Mentoring (alone) Is Not The Answer

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This time next week I’ll be presenting a keynote at the University of New Mexico’s Mentoring Institute Conference, in Albuquerque. I’m speaking and presenting a case-study on a topic that is dear to my heart. You see, mentoring can get a bad rap because people expect it to be a magic bullet, then wonder why it doesn’t work. However, most problems are complex issues without a single solution. That’s why my keynote is entitled Mentoring (alone) Is Not The Answer: take a strategic approach and achieve much more! Today’s post is a précis of the main points.

We look to mentoring to achieve workplace outcomes but are these goals realistic?

Too often mentoring is seen as a panacea – it’s assumed mentoring will remedy all ills to resolve the discrepancy between the current situation and a desired one.

However, most goal achievement requires a suite of integrated actions. Mentoring alone is not the answer!

There is no doubt that mentoring produces significant results. However, we must be clear why mentoring is the strategy of choice and what it can and cannot do. Other factors may need to be addressed if the goal is to be achieved.

Mentoring can contribute to the strategic objectives of organisations and meet the development needs of individuals, as long as you take a strategic approach. This means that you clearly and specifically:

1. Determine realistic outcomes for mentoring
2. Identify the barriers and enablers to goal achievement and
3. Focus on the development needs that mentoring can address and recognize what it can’t do.

You can achieve so much more with mentoring when you take a strategic approach. In addition, the process will enable you to evaluate your program in ways that support your business case for mentoring and show the return on investment. That’s how mentoring works.