawrence, and I am the founder of TalentC® and proud co-founder of the International Mentoring Community (IMC). I have over 40 years of leadership and mentoring experience.
I have had a journey that has been truly inspiring for me. My journey is one that has shaped what has been referred to as my calling. My calling is the “gift of mentoring” and the desire and goal to make the world a better place to be. It is by working with people and organizations to create mentoring movements and a mentoring community that we will realize a dream come true. My vision was that the world could be a better place with everyone embracing the “gift of mentoring.” One person, one organization at a time. That vision included championing the paradigm shift for mentoring and realizing that with that shift we could make mentoring a deeper, richer experience.
Let me share my story!
It all started with mentoring university students to assist them in getting into the work force upon graduating. I worked with a large number of graduates through one referral after the other. They would get into the workforce and then encounter a challenge that they did not know how to deal with. They reached out to me to guide them to the answer. My journey to better understand the power of mentoring had begun. Eventually they suggested that I should do this for a living. They didn’t have the money to pay me, but they thought someone would!
I did my market research and found that there were a lot of mentoring organizations offering a number of different services including certifications. What I didn’t find was an independent body that would oversee the certification of mentors. I continued my research and found that there were organizations out there that would provide independent certification services some of which was following ISO standards. In the fall of 2009 I began my journey full time.
I ended up working with one organization who would be able to meet my needs for certification. Over a 6-8 month time frame I developed a curriculum to train people on how to be an effective mentor. The curriculum was knowledge based and would result in a certification based on ISO standards. The curriculum was then accredited by the organization. We trained in the neighborhood of 200 people primarily at the Foundation level. Approximately 10 percent would move on to complete their certification as a mentor practitioner.
Based on my continuous research in the practical application of mentoring concepts I realized that we needed to take the certification to the next level. We needed to create a certification for mentors based on competence. I embarked on a new certification relationship with the International Mentoring Community (IMC) in January of 2018. We worked to create a competency profile that addressed 69-72 action_outcome statements (competencies) at the Certificate of Achievement-Mentoring and the Certificate of Competence – Mentor level. We created the curriculum that would be delivered via on line training and in person that would facilitate the learning process on a path to certification. The International Mentoring Community would offer four certifications: Certificate of Recognition – Mentoring (Baseline), Certificate of Achievement – Mentoring, Certificate of Competence – Mentor and the Certificate of Competence – Journey Mentor. These certifications would be part of the International Mentoring Community’s value proposition that it brought to the mentoring community and to the vision I had created back in 2009/2010.
My experience with the new certification process, the enhanced educational requirements and the emphasis on competency of mentors has resulted in a deeper, richer mentoring experience for me. This has also translated into a deeper and richer experience for the people that I spend time with in a mentoring relationship/arrangement. It has provided the means to bring mentoring to the mental health, mental well-being and Post Traumatic Stress (PTS) where the mentor is serving as a mental health ally.
My journey has been a very rewarding one. Today I offer:
- One on one mentoring(virtual and in person) and group mentoring internationally
- executive, management and leadership mentoring
- organizational assessments to determine mentor readiness
- mentor training,
- journey mentoring as part of the IMC certification process
- journey mentoring as a mental health ally (mental health, mental well-being and PTS)
- mentor circles,
- mentoring in the workplace movements.
I have been recognized as a thought leader in the mentoring space and share my knowledge through written articles, videos, books and speaking engagements as a way to give back to those that share my passion for mentoring. My passion is contagious as the world continues to knock at my door wanting to share the “gift of mentoring”. I have established my Practice of Mentoring and I am continuously building on the mentoring process and mentoring concepts.
The “gift of mentoring” has changed my life and I want you to have the same life changing experience. I have captured some of those life changing experiences in my first book, “The Gift of Mentoring” which is available on Amazon.ca and Amazon.com. Plans for my second and third books are underway. I hope that you will reach out to us and that you will want to be a part of the journey that I am on now. I know with no hesitation that should you reach out that you too will be able to experience the “gift of mentoring” and a deeper, richer mentoring experience.
