Beginning teachers enter the classroom with diverse backgrounds, training, expectations, and needs. Yet too often, write the authors, induction programs resemble a one-size-fits-all poncho rather than a well-tailored coat. Reviewing the research, the authors write that high-quality mentors, a focus on improving instruction, and allocated time are all important features of effective mentoring programs. These factors interact with the strengths and needs that each new teacher brings to the classroom and the school context in which he or she begins teaching to determine how the teacher will experience mentoring. School administrators play a key role in structuring effective mentoring programs and creating a school context in which these programs can thrive.