Types of Mentoring
Mentoring is often divided into two types (Buell, 2004):
- Informal mentoring relationships develop on their own, such as when a person approaches a possible mentor and that person agrees to form a mentoring relationship.
- Formal mentoring relationships refers to assigned relationships, in which the organization oversees and guides the mentoring program in order to promote employee development.
Note that this does not mean it is black and white, rather it is more of a continuum with formal on one end and informal on the other end. For example an organization may guide and oversee a mentoring program, in addition to providing learning opportunities to both the mentors and protègès, but may not assign the relationships.
Limitations on formal mentoring programs include the small number of mentoring relationships they can support and accommodate may lead to dissatisfaction with the relationship and negative feelings of those not involved with the program (DeSimone, Werner, Harris, 2002). As far as the mentor and protègè relationship, Chao, Walz, and Gardner (1992) found that protègès in informal relationships received more career-related advice and had better career outcomes, while Tepper (1995) found no difference.
These two types of mentoring can further be divided into two forms:
- Traditional Mentoring in which there is a long-term relationship where a mentor guides the protègè's career.
- Special Project Mentoring in which a mentor helps to guide a protègè's short-term project (a few weeks to a few months).
In addition, mentoring programs can be internal, where it is developed and managed inside of the organization, or external (developed on the outside). And like other forms, it can also be a hybrid combination of the two.
Boomerang or Reverse Mentoring
Mentors often get as much out of the mentoring relationship as the protègès. For example, the mentor is giving advice to the protègè and it has a boomerang effect — either the act of expressing your ideas gives you insight into a problem or idea or the protègè says something and gives you insight to either a problem or idea (Dickinson, Jankot, & Gracon, 2009).
Mentoring Resources
- What is mentoring?
- Types of mentoring
- Finding a mentor
- Mentor Development
- Creating a Mentoring Program
References
Buell, C. (2004). Models of Mentoring in Communication. Communication Education, 1479-5795, Volume 53, Issue 1, Page 1.
Chao, G. T., Walz, P. M., and Gardner, P. D. (1992). Formal and informal mentorships: A comparison on mentoring functions and contrast with nonmentored counterparts. Personnel Psychology, 45, 620-636.
DeSimone, R. L., Werner, J. M., Harris, D .M. (2002). Human Resource Development. Orlando, FL.: Harcourt, Inc.
Dickinson, K., Jankot, T., & Gracon, H. (2009). Sun Mentoring: 1996-2009. Sun Microsystems. Retrieved September 3, 2009 from http://research.sun.com/techrep/2009/smli_tr-2009-185.pdf
Tepper, B. J. (1995). Upward maintenance tactics in supervisory mentoring and nonmentoring relationships. Academy of Management Journal, 38, 1191-1205.