Do you have mentoring programmes set up in your workplace? Especially when employers are recruiting young people, whether they be school leavers or graduates, providing those young recruits with some level of mentoring can help them settle into the workplace quicker and feel like they are part of the team.
But when was the last time you looked at your mentoring programme? Actually, do you even have a programme set up – or is there a loose set up where your young recruits perhaps ‘buddy up’ with a more experienced member of staff?
Of course, this is all very helpful – but mentoring is now being seen as playing a significant role in staff retention, productivity and in recruitment.
Mentoring has advanced, and in this article, we will look at some of the new types of mentorship models out there that are now being embraced by employers.
Known as new age mentoring, it could be a game changer in your own company if you are not already using any of these models.
New age mentoring has evolved beyond the traditional one-size-fits-all approach. These different forms of mentoring reflect the diverse needs of today’s workforce and the changing dynamics of work relationships.
So, without further ado, here are some key types of new age mentoring…
Reverse Mentoring
The clue is in the name, here.
In reverse mentoring, younger employees mentor more senior colleagues, typically in areas where the younger generation has more expertise such as technology, social media or current cultural trends.
This type of mentoring flips the traditional dynamic by positioning the junior employee as the expert.
Reverse mentoring not only helps older employees stay up-to-date with new developments in skills and technologies, it also fosters a collaborative and inclusive culture where different generations can learn from each other.
It also gives your new young recruits a good footing right from the get go because they will feel valued for their existing skills and knowledge – an ability to immediately bring something useful and valuable to the table whilst also building relationships with older colleagues who are more experienced in other areas.
An example of this is having a new Gen Z employee mentor an older, experienced member of the team – maybe even those in leadership roles – on using social media to build a personal brand or engage with customers online.
Peer Mentoring
Peer mentoring involves colleagues at similar stages in their careers providing mutual support and guidance. This form of mentoring promotes collaboration, shared learning and emotional support among peers.
It is often informal and based on mutual respect and trust, but it can also be part of a structured programme.
Peer mentoring can be ideal for young people in the workplace. If you have taken on more than one apprentice onto your current programme, for example, or if you have a graduate programme, those new young recruits can help and support each other in their new roles.
Encourage them to offer feedback to each other and to share best practices.
Group or Team Mentoring
In group mentoring, one mentor works with multiple mentees simultaneously, creating a learning community.
This model encourages collaborative problem-solving and peer support as mentees can learn from each other as well as from the mentor.
Group mentoring can be particularly effective for developing leadership skills or tackling complex challenges that benefit from diverse perspectives.
Again, this model of mentoring can be effective in a workplace that has recruited a number of young people simultaneously. They can be mentored as a group by a more experienced member of staff such as someone from your management team.
Cross-Functional Or Cross-Departmental Mentoring
This type of mentoring can be beneficial if you are an employer at a large organisation and you want graduate recruits or other young recruits to get an idea of what happens in other departments of the company; how they function and how each one connects with the other.
Cross-functional mentoring involves pairing mentors and mentees from different departments or business functions within an organisation.
This type of mentoring broadens the mentee’s exposure to various aspects of the business and helps them develop a more holistic understanding of the organisation. It also promotes cross-departmental collaboration and knowledge sharing.
For example, a member of your finance team might mentor a graduate marketing manager to help them better understand budgeting and financial analysis, while the marketing manager provides insights on consumer behaviour and branding.
When staff have a more holistic understanding of how an organisation functions as a whole, this can boost productivity because there is knowledge of how each department is affected if, for example, projects fall behind schedule.
Flash Mentoring
Again, the clue is in the name for this type of mentoring. Not all areas of work require a prolonged period of mentorship.
Flash mentoring is a short-term focused mentoring relationship, often lasting for just one or a few sessions. It is designed to provide quick, targeted advice on a specific issue or skill.
Flash mentoring is ideal for young employees who might be being introduced to a new aspect of their role that they are unfamiliar with. Think of those people who need immediate feedback or guidance but do not require an ongoing, long-term relationship.
Flash mentoring could be tips on how to deal with clients at meetings. Or it might be one or more sessions on how to use work-based software or specialist machinery related to the job.
E-Mentoring (Virtual or Online Mentoring)
In the 2020s, more Gen Z employees are looking for opportunities to work remotely.
This needn’t be a challenge for workplaces who need to mentor new young recruits without them being present in the workplace.
With the rise of remote work and digital communication, virtual or e-mentoring has become increasingly popular.
E-mentoring allows mentors and mentees to connect online, often through video calls, emails or, depending on the size of your company, dedicated mentoring platforms.
This model of mentoring is ideal for young employees who might work in different locations or who have limited time for face-to-face meetings.
It can be a fixed programme with a set time each week or it can also work on an ad hoc basis where you can check in on younger staff to discuss their professional development.
