What is a mentor?
A mentor is a person who advises, coaches and supports another to improve their ability in completing a task or dealing with a situation. In the workplace, a mentor can help provide their mentee with the tools to become more skilled at their role or further their career.
While teaching skills may be a part of the mentoring arrangement, a mentor’s scope is broader. They may provide ongoing feedback and guidance on job performance, reinforcing confidence. They can be a trusted confidant for the mentee in the workplace when they are struggling to complete a task or potentially making mistakes. Mentors can also use their experience to advise mentees on the best steps to take when they are uncertain.
Who may benefit from having a mentor?
Any worker, no matter how junior or senior, can benefit by being assigned a mentor. The arrangement can be used for any skill or goal, no matter if it is big or small, and whether it lasts a few months or a professional lifetime. The only prerequisite required is for the employee to develop at least one skill or pursue one goal.
Many employers assign mentors to junior employees, such as trainees or graduates. However, the arrangement can be beneficial for mid-career personnel who need help taking the next step into a more senior role. Even CEOs have been known to seek support from mentors, so no level of seniority is unlikely to benefit.
Who can be a mentor?
Most mentors tend to be in a more senior position at the organisation than their mentee, either in role or tenure. However, this does not have to be the case. For example, a junior employee may have the experience to mentor a more senior employee in new technologies, such as how to use artificial intelligence tools to become more productive. Try not to base mentoring decisions on stereotypes, though, and match mentors and mentees according to their skills and capability rather than age or experience.
A mentor role may also suit some employees more than others. If considering implementing a mentorship program in your organisation, it is important that employees be willing to act as mentors and want to put in the time, effort and patience that may be required of them. Not every employee wants to be a mentor, nor do they have the aptitude to be a successful mentor. Some mentors may be excellent at advising employees on technical matters but be less adept at providing career advice, and vice versa.
Calling for volunteers for mentor roles can be a good start to sourcing a pool for your organisation. Some employees who had not previously considered themselves skilled to act as a mentor may feel honoured to be asked to be one but keep in mind that not everyone may be keen to take on this responsibility.
The benefits of mentoring programs
Aside from gaining employees with advanced skills, there are other benefits that a mentoring program can provide to employers.
Low-cost training
Other methods to upskill employees, such as paying for them to attend a training course or bringing a trainer into the workplace to run a workshop, will come at a financial cost to the employer. A mentoring relationship may come at no extra cost to employers, as the learning can occur on the job or during working hours.
Improve workforce morale
A workplace in which employees support and help each other is a positive environment to work in, which can improve morale. Having the support and guidance of employees who are close at hand can help mentees more rapidly address challenges, which also makes for a pleasant work environment. When staff at different levels interact, it creates a more sociable work atmosphere and breaks down barriers that can occur when there is a hierarchy. Mentors often gain a sense of achievement and recognition when they support and guide their mentees, improving their job satisfaction.
Knowledge sharing
For employers, knowledge shared through mentorship can help with succession planning and efficiency. Mentees can be skilled in the business’s unique practices that may differ from other organisations, ensuring quality control or increased efficiency. Sharing knowledge between senior and junior staff ensures company methods and insights are passed down, so if an employee retires or resigns, there may already be a ready replacement available.
Examples of mentorship programs
These are three examples of mentorship programs that are commonly found in workplaces.
Buddy system
When a new employee is hired at a company, they may be assigned a buddy to help them through their first few weeks at the organisation. The buddy may initially help the new employee with everyday assistance, such as showing them how to use specialised software and machinery or where the stationery cupboard is located. This improves the onboarding experience for the employee and helps them to more quickly be able to achieve the pace of work required of them.
Over time, they often develop stronger bonds and the buddy can provide support and advice to address challenges such as achieving work/life balance, navigating relationships with clients or applying for a promotion. The buddy system may start as a formal type of mentoring which evolves into informal ongoing guidance, with mentees asking for support when required.
Skills development
A mentor can be assigned to an employee to provide advice and support in developing particular skills that will help them become more productive workers or contribute at a higher level. These may be technical skills, such as a sous chef advising a more junior chef how to improve a cooking technique. Mentors can also aid in the development of soft skills, such as how to become better communicators or deal with conflict. As the employee’s skills improve, they become a more constructive member of the team.
Many employers instigate a formal arrangement for this type of mentorship by assigning mentors to a mentee. They may dedicate an amount of time each week for the two workers to meet to discuss issues or learn new skills. However, this relationship also can occur informally in the workplace, with a worker offering to mentor another, or an employee asking a higher-skilled employee to act as their mentor. When this happens, employers can nurture this arrangement by providing them with time to do so.
Read more: 5 Steps to Creating an Effective Training and Development Program
Career advice
A mentor can help employees more generally in their careers at the company. In these cases, it may be the employer that recognises an employee has the potential to move into a higher position if they receive guidance on how to build their leadership skills.
Employers may appoint a leader to act as the employee’s mentor and facilitate for the two to meet regularly during work time to discuss broader career issues. Or, employers may arrange for the two to work on projects together or belong to the same team.
Mentorship can be a useful method of upskilling employees in several ways. With so much flexibility, there is no limit to how it can improve your workforce’s capability. While it may not be the only learning and development tool you wish to use, it offers benefits that mentors and mentees, as well as employers alike, can appreciate.
