The 21st century business environment demands employees who are lifelong learners and companies with cutting-edge training strategies. How can mentoring help?
Do you sometimes feel as if your training department is becoming a mini-university? Developing job-specific skills, keeping your employees on the cutting edge, and preparing employees for advancement all require considerable resources and commitment. But your payoff is having more qualified employees and a more productive workplace.
Mentoring can help you meet your organization's professional development needs by identifying current training needs and methods, evaluating the effectiveness of current training, and developing compatible mentoring approaches.
First, you have to identify your current professional development needs and the methods being used to meet those needs.
Training Methods - Your training methods may include outside classes, on-site trainers, books and manuals, Web-based training, and training from supervisors, co-workers, or inside experts.
Training Needs - Your employees may need to acquire skills and knowledge related to technology, computers, writing, presentation, accounting, leadership, sales, and so on.
Next, you need to evaluate the effectiveness of your company's current professional development.
Are all professional development needs being met?
If your company has a high turnover rate, you may need an induction program. Or if you lack qualified candidates to promote from within, you may need to focus professional development efforts on leadership preparation or providing support to new leaders.
Are training methods appropriate for the material being taught?
A classroom is an effective setting for training a group of people on the same skills. But most classrooms—except for computer labs—don't allow learners to apply what they're learning. You may need to replace or supplement classroom training with other hands-on methods.
Finally, you must develop mentoring approaches that are complementary to and compatible with your company's current professional development. Mentoring programs should support other training methods, not conflict with them. Depending on the specific need, mentoring may replace or supplement other training methods, but shouldn't duplicate them.
When new employees need to learn specific job skills, mentors provide the most effective instruction by working alongside their proteges on actual project work.
If you provide Web-based training and leading books to help prepare promising employees for management positions, you will find supplementing those training methods with a mentoring program for new managers will improve the effectiveness of your training program.
Having a mentor is like having your own personal instructor and guide. You can use mentoring to meet professional development needs and improve the outcome of your current training programs. Mentoring supplements traditional training. When you identify current training needs and methods, evaluate the effectiveness of current training and develop compatible mentoring approaches.
Showing posts with label Mentoring. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mentoring. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Sunday, December 30, 2007
How Mentoring Benefits both Mentor and Mentee
You probably knew that mentoring benefits mentees. But did you realize it benefits both partners?
An effective mentoring relationship involves a special bond of friendship and trust. Both partners must contribute their best efforts for a successful outcome.
Mentoring benefits both mentors and mentees by exerting a positive influence on work ethics, professional development, leadership skills, and motivation.
First, mentoring has a positive influence on work ethics. Research suggests that mentees tend to emulate the discipline and work ethics demonstrated by their mentors. An interesting side effect is that modeling good work habits can be beneficial to the mentor as well.
Consider the following case:
"My mentor modeled disciplined work habits and a strong work ethic. After working closely with her for several months, I found myself adopting her behaviors."
"I tried to set a good example for my mentee and ended up operating at a higher performance level myself."
Second, mentoring contributes to the mentee's professional development. The beauty of the close relationship between mentors and mentees is that it facilitates individualized professional development that contributes to the mentee's career goals. Another advantage is that mentees receive on-the-job training tailored to the demands of the job.
A mentor can help the mentee conduct a comprehensive skills assessment, which includes the mentee's self-assessment along with evaluations from his co-workers, supervisor, and mentor. Any of these alone is not enough to produce an accurate assessment.
The mentor and mentee work together to prepare the mentee's professional development plan, which is based on the mentee's career goals and the current demands of his job. Often, the mentee drafts the plan and takes it to his mentor for suggestions.
The mentee's training is based on her professional development plan. She may receive training directly from her mentor, other company experts, or outside sources. Her training shouldn't be limited to just what her mentor can provide.
A third benefit of mentoring relationships is that they develop leadership skills in both mentors and mentees. The mentor models leadership skills in her interactions with her mentee, giving the mentor additional opportunities to hone her own skills. At the same time, the mentee has a chance to observe and learn from the mentor's example and begins to demonstrate leadership skills of his own.
Meanwhile, mentors often find their own careers revitalized by the challenges of mentoring. Being exposed to the new ideas and enthusiasm of mentees also can rekindle passion for their work.
When mentoring relationships are working well, both partners invest time and energy, and both realize a return on their investment.
An effective mentoring relationship involves a special bond of friendship and trust. Both partners must contribute their best efforts for a successful outcome.
Mentoring benefits both mentors and mentees by exerting a positive influence on work ethics, professional development, leadership skills, and motivation.
