Mentoring stands out as a powerful strategy for attraction, retention, engagement, and development within organizations. However, to truly impact these key areas, traditional mentoring models may not suffice. It's crucial to explore fresh approaches in designing and implementing mentorship programs that can bring about significant changes on multiple fronts.
In the present intense talent shortage scenario, organizations have the opportunity to enhance their gravitational pull by implementing strategies that boost attraction and retention rates, thereby making a substantial impact. As the world grows more complex, employees are seeking increased skill development opportunities to adapt and thrive. Moreover, individuals yearn for connection and a sense of belonging within a community that is engaged in meaningful work.
While not a cure-all, mentorship has the potential to address these needs. To leverage the power of mentoring effectively, organizations must think outside the box, tailoring their approach to align with their unique culture and goals, surpassing traditional mentorship systems.
Embracing new and innovative mentoring approaches emphasizes the swift and diverse exchange of knowledge, fostering a culture of continuous learning, coaching, and growth. Establishing a clear vision for the mentorship program - whether focusing on inclusion, community, culture, development, or career advancement - is essential. By selecting three core priorities to guide the mentorship process, organizations can shape a customized strategy that aligns with their objectives. Remember, there isn't a one-size-fits-all model for mentoring; blending different techniques to create a tailored approach is key to unlocking the full potential of mentorship.
1. Consider Scale
Re-Up. The traditional approach to mentoring sets up longer-term commitments in which people are locked into relationships for better or worse. When it works, a longer timeframe can provide a wonderful opportunity for trust-building, deep learning, and meaningful interaction. But the system can break down if the chemistry isn’t great or when people’s priorities naturally shift. As a best practice, provide a six-month or year-long window after which mentor and mentee can re-up if they choose—providing an important formal moment to exit the relationship if they desire.
Micro Mentoring. Innovative non-traditional methods are also worthy of consideration. Micro mentoring provides for short-term relationships focused on a single type of development. Mentees may learn a particular skill from a mentor, or put a specific focus on one or two elements of what it takes to be successful in the culture. The magic in this approach is the focus and the sustainability—neither the mentor nor the mentee is on the hook for deep involvement or an overwhelming responsibility to learn or coach on too many things.
Flash Mentoring. While flash mentoring is similar to micro mentoring, it has an element of speed. You can set up flash mentor relationships for weeks or months at a time—or even in a one-time session where people receive input and advice from multiple people in speed rounds. While this model doesn’t allow for deep relationship-building, it can be a great way to connect people quickly and efficiently—and to focus them on asking for a single piece of advice or input that is most important for them. Following the flash experience, they can follow up and maintain relationships with those from whom they’d like to seek more focused mentoring.
2. Consider the Purposes of the Process
Rotational Mentoring. In rotational mentoring, you prioritize providing mentees with exposure to a broad array of people who are cultural ambassadors. Unlike a traditional rotational program where an employee learns the technical aspects of key functions (like finance, operations, new product development, etc.), the focus of this rotational process is on culture and what it takes to be successful in the organization and as a professional generally. You would potentially have 12 mentors who provide mentorship to an employee every month—with two meetings per month. By the end of a year, the employee would have had exposure to a dozen people who provide advice, perspective, and coaching.
Network Mentoring. It’s still true that who you know is as important as what you know, and this is an approach focused on helping a mentee grow their network. In this model, you connect an employee with a mentor who has the explicit goal of connecting them with others. After a couple meetings with the original mentor, subsequent meetings see the mentor inviting new contacts to join in on mentorship meetings—to grow the mentee’s contacts and expand their exposure to resources and people they can follow up with later on.
3. Consider Who Is Involved
Great mentoring often happens one-to-one—which works well to build trust and relationships and boost confidential sharing and targeted advice, but there are other strategies as well.
Group Mentoring. It can also be powerful to put a handful of mentees together with one mentor who facilitates dialogue within the group. Groups of about four are set up for six months to a year, ensuring the mentees are from different departments. The group dynamic allows for the employees to learn from each other and for rich dialogue to ensue—and it helps scale the mentor’s time and expand their reach.
Diversity Mentoring. Also impactful is mentoring focused on diversity. Statistically, we tend to gravitate to people who are more similar to us, rather than different. At the same time, we are more empathetic, accepting, and innovative when we have exposure to people who are different than we are—in everything from their backgrounds to their points of view. As a result, a mentorship program focused on diversity can be especially useful in developing inclusion, social capital, and healthy risk-taking within an organization. The best practice is to ask people to complete a questionnaire related to what they bring, so you don’t make assumptions about the diversity they represent—but which can empower people to both teach and learn as they share their experiences and points of view.
External Mentoring. This kind of mentoring is also outside the norm and can have terrific impacts. In this model, you connect people—either in small groups or individually—with those outside your organization. People outside the company have the advantage of objectivity and distance, so they can be especially helpful as mentors. In this case, you would likely prioritize high-potential employees and connect them with members of your leaders’ network outside the organization.
4. Consider Where the Expertise Lies
Too often, mentorship processes make the assumption that senior people will be developing those who are more junior. But the best practice is to connect people so they can learn based on all kinds of tenure, experience, and expertise.
Reverse Mentoring. This kind of mentoring pairs junior staff with more senior staff for the development of the senior person’s skills and perspectives. Caution: In this scenario, you’ll need to ensure that you’re not setting up biases about what senior and junior people know or excel at. Instead, think broadly about how each has a valuable perspective. In addition, consider using a term other than “reverse mentoring” since some experience it negatively, based on its connotations for something contrary or upside down. You may think of this kind of mentoring as “exchange mentoring” or “shift mentoring.”
Peer Mentoring. A method often overlooked is mentoring among peers. Typically, mentoring includes the assumption that someone has more and someone else has less—and there is learning being imparted through the relationship. However peer mentoring sets up people with similar levels of experience based on the view that each person can learn from the other, and the camaraderie they establish will help both of them.
Senior Leader Mentoring. Too often, the most senior leaders within an organization lack the time to mentor others, so mentorship processes are built starting with leaders who aren’t the most senior in the organization. But senior leaders have an outsize impact on shaping culture, and when they are available and visible, it contributes to both cultural literacy and motivation for employees. You can be creative in connecting people with the senior leaders in the organization through ongoing touchpoints with larger groups. Listening to lunches or fireside chats can work well for senior leaders to connect with groups of key employees and interact informally by both asking and answering questions in a casual format. Each leader may be asked to conduct one or two of these sessions per year.
5. Consider the Mechanics
One of the challenges of mentorship programs is the process of matching, managing and monitoring how things go. There are plenty of innovative apps today which can help you do all of these things.
In addition, best practice includes setting clear expectations and training for both mentors and mentees. Mentorship programs also work well when you provide prompts for discussion or suggested topics for dialogue—as well as suggested timeframes and check-in points for the process. And be sure to obtain feedback on the program itself—so you can continuously improve.
Making An Impact
Try things, obtain feedback, and then change course as you learn. And don’t be afraid to mix methods. The best mentorship process is the one that works for your organization and its unique strengths and areas for improvement.
Mentorship processes are especially effective because of their benefits to both mentors and mentees. People want to make a difference, they want to learn new things—including about themselves—and they want to feel connected with others. Mentorship can bring all of this to life for both mentors and mentees—so there is every reason to take action, move forward, and make mentorship happen within your organization.