This week’s article is about coaching and mentoring as competence building tools in organisations. It is important to realise that training is not the only tool to improve or promote employee learning and development.
Organisations may get confused about the difference between coaching and mentoring. Although the purpose and process of each are different, there are overlaps. Coaching provides specific feedback and can be used within mentoring. Mentoring on the other hand, tends to be more holistic in that it develops the whole individual. It is far more personal and relationship based. A mentor focuses on the mentee’s longer term personal development. The relationship is never formally evaluated nor only connected to the job advancement but rather to one’s personal improvement. It’s more of a collaborative approach. Both tools include offering guidance, advice, encouragement and training.
Fundamentally, there is a price in mentoring. It is a generous gift that organisations can typically use and will repay in kind over time when the mentee in turn becomes a mentor. Inherently the capacity of mentoring is amplified by embedding values such as respect, generosity and contribution in the corporate culture.
Coaching focuses on offering solutions to immediate problems and learning opportunities while mentoring offers long term development. The role of the coach is more on informing and offering appropriate feedback while mentoring focuses on interaction, behavioural role modelling and making suggestions and corrections. No doubt as a competence building tool, coaching allows for “just in time learning” and that learning is usually administered in small doses hence positively impacting on the change needed. So evidently, one addresses short term needs while mentoring focuses on longer term development.
These competence building tools though a low cost option for skills development are an overlooked aspect for workplace learning. Although coaching and mentoring have informally and unintentionally gone on in organisations as employees help each other; “Has your organisation established a formal means of harnessing the knowledge of their more experienced managers and staff?’’ Mentoring allows transfer of knowledge, experiences and insights on business management. It is key therefore, for aspiring executives to have a mentor.
I therefore highly recommend the establishment of mentoring and coaching programmes in the workplace. Such programs are built through thoughtful planning. The first step is to define the objective of the programme. Is it developing the next leadership, retaining staff or addressing a need? The next step is pairing the mentor/coach and mentee/coachee. The organisation can make efforts in coming with up with a selection criteria bearing in mind that it is an art more than a science. The existing relationships, organisational culture and desired outcomes will guide this process. Mentoring relationships maybe set up between individual and the responsible manager. But lets us not be limited in our scope. Establishing mentoring relationships between people from different functions of the organisation brings in greater understanding and improves cross functional communication.
Communication has to be part of it, from beginning to end. Both parties should know their roles, expected outcomes, processes and training to be conducted. Consequently, it helps in building commitment. This gives a clear structured workflow. More importantly, the programs should be flexible to allow and support varying individual needs, learning capabilities and demands from current responsibilities. Finally evaluation will wrap it up. Always remember that what gets measured, gets done!
Because of less cost associated with these tools and their ability to change culture easily, organisations need to embrace both coaching and mentoring programs as essential business components. The usage and adoption of these methods offers organisations myriads of benefits as discussed earlier. In addition mentoring and coaching enhanced business performance, attraction and retention of best employees. My experience has shown that the presence or absence of such programs means more than money to a decision to accept a job offer or to remain with an organisation.
These programs offer not only professional growth but confidence to handle new situations and manage change. They also boost self-esteem, job satisfaction and ultimately promote loyalty. Where organisations facilitate mentoring programs usually collegiate groups are built which are more willing to share their experience. Team work becomes the order of the day.
As organisations embark on success planning imperatives, usage of mentoring helps in leadership development. They provide a better basis for promotion and setting up high potential individuals on the fast career traction.
The Harvard Business Review in 1978 had a front page that declared, “Everyone who makes it has a mentor.’’ Facilitating learning is not merely dictating rules and providing resources but through mentoring and coaching we impart knowledge and support employees. The broader impact of mentoring is invaluable in today’s environments and jobs that are fluid and dynamic. These tools develop a set of competence skills that go beyond the day to day needs to complete job tasks. Now that organisations are seeking employee retention, productivity, adaptability, job satisfaction, improved morale and pride, organisations need to seriously consider formally embracing these competence building tools if they are to remain relevant.
Emmanuel Jinda is the Managing Consultant of PROSERVE Consulting Group, a leading supplier of Professional Human Resources and Management services locally, regionally and internationally. He can be contacted at Tel: 263 773004143 or 263 4 772778 or visit our website at www.proservehr.com