In a few days, the Fondsfrauen's Mentoring Programme 2023 will begin. Karin Heinzl, founder and managing director of the social business MentorMe, writes in her guest article about the benefits mentoring brings for all sides involved - not least for the companies.
Companies are increasingly struggling to find good staff and also to retain them in the long term. Especially the latter is a challenge for many companies. Should employees be promoted and motivated in order to retain them? Those who think of snacks on the house, the possibility of a home office and a foosball table are far wrong. Other, more effective and sustainable solutions are needed. After all, Generation Z will have around 20 employers in the course of their working lives, according to forecasts. Mentoring can possibly provide a remedy here.
Mentoring as an employee retention tool
Mentoring is a versatile tool that can be used for long-term employee retention. Fluctuation and a shortage of skilled workers can be traced back to reasons such as a lack of motivation and a lack of further training opportunities, and this is precisely where mentoring comes in. The exchange among each other not only strengthens self-confidence, it also imparts knowledge in a very personal way - keyword "up-skilling".
In-company versus out-of-company mentoring
Mentoring can take place both within and outside the company. If the mentor and mentee come from one and the same company, we speak of internal mentoring. If both parties come from different organisations, we speak of external mentoring.
The type of mentoring chosen by those responsible in a company depends primarily on the goals to be achieved with mentoring. If internal structures and knowledge transfer are to be strengthened first and foremost, in-house mentoring is the best option. If, on the other hand, a clarifying view from the outside is needed because structures are deadlocked, then external mentoring is a good choice. In the top management levels, mentoring from outside the company is predominantly used because the number of mentors in question would otherwise be severely limited.
There are advantages on both sides
Both internal and external mentoring offer advantages: external mentoring scores with independent mentors. Within the framework of mentoring, they can provide information and support from the outside and avoid the danger of being blinded by the company and the "hallway radio". With their broad knowledge of the business world, they can assess and classify problems and challenges.
With internal mentoring, on the other hand, there is a more specific transfer of knowledge, since knowledge that is internal to the organisation, well-founded and based on experience is transferred. In internal mentoring programmes, the mentors are familiar with structures, areas and processes that may be different in every company. This can be important, for example, when it comes to dealing with leaders and strategically planning one's own development in the company. Where are you going? What skills are needed in which departments and would I even enjoy a promotion or a change to another department?
But it is not only the mentees who benefit from internal mentoring, but also the mentors and ultimately the entire organisation. Because the mentors experience appreciation through the programmes. This leads to better cooperation and a transfer of knowledge within the organisation.
There are tools for the selection of mentoring pairs
Mentor and mentee must not have a direct working relationship with each other, as this would lead to conflicts of interest. In the case of mentoring outside the company, it is important to ensure that the mentors are trustworthy and that they commit themselves to confidentiality. Otherwise, there is a risk that internal company information will be inadvertently disclosed to the outside world by the mentee.
It is recommended to select mentoring pairs using a tool. For example, there is the matching software developed by MentorMe, which is based on intelligent algorithms and which companies can use as a kind of platform as a service. This software uses various criteria to precisely match mentors with mentees.
In any case, it is worthwhile to establish a mentoring programme within the company or to use an external one. It not only strengthens the individual employees, it also strengthens the entire organisation.
About Karin Heinzl:
Karin Heinzl is the founder and CEO of the social business MentorMe, which claims to be the largest professional mentoring community in German-speaking countries. Thanks to matching software based on state-of-the-art technology, MentorMe brings together women who want to develop professionally and mentors from all fields and industries.
Foto: Karin Heinzl. Quelle: MentorMe