First, mentoring has a positive influence on work ethics. Research suggests that mentees tend to emulate the discipline and work ethics demonstrated by their mentors. An interesting side effect is that modeling good work habits can be beneficial to the mentor as well.
Consider the following case:
"My mentor modeled disciplined work habits and a strong work ethic. After working closely with her for several months, I found myself adopting her behaviors."
"I tried to set a good example for my mentee and ended up operating at a higher performance level myself."
Second, mentoring contributes to the mentee's professional development. The beauty of the close relationship between mentors and mentees is that it facilitates individualized professional development that contributes to the mentee's career goals. Another advantage is that mentees receive on-the-job training tailored to the demands of the job.
A mentor can help the mentee conduct a comprehensive skills assessment, which includes the mentee's self-assessment along with evaluations from his co-workers, supervisor, and mentor. Any of these alone is not enough to produce an accurate assessment.
The mentor and mentee work together to prepare the mentee's professional development plan, which is based on the mentee's career goals and the current demands of his job. Often, the mentee drafts the plan and takes it to his mentor for suggestions.
The mentee's training is based on her professional development plan. She may receive training directly from her mentor, other company experts, or outside sources. Her training shouldn't be limited to just what her mentor can provide.
A third benefit of mentoring relationships is that they develop leadership skills in both mentors and mentees. The mentor models leadership skills in her interactions with her mentee, giving the mentor additional opportunities to hone her own skills. At the same time, the mentee has a chance to observe and learn from the mentor's example and begins to demonstrate leadership skills of his own.
Meanwhile, mentors often find their own careers revitalized by the challenges of mentoring. Being exposed to the new ideas and enthusiasm of mentees also can rekindle passion for their work.
When mentoring relationships are working well, both partners invest time and energy, and both realize a return on their investment.
Benefits of eMentoring
Use this Guide to review the potential benefits each group may gain from e-Mentoring
The Organization
The Organization
- Employee Loyalty
- Increased productivity
- Improved internal communication
- Better skilled staff
The e-Mentor
- Improved leadership skills
- The satisfaction of guiding the company's success
- Pride in sharing the work experience with others
The e-Mentee
- Individualized training
- Better job skills
- Increased chances of promotion
- Bigger professional network
Ending a Mentoring Relationship
Make a checkmark after these questions if they apply to the relationship between you and your mentor. If you've checked off everything on this list, then it's time to end your mentoring relationship.
- You've achieved the goals listed on your professional development plan.
- You've made a list of new goals on your professional development plan.
- Your mentor can't help you with your new goals.
- You don't feel like you're learning much when working with your mentor.
- You've learned more from others you've met through the mentoring program than you have from your mentor.
- You know you can still ask your mentor for advice when you need it.
How Mentoring Improves Recruiting and Retention
Recruiting and training qualified employees is costly. How can mentoring help you improve recruitment and retention?
Effective mentoring can keep your human resources department from operating like a revolving door. You can use mentoring to attract recruits and improve their chances of remaining on the job by providing individualized professional development, training updates, and emotional support.
Offering individualized professional development attracts qualified candidates and helps them adjust to the requirements of a new job. First, mentors help their mentees identify training needs by conducting a skills assessment. Mentors and mentees then work together to create a professional development plan. Individualized training might include instruction from the mentor (within his areas of expertise), other company experts, or outside experts or classes. It should not be limited to what the mentor can provide.
Training should include hands-on experience. According to the constructivist learning theory, learning is most effective when the new knowledge and skills are used on the job, allowing the learner to construct meaning for himself within the context of his interactions with others.
Mentoring also facilitates training updates. With technologies becoming obsolete more quickly than ever before, workers in many fields require frequent training updates to stay on the cutting edge.
Finally, mentors improve recruitment and retention by providing emotional support. In today's environment of reorganization and transitory jobs, the friendship, trust, and stability offered by mentors is a welcome prospect for new recruits. Mentors help new employees adjust by providing guidance and support in a nonjudgmental and confidential environment. However, mentors should not attempt to be counselors unless they have the necessary credentials.
Your company invests time and money into hiring and training qualified employees. Mentoring can help you get a return on your investment. You can use mentoring to attract recruits and increase their likelihood of remaining on the job by providing individualized professional development, training updates, and emotional support.
Effective mentoring can keep your human resources department from operating like a revolving door. You can use mentoring to attract recruits and improve their chances of remaining on the job by providing individualized professional development, training updates, and emotional support.
Offering individualized professional development attracts qualified candidates and helps them adjust to the requirements of a new job. First, mentors help their mentees identify training needs by conducting a skills assessment. Mentors and mentees then work together to create a professional development plan. Individualized training might include instruction from the mentor (within his areas of expertise), other company experts, or outside experts or classes. It should not be limited to what the mentor can provide.
