Documentos de Académico
Documentos de Profesional
Documentos de Cultura
Nowadays, the age-old image of the wise, older sage imparting wisdom and
knowledge to the younger, less experienced protégé no longer epitomizes the
typical mentoring relationship. “Modern” mentoring relationships are far more
varied and wider in scope.
Updating Outdated Mentoring Myths There is an exciting and new focus for
mentoring that can meet everyone’s needs, but it means adjusting old and outdated
perceptions of mentoring to fit in with the times. What are the newest
interpretations?
(DEEPIKA)
Studies have proven that there are limits as to how fast you can drive education
and training and have it be effective. Also, due to economic constraints within
organizations, many times the problem is not how fast to drive the education and
training, but how to even find available dollars and resources to get it to individuals
that are destined to lead the organization now and in the future. What can
organizations do to help solve this dilemma and assist in the transition between
“education” and “experience”? Mentoring can assist.
We have learned that under the direction of the Mentor, the learner is given
immediate access to valuable insights and past experiences. Within mentoring
relationships, individuals are learning by doing. Individuals are able to practice what
they are learning. Another advantage of mentoring to an organization is that it
showcases those individuals that have the necessary skills/competencies to coach
and develop others. Many times these are the same types of skills/competencies
that an organization wants displayed in its leadership. Even individuals that do not
wish to take on a “managerial” or “supervisory” role within the organization can
satisfy a need to “lead” through a mentoring relationship as well as allowing the
organization to tap into a greater pool of talent/skill.
Many times individuals do not get any experience in specific coaching roles until
after they have been given the title of “manager” or “supervisor”. This means they
are in a reactive mode of learning these skills/competencies. If individuals have the
opportunity to learn and practice these skills/competencies as a Mentor before they
obtain the title of “manager” or “supervisor”, it is proactive and much better for
them as well as the organization.
(VIPIN AGRAWAL)
Mentoring – Enhancing Diversity Strategically and
Sustainably for Real Business Results
April 21, 2010
Ruposhri
Mentoring focuses not on diversity as an end in itself, but diversity
as a means, as the strategy behind a stronger bottom line. While
initiatives such as mandatory diversity training and race/gender quotas for
recruitment can deliver the statistics that paint a picture of diversity, formal
mentoring programs create bi-directional relationships and networks that
actually generate sustainable diversity over the long term. By definition,
mentoring establishes voluntary partnerships that enable individuals to
share their knowledge and experiences with one another. This produces
diversity that is internally motivated and perpetuated, not mandated or
stigmatized, within the organization. Such diversity is part of a solid strategy
for enhancing the bottom line.
Mentoring enables managers to leverage talent they may not even
know they have. According to Frank Dobin, an organizational psychologist
at Harvard who was quoted in the Washington Post, women and minorities
find it tough to get ahead because most people, including managers, tend to
form social groups with similar people -- and many managers are simply
unaware of the talent in their own organizations. Mentoring programs that
require or explicitly encourage managers to connect with subordinates in
different departments can alert managers to talented employees with
different social and ethnic backgrounds, and help younger employees figure
out what they need to do to get ahead. Organizations that understand their
own talent are well-equipped to look within their organization to fill
necessary positions – cutting hiring and onboarding costs by simply
redeploying instead.
Mentoring empowers employees to navigate their career paths in a
way that best fits the culture of their organization. Different
organizational cultures require different strategies for career development.
Without sufficient experience working in the organization and navigating its
politics, culture and hierarchy, employees may have trouble defining realistic
professional goals and working to achieve them. Mentoring facilitates the
sharing of valuable experiences and insights within the organization that
guide the mentee toward educated career navigation. If the mentor-mentee
relationship is cross-cultural, for example, a mentor from the “majority”
culture can guide the mentee from the “minority” culture on how to best
navigate a majority-dominated system. Conversely, if the mentee is paired
with an individual from the same cultural/gender-specific group, then the
mentee has access to an idea role model with lessons on how to overcome
any particular obstacles associated with the experience he or she is likely to
get. Both avenues propel retention.
Case Study Example(shakshi)
A large US insurance company decided to develop a diversity mentoring
program targeted toward minority employees (both racial/cultural minorities
and women). The purpose was to offer these employees an opportunity to
learn from and network with successful leaders in the organization. The
company identified and trained mentors from various levels of the
organization – not just senior management.
A particular challenge that minority employees often faced involved the
ongoing education requirements instated by the company, which many of
them had neither the time nor the money to complete. Through the
mentoring partnerships, employees gained a better understanding of the
company’s culture and why those requirements existed, and also received
advice and assistance on the best ways to obtain the necessary
requirements to advance their careers. Most notably, upon conclusion of the
program, the mentees reported that the most crucial benefit they gained
from the program was the opportunity to build networks with individuals
outside their own departments and job functions. Ultimately, the mentoring
program enabled various leaders across the company to notice key players
in their talent pool – beneficial for both the minority mentees and company
strategy as a whole.
Cutting-Edge Mentoring Solutions for an Effective Diversity
Initiative
Insala’s mentoring solutions enable organizations to launch and deliver effective
and sustainable mentoring programs for diversity and inclusion. Insala provides a
wide array of mentoring solutions including program implementation, program
evaluation, mentoring readiness consulting, mentor training, mentoring technology,
and more. In particular, our consultants work to help organizations identify key
business objectives and metrics, leverage core competencies, and develop
mentoring programs that align with overall talent and business goals. Our
interactive mentoring software features advanced matching and pairing tools,
robust reporting capabilities, the ability to manage multiple programs from a single
portal, mentor-mentee communication tools, and more - enhancing both
administrative efficiency and the participant experience.