A Qualitative Analysis-Enhancing Faculty Academic Success Through Team-Based Mentorship: 5-Year Insights

To explore the successes, challenges and areas for improvement in teambased mentorship program aimed at supporting early-career faculty. It is well known that mentorship and sponsorship are critical for success in academic surgery to enhance productivity, accelerate promotion, improve retention, and boost career satisfaction. However, formal mentorship programs, particularly those using teambased formats, still remain underutilized.

This qualitative study involved conducting semi-structured interviews with faculty mentees who participated in the launch team program. A purposeful sampling strategy was used to identify representative participants. Thematic analysis was used to assess mentorship effectiveness in supporting professional growth, emotional wellbeing, and career advancement.

University of Michigan, Department of Surgery.

A total of 15 early career mentees were invited to participate, this included 9 (60%) identified as White, 4 (26.7%) as Asian and 2 as Black (13.3%). Additionally, 9 (60%) identified as female and 6 (40%) as male. One invited mentee did not participate in the interview.

We identified 3 overarching themes that captured their perspectives on the successes and challenges of the program: (1) Adaptive Mentorship and Support in Evolving Contexts - highlighting the need for combining informational resources with emotional and well-being support, (2) Coordination, Communication, and Program Expectations, - emphasizing the importance of a clear understanding of roles and objectives, effective communication of program details and functional program administration and (3) Team Composition - underscoring the need for a balance in expertise and epistemic diversity, as well as the consideration of power dynamics and psychological safety.

These findings further emphasize the need for mentorship for early career faculty. Expanding structured, team-based mentorship models to other institutions could further strengthen professional development efforts within academic surgery.