Training should include hands-on experience. According to the constructivist learning theory, learning is most effective when the new knowledge and skills are used on the job, allowing the learner to construct meaning for himself within the context of his interactions with others.
Mentoring also facilitates training updates. With technologies becoming obsolete more quickly than ever before, workers in many fields require frequent training updates to stay on the cutting edge.
Finally, mentors improve recruitment and retention by providing emotional support. In today's environment of reorganization and transitory jobs, the friendship, trust, and stability offered by mentors is a welcome prospect for new recruits. Mentors help new employees adjust by providing guidance and support in a nonjudgmental and confidential environment. However, mentors should not attempt to be counselors unless they have the necessary credentials.
Your company invests time and money into hiring and training qualified employees. Mentoring can help you get a return on your investment. You can use mentoring to attract recruits and increase their likelihood of remaining on the job by providing individualized professional development, training updates, and emotional support.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Offering a Mentoring Program
Four Guidelines for offering a mentoring program
1) Base the program on voluntary participation
Dos - Have a mentee create a list of her goals and needs
Dos - Ask her to review a list of each potential mentor's skills and areas of expertise
Dos - The mentee should choose at least two possible mentors, just in case her first choice declines for some reason
Don'ts - Don't let the mentee make her choices until she's had the opportunity to compare her list to the mentor's lists.
3) Allow the mentee to choose a mentor
Dos - Accept the mentee's choices.
Dos - The best way to respond is to tell the mentee that the choice of mentor is hers alone to make.
Dos - When the mentee makes her choice, tell her you will contact her preferred mentor -- her "first choice" as it were -- as soon as possible.
Dos - When you contact the potential mentor, do so without the mentee present.
Don'ts - Don't make the choice for the mentee.
Don'ts - Don't recommend a mentor, even if the mentee asks.
Don'ts - Don't express your opinion if the mentee makes a choice that you disagree with.
4) Give the potential mentor the right to accept or decline
Dos - When talking to the mentee, you need to make it clear that the mentor might decline. You should assure the mentee that if the potential mentor declines, you will then ask the second mentor she chose.
Dos - When you contact the potential mentor, give him the mentee's list of needs and goals.
Dos - Let the potential mentor decide whether to accept or decline the mentee's invitation.
Don'ts - Don't say anything that will influence the mentor's decision.
Don'ts - Don't pressure the mentor in any way.
1) Base the program on voluntary participation
Dos - It's ok to discuss the benefits of the mentoring program
Dos - Tell potential participants that it won't be held against them if they choose not to participate in the program
Don'ts - In no way should you pressure anyone -- mentor or mentee -- to participate
2) Provide an opportunity to match needs with skillsDos - Have a mentee create a list of her goals and needs
Dos - Ask her to review a list of each potential mentor's skills and areas of expertise
Dos - The mentee should choose at least two possible mentors, just in case her first choice declines for some reason
Don'ts - Don't let the mentee make her choices until she's had the opportunity to compare her list to the mentor's lists.
3) Allow the mentee to choose a mentor
Dos - Accept the mentee's choices.
Dos - The best way to respond is to tell the mentee that the choice of mentor is hers alone to make.
Dos - When the mentee makes her choice, tell her you will contact her preferred mentor -- her "first choice" as it were -- as soon as possible.
Dos - When you contact the potential mentor, do so without the mentee present.
Don'ts - Don't make the choice for the mentee.
Don'ts - Don't recommend a mentor, even if the mentee asks.
Don'ts - Don't express your opinion if the mentee makes a choice that you disagree with.
4) Give the potential mentor the right to accept or decline
Dos - When talking to the mentee, you need to make it clear that the mentor might decline. You should assure the mentee that if the potential mentor declines, you will then ask the second mentor she chose.
Dos - When you contact the potential mentor, give him the mentee's list of needs and goals.
Dos - Let the potential mentor decide whether to accept or decline the mentee's invitation.
Don'ts - Don't say anything that will influence the mentor's decision.
Don'ts - Don't pressure the mentor in any way.
Understanding Mentoring
A mentor is defined in dictionaries as a trusted and wise counselor or teacher.
In business, traditionally a mentoring relationship has been between a senior member of a company, the mentor, and a more junior member, the mentee. The mentor takes an interest in the younger person, offering advice, coaching, and lots of Socratic questioning to guide the mentee's career.
Mentoring is a crucial component of the learning organization's culture and its devotion to sharing knowledge. Mentors can help instill learning and knowledge attitudes needed in a learning culture. They can also model coping skills for dealing with constant change.
