Mentoring – a journey through business life

I have been incredibly fortunate in my business life to have had, at all stages, supportive people around me who I have been able to turn to for advice.

Workplace mentoring

My early experiences fell under the heading of what the Association of Business Mentors defines as Workplace Mentoring: “a professional relationship where an experienced corporate leader (the mentor) provides guidance, support, and advice to a junior employee or emerging professional (the mentee) usually within the same organisation”.

With huge support and encouragement from many individuals I grew and developed from a timid school leaver filing bits of paper in the backroom of a high street bank to a senior executive operating as sales director and then chief operating officer in the international wealth management segment of that same bank.

Training and development were a constant, linked to a commitment from me to gain professional qualifications. When I started in the bank I was asked by the branch manager if I was in this for a job or a career. Honestly, at the time I really didn’t understand the distinction but somehow the answer ‘career’ popped out. I was then instructed to sign up at college to start my banking exams and so my journey properly started.

During my time with the bank as my responsibilities grew, I started leading teams and became a mentor myself. Somewhere in that journey I also was also fortunate to benefit from training as a coach through the business partnership including the pioneer of business coaching, John Whitmore. The GROW model (Goals, Reality, Options, Will) he codeveloped is still in use today and his book ‘Coaching for Performance’ remains on the recommended list of reading for aspiring and developing coaches. Lots of in-house coaching followed, both for me and by me.

Coaching and mentoring – what’s the difference?

Coaching is distinct from mentoring. There are many definitions from the coaching world’s thought leaders. My own ‘hybrid’ version is “Coaching is about helping people to think and learn, helping them to unlock their potential and to be their best. It is a conversation that helps with lasting change”.

If you compare this with the definition of mentoring, you will notice that ‘advice’ is missing. My own experience is that we all need both at different times.

When it the time came to spread my wings further, I joined an internationally recognised leader in financial services sales-and-service cultural and behavioural change, specialising in consulting and training processes for management, front-line, support/customer service units and call centres.

Again, the skills of coaching and mentoring were used extensively. Internally, I would join the worldwide team of consultants for what we called ‘rounds’ (a term borrowed from the medial profession) to hear a challenge that someone was looking to overcome and then everyone would give their input helping to get to a proper ‘diagnosis’ and then a ‘treatment plan’. It was a rapid way of getting clarity of thought and action with input form a diverse group of thinkers.

On the client side we would work with the senior leaders to implement major change programmes in their businesses through a blend of coaching and mentoring, teaching those skills to enable them and their teams to embed the change that they wanted to see.

Professional qualifications

My next career move saw me join the executive team of a major professional membership organisation. I realised that I didn’t have a professional qualification for what I was now doing. Yes, I had a fabulous business education, but I was looking for more having advocated the value of professional qualifications for many years. This led me to the Institute of Directors (IoD) and a journey through their certificate and diploma programmes to eventual qualification as a Chartered Director. (Chartered Director Programme | CPD | Institute of Directors)

Business mentoring

I made the leap from in-house mentoring to business mentoring when the IoD created a partnership with the Government backed ‘Help to Grow’ scheme, and I became part of the mentor team. Distinct from the in-house mentoring I had experienced and been providing up until this point, the Association of Business Mentors (ABM) describe business mentoring as: “a professional relationship where an experienced business person (the mentor) offers guidance and support to an entrepreneur, business owner, or leader (the mentee). Business mentoring is broad in scope, aiming to help the mentee grow their business, manage the business better, and often support their wellbeing.”

A few years later the IoD created ‘Mentor Connect’ its own peer to peer mentoring platform for business leaders. I signed up within minutes of seeing the launch. As the ABM say, “The superpower of a Business Mentor is that they know when to add a droplet of experience to make a transformative difference to their mentee.”

Both programmes have been hugely enriching for me. I have learned a whole lot about myself whilst helping others with their journey and have mentored across a variety of sectors. Having now stepped back from a full-time executive career I am starting to build a private mentoring client base and getting myself accredited as a coach – it’s back to that core belief in being properly qualified to do what you do.

What is the value of mentoring?

The ABM published its report onto the benefits of professional mentoring in November 2024. Read the report here.

The report highlighted that:

• 63% of business leaders reported that mentoring allowed them to increase their headcount, demonstrating its role in building capacity and supporting team expansion.‍
• 7 out of 10 business leaders said working with a professional mentor improved their mental health and confidence, showcasing the personal and emotional benefits of mentoring.‍7
• 72% of business leaders noted that mentoring directly improved their work-life balance, with the same number highlighting enhanced mental health and confidence as a result of their mentoring experience.

These findings highlight that professional business mentoring matters not only because it drives business growth but also improves the mental well-being of leaders and teams at large.

All this is why I volunteer as Ambassador for Mentoring for the IoD Surrey and Berkshire Branch. I have experienced the transformative power of mentoring and want to give something back to my local business community, helping create better directors for a better world.

What’s my ‘go to’ question when coaching or mentoring – ‘Help me understand’. It shows interest and can be used to unlock the detail that often sits behind a statement. It tends to get the client really talking.