The Great Mentoring Comeback! With Remote and Hybrid Workforces- Here Are 5 Reasons You Want to Start a Corporate Mentoring + DEI Sponsor Initiative Now (PART 2)
Last week we spoke about the top 3 reasons you want to start a corporate mentoring + DEI sponsor Initiative NOW. Those reasons included:
1. We’re loosing the water connection
2. Mentoring drives diversity, inclusion and belonging
3. Mentoring Promotes Leaders to Lead!
I’m excited to dive into the remaining two reasons today and discuss the next steps into how we can help you incorporate this into your organization!
4] RETHINK MANAGEMENT TRAINING COMPLETELY-- Think back on when you were trained to be a manager. All the binders and PowerPoints. The notes you took. Have those handy? Can you remember 10 things you learned? ATD did a study and found that management training increased manager productivity by over 20%. Not bad! But managers who had mentors increased productivity by over 84%. It's situational mentorship. A mentor is like an incredible book of life experience and learning. Management is hard, especially during a pandemic, we need continuous learning. People leave companies because of poor management so investing in their capabilities has a massive ripple effect on retention and corporate culture. Good managers, happy employees! In traveling the globe I've learned so many leaders of people do not or have never had a mentor (70% don't is what has become evident), if you don't mentor other people how on earth can you be a good manager? You have the ability at your company to formalize a mentoring program targeting managers, rising stars, women executives, ERG groups that want to build their pipeline, interns that you later plan on hiring. Limitless potential. You can also do what a major food chain did, they went Mentor 2.0-- Mentor + Sponsor and we can discuss that as well.
5] IS MENTORING HAVE TO HAVE OR NICE TO HAVE?-- Here is what I am seeing out there. Mentoring is perceived as nice to have. More and more sponsorship is perceived as have to have in the women's movement and diversity space. Companies have good intentions but often haven't allocated mentoring to someone's job or it's spread out under a volunteer team and each person is contributing 5% of their time to it. It gets off to a good start and then like a hopeful date with no commitment to a second date, crash and burn. Sometimes a good program begins to stagnate like a long marriage, and it needs to be strengthened modernized and boosted.
One of the primary factors in our work in this arena was realizing that people like the concept of mentoring but might need some help standing up a sustainable program. In short mentoring conversations, I see people exchanging phone numbers, bringing each other solutions, beaming, and thrilled to be part of a mentoring experience. They share their concerns with each other and realize they are not alone (remember the adage 'we are as sick as our secrets'). The bad news is that without the support of the CEO, CFO, or head of the business operating unit, the program's survival rate is low so you do need the buy-in. A friend Ravi said to me once, once a leader climbs the ladder they often forget the ladder is there. They might need to be reminded Because on that new ladder are your children, my children, our employees, and dear friends. Separated by a pandemic, divided by politics, extending a mentoring hand is an act of strength and hope.
WE'VE GOT YOUR BACK!
The C4G Team has vast experience training mentors and mentees. Our vision is to see a world where everyone has an effective mentor. The 6 – 12 Months ‘Mentoring in a Box’ programs we offer can help your organization reap the benefits of mentorship and DEI sponsorship by developing training and strategies ensuring the programs are successful.
We are more convinced than ever of the power of two-- people helping each other professionally and the need to custom build high touch mentoring and sponsorship initiatives to drive diversity.
Do you want to see your employees thrive? Your organization can achieve the full potential of mentorship and sponsorship programs, and Change 4 Growth is excited to share the opportunity to help you create a happier, more productive, and diverse workforce. We also provide Organizational Change Management, Leadership Development, Culture & Engagement, Custom Training & Communications, Project Management Services.
Contact us and let us help custom champion your vision together!
Jkantor@change4growth.com or 202 431 5016
About the Author
Julie Kantor is an ‘all-in’ roll-up your sleeves leader committed to building mentoring cultures to drive a happier more inclusive workforce. Whether in a board room with top executives or working with collaborative teams, Julie instills excitement, inspires commitment, and demonstrates an unwavering drive to succeed on behalf of her clients. Kantor's company Twomentor merged in August 2021 with the C4G family to dramatically expand quality service opportunities for clients with a focus on leadership, culture, employee engagement, and DEI offerings.
Contact us @ info@change4growth.com