Whilst we do a lot of coaching for development at CLT, we also strongly recommend establishing a mentoring program within your business. There are some major differences between mentoring and coaching, and these differences make the combination a very powerful development tool.

At CLT we focus on coaching programs that are:

• Targeted toward results and performance
• Looking to shorter term changes (technical and/or behavioural)
• Highly structured
• Current and specific to a work role

However, mentoring has a different focus, it is characterised by:

• Focusing on personal growth and development within the company
• Longer term focus
• Low level of structure
• Not necessarily role specific
• Networking within the company (usually at a more senior level)
• Educating the individual about the specifics of the company
• Looks at longer term changes through support and encouragement

Case Study

I was encouraged to write this when one of my coachees faced internal development and growth challenges.

The Situation

This individual is looking to move from a middle management level into a senior role in a large international company.  He has come up through the ranks, so he is well known to the organisation.  The coaching we provided has assisted him develop management and leadership skills in his role and looks at bridging the gap into a more senior role, but this is not enough.

The Challenge

Developing the skills specific to the organisation, developing skills at the next level of management (what’s important to them) and gaining recognition within the senior ranks.

The Solution

As a coach we can focus on developing an individuals behavioural and technical skills, we can assist them learn and put into practice management and leadership skills that make up what we term ‘transferable skills’.  These skills are life lessons that can be applied to any organisation.  What is missing is company specific management and leadership skills.  The best way to acquire these skills is through mentoring.  Our advice was to choose a senior member of the organisation that is not a direct line report.  Engage this person and ask them to share the broader details of the ‘culture’ of the senior management team, what’s important to them, what they measure and take notice of.  The meeting shouldn’t be more than ½ hour weekly, but they do two things for the mentoree:

1. Allow them to gain an understanding of the working of the senior team
2. Provide an advocate for the mentee at a senior level in the broader context of the organisation.

The Results

The individual is now exposed to a much broader range of issues and has an understanding of the intimate working of the company at a senior level.  The mentee has a ‘friend in high places’ which gives them the confidence to speak out at senior meetings, which allows more people in the senior team to see them developing understanding and competence.

The mentoring role is very different to coaching, coaching is about skills development, mentoring is more about the intricacies of the company and culture.  It helps the individual develop and growth in a balance way, Paving the way for successful succession planning.