Constant change has left many people with no idea of how to carve out a career path. Mentoring helps put skills and opportunities into perspective.
Becoming a mentor
Perhaps you're thinking about becoming a mentor. Below are some reasons people give for being a mentor:
Ø It helps a promising person.
Ø It helps the company.
Ø It's a form of service.
Ø It makes you influential.
Ø It's a conduit for wisdom that might get lost.
Ø It creates personal growth.
It keeps you young and stimulated.
Or perhaps you're thinking about becoming a mentee. There's a lot of research showing that a mentoring relationship leads to early career advancement, higher income, career mobility, and greater job satisfaction for the mentee.
Learning organizations need mentoring programs. Studies show that mentoring leads to performance improvement. And for today's self-directed learners, mentors are resources for information not available elsewhere.
Mentoring programs
Companies have recognized the benefits of mentoring and have tried to create formal programs based on what has traditionally been an informal process. This has not always worked.
Formal mentors are less willing to take risks on behalf of their mentees. However, even formal programs have their benefits, and there are specific things a learning organization can do to create successful mentoring programs.
The following are some things that organizations can do to promote mentoring:
Design formal programs to emulate informal ones: Traditionally, mentors and mentees came together by choice. Some common bond would draw them together. Let mentors and mentees choose each other, if possible.
Don't make mentoring compulsory: Again, choice needs to be the driving force in a mentorship.
Build in reward systems: Both mentors and mentees may need incentives to participate. Special recognition programs or opportunities to discuss accomplishments are needed.
Use creative approaches: Ideas such as seminars, where groups of mentors and mentees meet together frequently, are being used successfully.
Technology and mentoring
Technology has enabled a creative approach to mentoring being used by many individuals and companies.
Online mentoring is now a viable option, using both synchronous and asynchronous methods. Real-time chat rooms, led by experts in the field, are becoming more popular as Internet technology becomes more familiar. Asynchronous methods, such as e-mail, make it possible for experts to respond within 24 hours to individual questions sent at any time.
Traditional mentoring is still important for an individual's career development, but other options, such as online mentoring and EPSSs, may have more performance-based advantages for this fast-paced business world. Learning organizations should provide both of these options for their knowledge workers.
Does Mentoring Work?
Usually organizations subscribe to mentoring with the perceived end result in mind but unfortunately most of the mentoring relationships end without meeting the objective or goal. It is a huge waste if you take into account the time spent by the mentor, mentee and the HR executive who would have been made responsible for coordinating the mentoring program.
Why does this happen?
There are various reasons which cause mentoring relationships to fail:
a) Senior Sponsorship - This goes just beyond signing a corporate memo! Unless the Senior management walk the talk and extend support, the mentoring practice is bound to have a quick death.
b) Selection criteria - Lack of clear (if any) selection criteria results in a generic confusion over why a candidate has been selected. Is it recognition of ability or deficiency?
c) The need - If the mentoring relationship is not tailored to meet the mentee's needs
d) Setting Mentoring Objective - If there are no clear measurable objectives set at the start of the mentoring relationship, it is bound to fail. Neither the mentor nor the mentee will be clear about what is expected out fo the mentoring relationship.
e) Time Bound - Depending on the set objectives, define the time period by which the objectives can be achieved. If not, the mentoring relationship will not stay focused.
Different management behaviour is required in the start-up phase of a programme to that of maintenance. Getting a mentoring programme off the ground requires good communication, encouragement and active support. Once established a successful mentoring programme will create its own momentum. It certainly isn’t a numbers game; one successful mentoring relationship is better than 20 unproductive ones.
Why does this happen?
There are various reasons which cause mentoring relationships to fail:
a) Senior Sponsorship - This goes just beyond signing a corporate memo! Unless the Senior management walk the talk and extend support, the mentoring practice is bound to have a quick death.
b) Selection criteria - Lack of clear (if any) selection criteria results in a generic confusion over why a candidate has been selected. Is it recognition of ability or deficiency?
c) The need - If the mentoring relationship is not tailored to meet the mentee's needs
d) Setting Mentoring Objective - If there are no clear measurable objectives set at the start of the mentoring relationship, it is bound to fail. Neither the mentor nor the mentee will be clear about what is expected out fo the mentoring relationship.
e) Time Bound - Depending on the set objectives, define the time period by which the objectives can be achieved. If not, the mentoring relationship will not stay focused.
Different management behaviour is required in the start-up phase of a programme to that of maintenance. Getting a mentoring programme off the ground requires good communication, encouragement and active support. Once established a successful mentoring programme will create its own momentum. It certainly isn’t a numbers game; one successful mentoring relationship is better than 20 unproductive ones.
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