Tips for Effective Mentoring (Part 1)

Mentoring is a powerful tool to increase productivity and performance in the workplace. What is mentoring? It is a deliberate process to improve job performance through consultation and sharing of experience.

Normally it is done on a 1 to 1 basis between a mentor (the one providing the guidance) and a mentee. However, group or team mentoring are also popular in many organizations.

In order for mentoring to be effective, there are several issues to consider;

• Top management commitment (manpower, time, money, etc)
• Able and willing mentors
• Able and willing mentees
• Clear mentoring purpose and objectives
• Mentoring training for mentors
• Reward systems for mentors and mentees
• Support structure for both mentors and mentees
• Communication systems to encourage mentoring culture

In the next article, we will discuss characteristics of an effective mentors.