Can you remember that one person in your career whom you valued the most, and helped guide you to where you are today? That person is mostly likely your trusted mentor. They guided you, critiqued you, and taught you almost everything you need to know for the career path you’ve taken or want to take. Mentoring is one of the greatest components you can add to a business. It increases productivity in the workplace, it provides guidance to a less-experienced employee, and it helps assist the employee to grow professionally. Mentoring not only benefits the employee, but also the mentor, and will have positive long-term advantages for all involved.
Benefits for the Employee
An employee benefits from a mentoring relationship because they are able to have someone with greater knowledge and experience to turn to for advice. While a mentor won’t do the employee’s job, the mentor will demonstrate a task, guide the employee through solving a problem, or provide constructive feedback to the employee on their work. A mentorship may help an employee feel less isolated at work, and encourage greater interaction with others. A mentor can also provide an employee with tips on career growth and introduce the employee to other professionals.
Benefits for the Business
The business that has employees who are mentored may gain from greater productivity in the workplace. As employees turn to their mentors for advice, they make fewer mistakes on the job, cutting losses to the business. Employees who have mentoring relationships tend to have greater job satisfaction as well, which provides a more positive work environment. The business could also notice less turnover of employees as workers feel a greater loyalty. This allows for a business to become more creative and focus its attention on growth, rather than training.
Benefits for the Mentor
Mentors gain from the mentoring relationship, too. The opportunity to teach or advise others can increase the mentor’s confidence and own job satisfaction. The mentor is required to listen to the concerns of the employee which can develop a better understanding of employee issues and stronger communication skills. If the mentor is a supervisor, mentoring can improve supervisory skills.
When conducted in an efficient and productive manner, coaching and mentoring provides employees a way to connect, learn and grow within the business and in their own career paths. On top of developing employees, it can improve the function of the team, department and entire organization. DecisionHR knows how effective mentoring can be. It leads to great things, so why not do it? If you have any questions or need help to get a program started, contact us today. We are here to help!
