HR and Mentoring.

Senior employees will naturally reach retirement age within the next few years, and a significant portion of the workforce will be lost (Nkomo & Thwala, 2016). Those employees have gathered much experience and learnt a lot about how things function, how to complete jobs, and whom to call in times of trouble. Hence, the loss of such experienced personnel may dramatically reduce productivity, resulting in costly mistakes, unanticipated quality concerns, or major disruptions in services and performance.

This chapter examines how to establish and preserve a workplace's common knowledge and skills by ensuring that corporate knowledge does not just disappear when workers retire. Employees with strong talents and knowledge have a better probability of being hired. Thus, successful firms will be those that can engage, educate, develop, and retain highly talented personnel. To that end, creating a learning environment within enterprises is critical to the future of Human Resources Development (HRD).

The influence of mentoring relationships on employee retention is that knowledge retention and transfer is an area that has considerable potential for corporations to decrease turnover costs and, perhaps more importantly, sustain corporate performance. Companies have recognised it as a priority. Human resources are now widely regarded in both the commercial and academic sectors as a source of competitive advantage and one of the key elements driving progress, profitability, and long-term value.

In order to provide valuable professional and psychological assistance, mentoring relationships are frequently established between an older, more seasoned mentor and a younger, less seasoned mentee.

Mentoring is an important activity for both mentors and mentees in terms of personal development. It has recently been claimed that this has been recognised as a rather powerful HRD intervention with the ability to assist staff members in career development, act as a type of on-the-job training, and aid in the construction of learning organisations.

Our understanding of mentoring relationships at work has notably advanced over the past 20 years. Mentoring in business is associated with several good behavioural, attitude, health-related, relational, motivational, and professional outcomes, albeit the impact size is often minimal.

This emphasis is consistent with a line of mentoring research that began with Levinson and colleagues, who proposed this insight on mentoring; "one of the most complex and developmentally important relationships, the mentor is ordinarily several years older, a person of greater experience and seniority, a teacher, adviser, or spousal relationship." Mentoring provides developmental help to a more senior member of a mentee's organisation. HRs will eventually become an organisation's most precious asset if they are properly nourished, taught, and developed. Because the dynamic external environments in which many businesses now operate necessitate the development of the ability to train and learn faster than competitors, to solve new and challenging problems, and to increase the quantity of what they do through efficient training and development practices. Having a mentor and receiving more mentoring functions is associated with more positive objectives (e.g., pay, promotions) and subjective (e.g., career satisfaction, work satisfaction) outcomes for mentees, which will be explored throughout the chapter.

A Match Made in Heaven:

Mentor matching can be a smooth process. It is critical for success to select a matching methodology appropriate for the type of mentoring programme the agency offers. Matching based on professional progress or advancement determines key areas for professional development or career progress that will drive match criteria. For example, suppose the development or growth area is focused on developing leadership competencies. In that case, mentors should be matched with mentees who have gaps in particular competencies and are strong in those competencies.

When particular development and growth areas are utilised to set matching criteria, it is simpler to prevent undesired outcomes from occurring: matches based only on personality traits and "similarity" - rather than developmental goals. Create application forms for mentors and mentees and use them to collect data for matching and pairing to achieve this. This data may give additional information to aid in the final matching decision if there are several potential matches. Furthermore, too many elements to help in relationship matching should be avoided.

Finding matches for people based on as many characteristics as possible will yield better results. In practice, however, matching on a large number of factors is, at best, time-consuming and, at worst impossible. Instead of aiming for the "perfect match," which would limit your capacity to match at all, aim for the best possible match. Pick a few high-priority criteria and assign each criterion a priority and a relative weighting to obtain the "best possible match." When the mentee is more actively involved in selecting their mentor, the effects of the mentoring increase. As a result, global mentoring programmes must be organised in such a way that mentees can choose their mentors. Leading to more successful mentorships and simplifying the organisation of a mentoring programme, and This may be accomplished using applications that have information on each mentor's past. Mentees can review mentor profiles and convey their choices to the mentoring programme coordinators at the organisation.