Hybrid Mentoring
Hybrid mentoring combines both virtual and face to face interactions, offering flexibility to adapt to modern work environments.
Just as many employees now have hybrid working hours where there is a mix of remote and office-based work time, hybrid mentoring allows mentees and mentors to build relationships through occasional face-to-face meetings while maintaining ongoing communication through digital platforms.
This approach is especially useful for organisations with these hybrid work models where employers can easily follow up on face to face meetings by way of email or further virtual meetings.
Sponsor-Based Mentoring
This is a different type of mentoring, in that sponsorship goes beyond traditional mentoring by having a senior leader (the sponsor) not only mentor but actively advocate for the mentee’s career advancement.
The sponsor uses their influence in a particular field or sector to open doors, recommend the mentee for promotions or introduce them to important networks.
While mentoring focuses on guidance and learning, sponsorship focuses on advocacy and visibility.
This can be a useful strategy for groups of people who might be under-represented in certain areas or for particularly promising young recruits who you think will benefit from an acceleration in their career progression.
Speed Mentoring
If you have heard of speed dating, speed mentoring is a similar set up.
Speed mentoring is a format in which mentors and mentees engage in a series of short, timed conversations, much like speed dating.
It is usually set up as an event where mentees have the opportunity to meet with multiple mentors for brief, focused discussions on specific topics.
This format allows mentees to gain quick insights and diverse perspectives in a short period of time.
It can be ideal for employers who have employed a group of young people onto Apprenticeship or graduate programmes.
Young recruits can discuss challenges or future aspirations and get a diverse range of answers and advice from more senior staff.
Micro-Mentoring
Micro-mentoring is similar to flash mentoring but more focused on developing specific skills or competencies over a short period of time.
It is task-based and results-oriented where mentors provide targeted coaching on specific professional challenges or skills that the mentee wants to improve.
For younger members of staff, this can be areas of their work that they themselves have identified as needing improvement and feel micro-mentoring would solve the issue.
For example, the young mentee might feel they need some extra insight in a particular skill needed to complete a project.
Developmental Mentoring
This approach focuses on both personal and professional growth, emphasising the development of the whole person.
This type of mentorship can be particularly beneficial to young recruits who are not only new to the workplace and their role but who are still developing as adults in the outside world.
Developmental mentoring takes into account the mentee’s emotional intelligence, self-awareness and well-being. It also encourages growth in areas such as communication, resilience and leadership skills.
The mentor acts as a coach, guiding the mentee through both career-related issues and personal challenges that may affect their professional performance.
It is a holistic approach which acknowledges that we, as human beings, are affected by our personal lives that do not simply switch off when we enter the workplace.
Mentors might help a mentee improve their emotional intelligence by working on self-awareness and communication skills, for example.
This can improve their confidence both within and outside the workplace and can help them to develop into an effective team leader.
Situational Mentoring
Create a culture in your workplace where situational mentoring is commonplace and where young staff feel at ease asking for assistance when they need it rather than only at specific times.
Situational mentoring occurs when a mentor provides guidance in a specific situation or challenge that a mentee is facing. Unlike long-term mentoring, situational mentoring is task-focused and aims to provide practical, real-time advice for immediate issues.
This type of mentoring can be initiated as needed, without the expectation of ongoing assistance.
Rather than a dedicated mentor, it can be any of the more experienced members of your team who can offer the help as and when.
Affinity-Based Mentoring
In affinity-based mentoring, mentorship pairs are matched based on shared identities such as race, gender or sexual orientation.
This type of mentoring can provide under-represented groups with support from mentors who have faced similar challenges and can offer relevant advice and encouragement.
It fosters a sense of belonging and empowerment for employees from diverse backgrounds and can be a useful model to utilise in a diverse and inclusive workplace.
For example, you might pair up a young female engineering graduate with a senior female leader.
In a male-dominated industry the female mentor can discuss strategies with the graduate for overcoming gender biases and advancing in her career.
Cross-Cultural Mentoring
Whether you operate in a huge, global organisation where you need tı communicate with people from all over the world, or you have a small company that employs staff from a range of cultural backgrounds, cross-cultıral mentoring can be a very valuable model.
This type of mentoring pairs individuals from different cultural backgrounds to enhance cultural awareness and sensitivity.
Cross-cultural mentoring helps employees develop the skills needed to work effectively in diverse teams and global environments and promotes understanding and knowledge of each other’s backgrounds.
By embracing new age mentoring models – whether that be one model or utilising a mix of processes – organisations can foster continuous learning, collaboration and inclusivity in the workplace. This helps to boost staff morale, and therefore, productivity and staff retention.
A reputation as a workplace where mentoring is taken seriously will also boost your visibility when it comes to the recruitment of school leavers, students and graduates.
If you are looking to recruit students and graduates to your company, why not get in touch with us at e4s to discuss and set up your job posting.