The Global Mentorship Pilot Programme, spearheaded by a team of spa and wellness experts from around the world, has kicked off with 17 experienced spa directors serving as mentors to spa managers looking for guidance.

The first of its kind, the programme is led by Jean-Guy de Gabriac, CEO of Tip Touch international spa training and consultancy, and Deborah Smith, principal of Smith Club & Spa Specialists – a US-based wellness consultancy.

Announced at the 2014 Global Wellness Summit, the mentorship programme pairs will meet twice a month via video conference or by phone, over a three month period to define and meet career challenges identified by the mentee.

The most popular topics chosen by mentees, based on a preliminary survey of the first group to undergo the training, include marketing, finance, leadership and strategic business planning. Other subjects may include insights into how to make retail space more profitable or tips on how to introduce a new fitness programme.

The framework of discussions for mentors and mentees is based on the International Spa Association’s (ISPA) list of core competencies for development of spa management professionals. This list was identified by the Global Wellness Summit’s Spa Management Education Committee as the ideal list for the mentorship programme following the committee’s 2013 Spa Career Path Survey, which found 94 per cent of spa managers interviewed believed a good mentor is important to a successful spa career.

Spa managers with at least two years’ experience are eligible to apply to the programme. The second session, which begins in April, is already fully booked, but applications for the 2016 session are being accepted at the beginning of May 2015. The programme is free for all participants.

The findings from this inaugural year of the programme will be reported at the 2015 Global Wellness Summit, to be held in Mexico City between 13-15 November. The summit is presented by the Global Wellness Institute (GWI).

The first group of mentees are from France, Portugal, Italy, Cyprus, Germany, the US, Colombia, Costa Rica, the UAE, India, the Republic of Mauritius and Australia. The mentees represent many types of spa, including hotel and resort spas, club spas, independent day spas, mineral spring spas and a spa at a health club owned by a non-profit health care organisation.

“The concepts of spa, wellness and complementary healing principles date back to ancient times, with many practices handed down from one generation to the next,” said de Gabriac. “Consider this a modern version of that practice, with mentors giving freely of their time and talent to spa professionals who are early in their career journey. This is one way to reduce the learning curve for these junior spa managers who show great potential yet need and want sage guidance to master the profession.”