INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT
The value of business mentoring
HEART - What would you say is the value of business mentoring?
EM - A business mentor brings two critical success ingredients to his or
her protégé: 1) experience; and 2) perspective.
About experience: The business challenges we face might be entirely new to us,
but there is a strong likelihood that more experienced business people had to
tackle similar challenges in the past. As a wise senior lady once told me
“Nothing new happens; it’s just that the same old things happen to new people.”
Therefore, a mentor can share with her protégée how he or she dealt with
comparable situations in the past, and discuss what worked well vs. what didn’t.
From the discussion, the protégé can better analyze her specific situation; she
can think “outside her box” by considering a course of actions that is unusual
to her; and she can devise a well thought-out plan to tackle the challenge.
About perspective: often, we lack the necessary perspective to make an effective
decision. There are two primary scenarios for which we lack perspective: we are
emotionally too close to the issue; or the environment is new to us.
Here is an example to illustrate the first scenario: when the organization is
experiencing a significant change (a merger for example), everyone - including
management - struggles with personal questions about the future. Questions such
as: What does it mean for my career? Will I still have my job? How can I succeed
if my power base disappears? As a result, our emotions kick in, clouding our
judgment.
The most typical situation to illustrate the second scenario is when a leader
joins a new company or is assigned to another division in a large organization.
She is not yet knowledgeable about the culture and politics specific to this
organization or division. Not equipped with such a critical knowledge, she will
have a hard time properly assessing situations, and an even harder time making
effective decisions. A mentor with experience in this particular environment can
provide critical insights into its culture and politics.
HEART: How can mentorship facilitate advancement in the corporate world?
EM - Mentorship plays a critical role in facilitating advancement is
four scenarios: 1) when an employee is promoted to a leadership role for the
first time; 2) when a manager is promoted to a leadership role with
significantly broader responsibilities - e.g. from middle management to senior
management; 3) when a new leader comes from outside or from another division;
and 4) when a manager belongs to a group traditionally faced with a “glass
ceiling” (e.g. women; visible minorities).
In addition, mentorship facilitates advancement by providing introductions to
key people in the organization - which accelerates the development of the
protégé's network.
HEART - Do you have any tips for finding a business mentor?
EM - The first step is to be open about your desire to find a mentor.
Mention it not only to more experienced business people, but also to people who
have access to this group.
As you meet potential mentors, keep in mind the importance of chemistry. You
must feel comfortable at a personal level with the mentor. Otherwise it will be
awkward and difficult for you to open up. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing
your concerns and discussing your feelings with the mentor, then the mentoring
process won’t work. Of course, trust is also part of the equation.
Not only do you need to be comfortable with your mentor, but you also need to
respect him or her as a business person.
Finally, remember that in order to work, both the mentor and the protégé must
have a genuine desire to invest themselves in the mentoring process. So make
sure to probe the reasons a potential mentor is interested in working with you.
HEART - So, mentorship is really essential in business?
EM - Most definitely!
HEART - Why should corporations be aware of the importance of mentorship? Do you feel that companies should be more concerned with mentorship?
Success fountains up: in order for the organization to succeed as a whole, most of its people and teams must succeed. Therefore, it is in the best interest of the corporation to ensure its people succeed – particularly its leaders and managers, since they have the biggest impact on corporate results.
As we discussed, mentoring plays a critical role in the success of leaders who have been recently promoted or hired. When a new leader fails, not only is the corporation faced with negative results, but is also has to incur the high cost of finding a replacement. Furthermore, there is the “opportunity cost” linked to the precious time that has been wasted. Of course, the higher the position, the most dramatic the impact and replacement costs are.
Yet, very few corporations provide adequate mentoring to help their leader succeed. Hence, most organizations are shooting themselves in the foot...