Guide to Mentoring and Networking for Digital Talent

This Guide is a practical playbook designed to support your organisation to design, develop and improve mentoring and networking programs and activities. It equips employers to deliver quality programs that attract and retain diverse talent into the digital workforce.

Developed in consultation with a range of NSW Digital Skills and Workforce Compact partners, the Guide draws on successful approaches used by Australian employers, community organisations and non-profits.

Download Guide to mentoring and networking for digital talent (PDF 1.06MB)

Guide to mentoring and networking for digital talent
The Guide to Mentoring and Networking for Digital Talent was created to help organisations build programs that support people to stay, develop and progress in digital careers.
The Guide to Mentoring and Networking for Digital Talent was created to help organisations build programs that support people to stay, develop and progress in digital careers. Drawing on lessons from industry, government, education and not-for-profits across Australia, the guide is a practical playbook featuring adaptable tools, proven approaches and real-world case studies. The easy-to-use five-step roadmap guides you from setting goals and designing for inclusion through to implementation, evaluation and continuous improvement, supported by the Strategic Program Canvas, Capability Health Check and Program Design Menu, tools that help you design a program that authentically matches your purpose, context and capacity. The Guide also includes practical AI prompts to help adapt the materials to your organisation and accelerate planning. Whether you're starting something new or strengthening an existing program, download the guide to turn ideas into action.
Read transcript

Tools

As a companion to the Guide, there are three tools available to support organisations to design and implement mentoring and networking programs.

1. Strategic Program Canvas

Use this tool to identify the problem you want to solve, agree on goals, and align on your approach.

Launch the Strategic Program Canvas

2. Capability Health Check

Assess if you or your organisation have the key ingredients in place to support a successful mentoring or networking program. It points out what you might be missing and shares practical steps to help your initiative thrive.

Access the Capability Health Check

3. Program Design Builder

A guided design aid to help you navigate trade-offs and make informed choices about your program structure.

Explore the Program Design Builder

Permission to Use and Share

Brand adaptation

Branding adaptations, including the addition of organisational logos, colours, contact details and localised content, are permitted provided the original meaning and intent of the material are not misrepresented.

The Guide and Tools can be made available for adaption and local hosting.

Contact DKX@futureskillsorganisation.com.au to request the editable source files.

Copyright notice

Copyright is owned by Future Skills Organisation.

You may copy, redistribute, adapt and rebrand this material in any medium or format, subject to the following terms of use:

You must retain this copyright notice and acknowledge Future Skills Organisation as the source of the material.

If you modify or adapt the material, you must include the following attribution:
'This is a modified document based on resources owned by Future Skills Organisation'

The resources must not be commercialised or used for commercial gain.

Contact DKX@futureskillsorganisation.com.au for additional information.

Acknowledgments

The Guide was developed by Social Ventures Australia and delivered through Future Skills Organisation's Digital Knowledge Exchange (DKX) program. Supported by government, industry and education partners across Australia, it promotes digital career retention and the 20% Alternative Pathways Pledge. The Guide was developed in collaboration with the NSW Digital Skills and Workforce Compact, an initiative of the NSW Department of Education.