Coaching & Mentoring Training Template and Checklist
A ready-to-run coaching and mentoring program and the rollout checklist to go with it. Train every manager to coach, then see which cohorts actually can.
- A seven-module coaching and mentoring program, with audience and duration for each session
- A rollout checklist for both one-on-one coaching and a mentoring program
- A coach readiness matrix that shows where the coaching skills are thin
- A coaching and mentoring calendar to keep the practice continuous
What is inside
- A seven-module coaching and mentoring program, with audience and duration for each session.
- A 10-point rollout checklist covering both one-on-one coaching and a mentoring program.
- A coach readiness matrix that scores each cohort and shows where the coaching skills are thin.
- A coaching and mentoring calendar so the practice keeps improving, not just at launch.
Who it is for
Anyone who has to build coaches, or run a mentoring program that lasts.
- People managers who coach their teams
- New and first-time managers
- Mentors and mentoring-program owners
- Team leads and senior leaders
- L&D and enablement teams
- HR business partners
- Talent and succession leads
- Founders and heads of function
The training program template
Seven modules covering the skills a manager needs to coach well and mentor others. Run the full set for new coaches, then use the refresher and role-specific modules through the year.
| Module | Audience | Duration | What it must cover |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Coaching, mentoring or managing | All managers | 20 min | Telling the three apart and choosing the right one for the moment. |
| 2. The GROW model | All managers | 25 min | Structuring a session around goal, reality, options and will, with practice. |
| 3. Active listening | All managers | 20 min | Listening to understand, not to reply, and talking less than the coachee. |
| 4. Powerful questions | All managers | 20 min | Open, non-leading questions that help a person find their own answer. |
| 5. Feedback that develops | All managers | 25 min | Giving specific, forward-looking feedback that builds skill instead of defence. |
| 6. Running a mentoring program | Mentors, owners | 30 min | Matching pairs, briefing both sides, setting goals and keeping the program alive. |
| 7. Coaching for growth and career | All managers | 25 min | Longer-arc coaching for development, stretch and career direction. |
Delivering the GROW and questioning modules through an LMS gives you dated completion per manager and readiness scores by cohort, so you can see who is ready to coach or mentor before a person depends on it.
The rollout checklist
Ten steps to get coaching and mentoring live and keep it going. Tick items to track your own progress, it stays in this browser. The download has the same list with an owner column.
- Coaching expectations for managers written and sharedFoundationsOngoing
- New managers complete the modules before they coachOnboardingPer hire
- A shared coaching model, such as GROW, agreedMethodOngoing
- Coaching built into regular one-on-onesRhythmWeekly
- Mentoring pairs matched with a purpose, not at randomMentoringPer intake
- Mentors briefed and given a light structureMentoringPer intake
- Feedback skills practised, not just describedFeedbackOngoing
- Managers observe or record a real coaching sessionCoachingMonthly
- Coach readiness scored by cohortCertificationPer cohort
- Mentoring program reviewed and re-matched as neededGovernanceTwice a year
The most common gap is questioning. A manager who has learned GROW but still asks leading questions is just giving advice in a nicer order, and the coachee never owns the answer.
Coach readiness at a glance
The checklist tells you what is missing overall. This matrix tells you which cohorts are behind. Score each cohort on the five behaviours that decide whether coaching actually develops people. In Excel the readiness and gaps calculate as you type.
| Cohort | People | GROW model | Listening | Questions | Feedback | Mentoring | Ready |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senior leaders | 14 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 100% |
| Trained mentors | 26 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 90% |
| Experienced managers | 48 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 70% |
| Team leads | 60 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 50% |
| New managers | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30% |
| Coverage at required | 40% | 40% | 40% | 60% | 40% | 68% |
New managers are the exposure here: no questioning skill and no mentoring readiness, so they default to telling, which is the opposite of what a first-time report needs.
The coaching and mentoring calendar
| Timing | Action | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| On becoming a coach or mentor | Modules 1 to 5 before coaching, then a GROW role-play. | L&D and manager |
| Weekly | Coach within each one-on-one using the shared model. | All managers |
| Monthly | Mentoring pairs meet, and a manager observes one real session. | Mentors and managers |
| Quarterly | Review coaching quality and refresh a specific skill. | L&D and managers |
| Twice a year | Review the mentoring program, re-match pairs, score readiness. | Program owner and HR |
| When a mentee stalls | Coach the coach, then reset goals with the mentee. | Manager and mentor |
How to run it
- Separate coaching from managing
Teach managers when to direct and when to coach, and to notice which one they are doing.
- Use GROW to structure sessions
Give coaches a simple frame so a session goes somewhere instead of drifting into advice.
- Listen more than you tell
Practise active listening until the coach talks less than the person being coached.
- Ask powerful questions
Replace leading advice with open questions that help the person find their own answer.
- Pair and support mentors
Match mentoring pairs deliberately, brief both sides, and give the program a rhythm.
- Coach the coaches and score readiness
Observe real sessions and track the five behaviours by cohort.
Disprz drives up to 50 percent gains in productivity and engagement.
Common mistakes this pack prevents
- Telling managers to coach without ever teaching them how, so they default to advice.
- Running sessions with no structure, so they drift and nothing is decided.
- Asking leading questions dressed up as coaching, so the coachee never owns the answer.
- Launching a mentoring program with random pairs and no rhythm, so it fades in a quarter.
- Judging coaching by activity rather than by whether the person actually grew.
Which format should you use?
| Format | Best for | What is inside | Editable | Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sharing and print | The full template, formatted to print or circulate | No | 54 KB | |
| Word | Editing the wording | Every section as editable text you can adapt | Yes | 86 KB |
| Excel | Filling it in live | The grid and scoring set up as a working spreadsheet | Yes | 65 KB |
Questions people ask
What is the difference between coaching and mentoring?
What is the GROW model?
Can I adapt the modules and checklist?
Does the Excel tracker work in Google Sheets?
Do I have to fill the form three times?
More from the leadership library
A manager who can only tell is not coaching. That is the part we run.
Bring your managers to a 30-minute working session. We will show how Disprz delivers coaching and mentoring training in short mobile modules, scores readiness by cohort, and rolls completion up by group, so you can see which managers are ready to coach before a mentee depends on it.