Modern Mentoring in the Workplace
Businesses today operate in an era marked by increased complexity and competition. With organizational hierarchies flattening, every worker in your organization is becoming more autonomous and increasingly responsible for making daily decisions that can alter the course of the corporation–for worse or for better. For this reason, it’s important to ensure that everyone throughout your organization has the timely knowledge they need to make informed and productive work-related decisions and to perform their jobs effectively.
We know from a recent article by Jay Cross that only 10% of what employees need to know to accomplish their work is in their head; the other 90% of the knowledge needed resides in the minds of others. Taking this into consideration, it seems imperative to find ways to provide employees with access to the knowledge of the enterprise via self-directed social learning and development options. This is where modern mentoring comes into play.
Modern mentoring is collaborative learning that centers on the concept of connecting people across an organization to share critical knowledge and skills. It goes well beyond the traditional idea of one-to-one relationships that last years and are mainly for grooming and career advancement. In modern mentoring, virtual relationships and multi-participant learning engagements form the basis for the practice, which incorporates a more inclusive mindset about who should participate, a broader scope for making meaningful learning connections, and an open flow of knowledge among participants. Modern mentoring is focused on removing the barriers between people and engaging them in rich learning and teaching opportunities in a broad, networked manner so that knowledge can flow to the point of need and aid in informed decision-making. Modernizing your organization’s approach to mentoring can help you create a more collaborative, knowledgeable, and productive workforce, because people find the information and knowledge sources they need at exactly the moment when they need them.
Interested in the idea of launching modern mentoring at your organization, but aren’t sure where to start?
Look no further than my new ASTD Infoline, “How to Create a Modern Mentoring Culture.” In this “how-to” guide, learn more about the practice of modern mentoring, the positive benefits it has in store for your organization, and steps to take to create a culture defined by it. Get your copy of this Infoline today!
