The power of mentorship

People really value mentorship. That’s a key lesson from our conversations with Chartered Managers over recent months.

In February, we met Louisa Dallinger CMgr FCMI, business development and practice manager at Reginald O’Neill Dental Care in Billericay, Essex. She told us how she used her knowledge and experience as a qualified dental nurse to mentor a colleague who was returning to education to qualify in dental sedation training. The colleague passed with flying colours. 

We also profiled Shona Galt, who had enrolled in Impact, a CMI-linked programme to help graduates enter local government roles. Prior to that, she’d set up a mentoring pilot scheme for young people looking to apply to elite universities from under-represented backgrounds. She explained how she helped two “really exceptional” young people who’d grown up in foster care to secure positions at Imperial College London and Harvard University. 

• Read more: Mentoring – the manager’s deep dive

Then there was Emma Dean, a University of Exeter degree apprentice working at Baker Hughes. Still only 23, she explained why she was mentoring a 16-year-old colleague there. 

“Training the next generation to have sustainable leadership is really important,” Emma said. 

Positive impact

Mentorship offers a vast range of positive short- and long-term impacts, not just for the mentee but for the mentor and their employer – which can be especially powerful at a time of increasing skills gaps, productivity challenges and a rapidly-shifting economic landscape.

CMI runs its own support programme, CMI Mentoring, designed to enhance management and leadership skills, with practical backing for managers at all career levels.

The scheme enables mentees to find the right mentor, whether they want someone more experienced in their sector or someone with knowledge of other relevant areas. 

Melanie Price FCMI, a coach, says she joined CMI Mentoring because she knew she could add value under the programme.  

“Most of my mentees have been taking part in degree apprenticeship programmes while balancing work, so you can imagine the challenges they face,” says Melanie. 

“I love chatting to people up and down the country and helping them to realise they’re not alone,” she adds. “It’s really rewarding when I get positive feedback and can see that mentoring works.”

Good questioning, listening and challenging their mentee’s approach and way of thinking will support the mentee’s career aspirations

Melanie is quick to flag how CMI Mentoring provides all the online guidance and resources mentors and mentees need, as well as an invaluable common point of reference. 

Other mentors on the CMI scheme share a similar perspective. 

“The programme has been excellent and the platform is easy to navigate,” says Helen Gasparelli CMgr MCMI, operations director at Cognus. “I’ve had a positive experience as a mentor and will continue to support others. The resources have been helpful.”