Editor’s note: Kathleen Pytleski is CEO of Sekstant, a Minneapolis-based management consulting firm.
Why would the CEO of a large non-profit organization want to have a formal mentor? Well, all of us can grow and develop, no matter what our role is within a company. If we stop developing and learning, we may as well throw in the towel. Many leaders recognize that in order to take an organization to the next level, they need to expand their capabilities and/or those of their team. A unique way to do this is to be mentored by someone who has been down the path before them.
In my view, all mentoring, whether formal or informal, is valuable. Formal mentoring – be it internal mentoring or cross-company mentoring – tends to yield more specific results. I believe formal cross-company mentoring is the most beneficial.
Formal cross-company mentoring is where a mentee is matched with a mentor from a non-competing company. This is valuable for talent development whether your company’s goal is to develop a pipeline of people to be ready for leadership, expand the capability of your current leaders or retain talent.
Mentees are paired with someone who is prepared to work with her or him for a specified amount of time (I recommend one year). Mentors and mentees set specific goals for the partnership and schedule regular meetings – whether virtual or in-person – and make progress checks throughout the year. The mentee drives the partnership and the mentor is there to guide.
The benefits of cross-company mentoring
Having the right mentee/mentor partnership can help both parties grow. Mentors want to give back and mentees get to be the sponge. When the individuals are from non-competing companies they feel free to be completely candid, which is a significant benefit to the mentoring partnership.
Benefits for the mentee:
- Having a mentor from a non-competing company gives the mentee an outside perspective.
- Mentees benefit from having a mentor with experience going down the path they are now trying to navigate.
- It helps the mentee learn how to accept feedback in important areas such as communication, leadership and change management. Feedback comes from someone who has no ulterior motive other than to help the mentee develop.
- The mentor can help the mentee better understand how to navigate the culture of an organization and its politics.
- It is a hands-on type of learning and development as someone is solely dedicated to the mentee’s growth.
Benefits for the mentor:
- Mentorship is reciprocal learning and mentors learn a great deal from their mentees.
- It reminds the mentor to actively listen. It’s not about them (the mentor), it’s all about the mentee and how the mentor can help and guide the mentee.
- Mentors strengthen their interpersonal skills.
- Mentors gain personal satisfaction from helping another person grow and develop in their career and it helps them be better mentor individuals within their own company.
- It can be helpful to remind mentors of what people at the level of the mentee are going through in their own companies. They gain perspective from the mentee’s challenges.
Benefits for the companies:
- The mentee’s company benefits from having an employee who is actively growing in her or his career and preparing for the next level or leadership role, feeding the succession pipeline.
- Most mentees become more engaged with their work and company.
- Mentees and mentors bring new perspectives to their work and company.
- The mentor becomes more effective within his or her company and many times becomes a better leader.
- The mentor becomes a better mentor within his or her company.
Talent development takes many forms. Cross-company mentoring makes it uniquely interactive, safe and an opportunity for growth. Both mentees and mentors gain skills, perspective and enhance their leadership capabilities in ways never imagined.
If you have never been a mentor, you should consider testing the waters. If you’ve never been a mentee, give it a try. Anyone can be a mentor and/or a mentee at a particular time in his or her career. You’ll never regret it.