Guidance for Mentors
How to Structure Your Weekly Project Review Call
To ensure your mentee gains the maximum benefit from this real-time learning experience, we recommend using a simple, consistent structure for each weekly call. This helps keep discussions focused, educational, and easy to follow, while still allowing space for open conversation and questions..
1. Start With a Quick Recap (5 minutes)
Begin each session by summarising the past week’s progress:
• What milestones were reached?
• What activities took place?
• Any key client interactions or changes?
This sets the scene and ensures your mentee understands the project’s current position.
2. Discuss Challenges & Solutions (10–15 minutes)
This is often the most valuable part of the call. Share:
• Any issues that arose during the week
• How your team diagnosed the problem
• Solutions you chose and why
• What you would do differently next time
Encourage your mentee to ask how they might have approached the situation.
3. Break Down the Technical Decisions (10 minutes)
Help your mentee understand why certain methods, equipment, or routes were chosen:
• Equipment used (cranes, SPMTs, barges, trailers, etc.)
• Reasons behind the method
• Safety, engineering, or compliance considerations
• Local or international regulations influencing decisions
This is where they learn the thinking behind the action.
4. Review Key Commercial Elements (5–10 minutes)
When possible (and without sharing confidential data):
• Talk through pricing factors
• Cost drivers
• Contractor and supplier choices
• Any client-driven variations
• Budget vs. actual considerations
This helps them understand the commercial realities of project logistics.
5. Look at the Week Ahead (5 minutes)
Give a preview of what’s coming next:
• Planned movements
• Anticipated challenges
• Any risks you are monitoring
• Targets or deadlines for the coming days
This creates a continuous narrative they can follow week by week.
6. Invite Questions & Reflection (5 minutes)
Encourage your mentee to ask anything, technical, operational and commercial. You might also ask:
• “What would you have done in this situation?”
• “Which part of this week interested you most?”
• “Anything you want me to explain in more detail next time?”
This helps reinforce learning and builds confidence.
Additional Tips for Successful Mentoring
• Keep explanations simple and practical, focus on how and why decisions were made.
• Share real-world insights, not just what went right, but also what was challenging.
• Encourage active participation, not passive listening.
• Be consistent with your weekly calls to maintain momentum.
• Reassure your mentee that there are no “silly questions.”
With this structure, each call becomes an engaging, valuable learning session, and over the full project timeline, your mentee will gain meaningful, real-world knowledge that will stay with them for years to come.
Quick Tips for Mentors
• Be honest, share challenges as well as wins
• Keep explanations practical and jargon-free
• Encourage curiosity and open discussion
• Maintain a steady rhythm with weekly calls
• Remind mentees: no question is too big or too small
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