Why a mentor?

A Mentor is described by the Macquarie Dictionary…(especially in an organisation) as a person who is considered to have sufficient experience or expertise to be able to assist others less experienced.

A mentoring relationship is a hands-on, one-on-one relationship built on trust and confidentiality. Most successful people have at one time enjoyed the benefit of a relationship with an individual who has served them as a Mentor.

Below are just some comments made by senior executives about a unique business relationship they developed with a business Mentor. Most senior executives receive a large part of their learning and support from a Mentor on their way to the top.

  • My mentor opened doors in the organisation that I couldn’t have opened by myself…
  • There is so much about my mentor to admire – we were able to talk on a level that I can with few people…
  • My mentor’s feedback about some of the areas I managed was always on target, even though sometimes the home truths were hard to accept…
  • My mentor was very capable in managing change and was willing to share his experience and knowledge with me…
  • My mentor believed in me and encouraged me to take risks I wouldn’t have taken without their persuasion…
  • My mentor’s wealth of knowledge and expertise in managing people was amazing and I was able to tap this resource to benefit my organisation…

Throughout history, younger people have been mentored by older people, mostly through informal, unplanned arrangements.  A Harvard Business Review article entitled Everyone Who Makes It Has a Mentor stated that mentoring had always been an integral part of the career advancement of the business executive and today, mentoring has emerged as a formal process to assist senior executives.

In more recent times, senior executives’ roles have changed markedly and become much more complex, to the extent that they must continue to learn and acquire new skills to stay abreast of developments.  With a lack of appropriate training courses, and the time these often take them away from the work environment, senior executive attendance at these courses becomes either impractical or it may not be in their best interests to be absent from their workplace for an extended period.  In addition, it is often found that these courses do not fully meet their needs.  

Learning is greatly enhanced when it is directly relevant to the Mentee’s current industry and employment.  This is where mentoring is most effective as it helps senior executives access and utilise their Mentor’s extensive knowledge and experience to develop new ways of working.
 
In today’s competitive corporate climate, many senior executives, including Managing Directors and Chief Executive Officers, often feel isolated because of a lack of local peers and feel unable to discuss problems or issues with Board Members or other senior executives for fear they may be seen as weak or indecisive.  Others believe their own performance, or that of particular subordinate senior managers, could be enhanced in areas of weakness with appropriate assistance and guidance.
 
Mentoring allows the Mentee to think openly, and aims to provide in the strictest confidence, a sounding board for ideas, an analysis of business plans, and assistance to individuals in their development.  Mentors help create a comfort level for senior executives they are not able to acquire with their Board and senior managers.  Australian Business Mentors Mentors excel at creating an environment in which senior executives feel secure enough to speak openly and freely.  

Copyright © 2011 Australian Business Mentors

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