Mentoring

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 536.

Some organizations have difficulty determining whether they are running a mentoring program or a management coaching session. They rarely recognize that mentoring relationships can and should outlast an employment relationship. With respect to the characteristic differences for those participating in a mentoring relationship, you can find the following:

• It occurs outside of the manager-employee relationship.

• It generally requires mutual consent.

• It is career-focused, yet mentoring relationships are personal.

• Relationships may he initiated by mentors, mentees or employers.

• Mentorship crosses job boundaries.

• Relationships generally last for a specific period of time (nine months to a year) in a formal program, at which point an informal mentoring relationship may continue.

The relationship between mentor and mentee should he based upon mutual trust, respect and integrity. A mentor often occupies a senior-level assignment of authority and influence within the organization, knows the organization and has a broad view and multiple working experiences. This individual generally tells, advises, instructs, suggests, gives opinions and, as an effective mentor, also knows when and how to coach.

Many firms and organizations today have mentoring programs, either formal or informal. Most new employees are assigned buddies or mentors, while executives and partners often seek executive coaches to assist them with challenges they face.