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Purpose for the Mentor

Develop leadership skills. Being put in the position of a role model can help even the most experienced of employees become better leaders. The responsibility of helping guide someone’s career and goals process puts the more senior employee in a unique position. They will sometimes need to teach, to motivate and to offer feedback. All these skills are at the top of the list when it comes to leadership.

Communication and listening skills. Mentors need to be active and involved listeners as well as strategic communicators. A mentoring program can help employees further sharpen their skills in these areas.

Knowledge. The more experienced employee should have a thorough knowledge of the organization as well as any programs or training that a mentee can access to help them reach their goals. The mentor can impart wisdom developed on the job over time, information and workplace expectations or policies that will help the mentee succeed in the long run.

Learning opportunity. While the mentor is usually in the position of imparting knowledge to the mentee, a mentoring relationship can also help the more experienced employee learn new skills. It’s common that technological advances have been mastered by younger workers. This is an area where the mentee can also become a teacher, guiding the mentor to learn new skills or a new way of doing things.

Giving back. Mentorship provides the opportunity for the mentor to give back to the company by helping train new and upcoming employees. Leveraging their years of experience, knowledge, and wisdom to help the mentee succeed in the organization is a great way for mentors to contribute to the workplace.

Personal satisfaction. Mentoring can help increase the sense of self-worth that a mentor has because they will be able to see how their skills and abilities can help someone else.