Mentoring at Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Dental Medicine: Staff

When people think of mentoring, they often think of an older executive counseling a young upstart. The senior leader advises the junior employee on his career, how to navigate the world of work, and what he needs to do to get ahead. But mentoring has changed a lot in the last few decades. Just as the notion of a 50-year linear career with a single company or in one industry is outdated, so is the idea that career advice must come from a wise old sage. The traditional mentor-mentee relationship is not necessarily a thing of the past, but it's no longer the standard. Now, there are many ways to get the information and guidance you need.

Great employees are reliable, dependable, proactive, diligent, great leaders and great followers... they possess a wide range of easily-defined—but hard to find—qualities.

A few hit the next level. Some employees are remarkable, possessing qualities that may not appear on performance appraisals but nonetheless make a major impact on performance.

The ideal mentor is a network of mentors--from all levels of your organization.
This article explains how to get the most out of mentoring by:
Defining learning goals
Making mentoring relationships reciprocal
Fostering a learning culture

It pays to have a helping hand to get ahead in the workplace whether you’re transitioning to the nonprofit world from the for-profit one, or switching into a whole new field. Most of us can benefit from having a mentor or sponsor at our back to teach, promote and encourage us.