Call the Mentor

We can all recount times in our lives when we've received advice that has shaped our future. We may not have recognised or indeed liked it at the time, but looking back it was worth the discomfort. Most probably we were being mentored in some capacity, although we may not have realised it at the time.

When we break it down 'mentorship' is a relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps to guide a less experienced or less knowledgeable person.

The corporate world knows the value of this. According to an article in Forbes magazine, having a great mentor is a key factor to improving employee engagement among millennials. Millennials planning to stay with their employer for more than five years are twice as likely to have a mentor (68%) than not (32%).

Millennials. According to researchers Neil Howe and William Strauss, they define millennials as "as those born in 1982 and approximately the 20 years thereafter." In 2012, they affixed the end point as 2004. (Google).

The fast moving world of corporate business and the changing nature of the greatest asset, 'the people' is reason alone for the mentor to be considered.  When carefully selected, the mentor commands respect, brings stability, challenge, growth, maturity and improvement to teams with potential.

The soft skills of management can be developed whilst on the job with little disruption, and to great effect.

The power of mentoring is something that is growing in recognition amongst forward thinking companies and other influential organisations.  The results speak for themselves.