“My Business Mentor has helped me transform myself and improve business performance over the past 2 years.”

~ Mentee

Introducing innovation is a race – to win, you have to be fast, efficient and different.  Often, you do not know the rules of the race, which seem to be continually changing, so you tend to learn through experimentation or ‘trial and error’.  This takes up valuable energy and resources, much of which can be avoided by allowing experienced mentors to guide you and ‘short-cut’ the learning cycle.

A mentor can listen to you, and help you to develop greater insight by thinking laterally and considering your innovative ideas, your business and yourself in a structured and integrated way.  These insights can help you to innovate successfully, solve business problems, improve business performance, and develop your skills.

When do you need a mentor?

“I have found the deep relationship with my Mentor as a strength through very difficult times.”
~ Mentee

Often the times when you most need a mentor are the times when you are least open to guidance.  It is when you are contemplating something new or facing challenges that you most need to capture the fresh view that a mentor can provide.  For example, when you are:

• developing a new business strategy to take performance to a new level
• introducing new technology
• developing or launching new products or services
• facing a difficult business or market challenge
• undertaking significant change or transformation
• preparing to access funding or investment capital.

How to Match With a Mentor

“I have found the mentor relationship very challenging and rewarding.”
~ Mentee

The Business Mentoring relationship operates on many levels, for example working on specific issues, creating strategic insights, motivating and encouraging.  It is a relationship that has to be built on trust, respect, openness to new ideas and a willingness to learn.  It is important, therefore to make sure there is the right ‘fit’ between mentor and mentee.

To match a Mentor with a Mentee, it is important to establish all the necessary criteria in order to obtain the right skills, experience and personal attributes needed for a comfortable fit.  Things that need to be considered include:

• How the Mentee is seeking to innovate, and the skills and guidance they need
• The Mentee’s personal characteristics and learning style
• The business key issues and challenges for the future.

You have to carefully select Mentors for their expertise, alignment to the Mentee’s criteria and their degree of flexibility and compatibility with the Mentee.

How does mentoring work?

“At long last, with my Mentor’s input, I am now able to focus on the strategic components of my job.”
~ Mentee

Typically, mentoring involves a confidential relationship between the Mentor and Mentee, meeting in one to one sessions.  On occasions however, it may be appropriate to include others, such as key staff or other owners or directors, particularly when the content involves their area of expertise.

Mentoring panels are another form of mentoring in which the mentee is exposed to multiple view points and specialist knowledge.  These panels are particularly helpful when you are innovating in several areas of the business or are seeking to access finance.

Generally, mentors will seek to guide you by asking challenging questions and encouraging you to think differently about your responses to opportunities.  Mentors should not take the place of professional service providers who give specific advice in their area of expertise.

To get the most out of a mentoring relationship, it is a good practice to set goals, milestones and measurements so that you can monitor progress towards targeted outcomes.