While many mentorships may thrive, others may not. Why? Mentoring is only sometimes an everyday activityMentoringng relationships are prone to losing focus and moment without a purpose and strategy. Thus, a good mentoring programme must provide some structure and direction throughout the mentoring process. One excellent practice is to ensure that all mentorships contain goals and action plans. It accomplishes two things; Firstly,

it emphasises the beginning initially, which contributes to the mentorship's effective start. Secondly, it enhances accountability for task completion. Also, as the mentoring relationship grows, it provides periodic checkpoints where mentorships may report on their performance. Even if the organisation does not explicitly collect the information, merely documenting success benefits mentors and mentees. Finally, have a clear mechanism to wrap up the mentoring experience. Give the mentor and mentee a chance to consider what they have learned, discuss the mentee's next steps, and give feedback on the program's advantages and development.

Meetings between mentors and mentees will be conducted through four phases;

Phase 1 The mentor and the mentee must be prepared for the encounter individually and collectively. Mentors may reflect on their motivations and preparation for mentoring, as well as their strengths and areas for development. Both parties must be clear about their roles and obligations, which will be achieved through completing the Mentorship Plan. Here are some questions that a mentee can consider asking their mentor: "Can we collaborate productively? Can I help this individual better their education? Here are some questions to ask your mentee: "What do you want to take away from this experience? What am I attempting to achieve? How will success manifest itself?

Phase 2:

The mentor and mentee negotiate the nature of the relationship, the learning objectives, and other aspects. Hence, ground rules must be established, and a common understanding of assumptions, expectations, goals, and needs must be developed. Other tasks will include:

Determine a completion timeline, success criteria, accountability, and when to fulfil responsibilities.

Discuss constraints, limits, and confidentiality.

Phase 3:

Measure the success of your learning objectives. By filling out the Mentorship Session Log after each meeting and the Mentorship Journal weekly, the mentor and mentee will evaluate the success of the mentoring sessions.

The Mentorship Session Log will assist the mentor, and the mentee in keeping track of sessions attended. The Mentorship Journal will assist the mentor, and the mentee in keeping track of the areas addressed, reviewing the action plan for the previous week, and preparing another plan for the following session.

What progress are you making toward your learning objectives? These are some key questions that the mentor should ask the mentee. What has been your most significant achievement thus far? What aggravates you the most? ? What component of your schooling gives you the most pleasure?

Phase 4:

the following is concerned with how to wrap up a mentoring session. This stage will involve determining if the learning objectives have been achieved and agreeing on an action plan for what needs to be done before the next mentoring session.

It is important to monitor the mentoring programme to ensure the set goals are being met and address any challenges the mentor and mentee may face. It is good practice to measure the progress of the mentorship programme to establish expectations, assess how well the relationship is working and measure the outcomes.

An excellent mentor-mentee match may assist the mentee in achieving better achievements while also making mentoring easier and more enjoyable for the mentor, which can help keep the mentor on board. There are two main methods for matching mentors and mentees:

? Natural Matching: Natural matching allows the mentor and the youth to pick one another, often in a group or team activities that allow adults and children to get to know and form natural affinities between individuals. Natural matching allows the mentor and the young person to govern the relationship while ensuring a "good fit" between them.

? Assigned Matches: Staff members can connect mentors and mentees based on the youngster's needs, the mentor's temperament and ability, and other factors such as shared interests, colour and ethnicity, and gender. Assigned matches take advantage of the staff's skills and experience, pairing teenagers who may be more problematic with more experienced (and patient) mentors, and reducing some ambiguity and risk that may arise from natural matching.

Mentoring as a Recruiting Benefit:

Business executives are thinking about ways to strengthen their offers to attract and retain top personnel as the competition for talent increases. Workplace mentoring programs may greatly influence a company's workers and provide it with a competitive edge.

Many factors make mentoring vital and valuable for new and experienced employees in the workplace. During the recruiting process, hybrid working companies might benefit from a systematic workplace mentorship programme that enables the human resources staff to locate forward-thinking managers and an efficient method to develop high-potential leaders within the team.

The increased demand for foreign talent forces companies to employ critical individuals outside their country's borders. Companies are becoming more global, and they use a geocentric approach to hire the finest applicants for available positions regardless of country or place of origin.

Furthermore, an ageing workforce makes knowledge transfer difficult and raises the likelihood of experience loss. Companies are moving toward employing young graduates and developing them within the organisation since a suitable successor is necessary.

The increased need for worldwide talent forces businesses to employ critical individuals outside the limits of a particular country. Companies are more global in scope and use a geocentric approach to hire the finest people for available positions regardless of their nations or places of origin. Multinational corporations can only preserve their competitive advantages if they hire qualified employees abroad. International talent is in short supply due to internationalisation and enterprises' failure to employ and educate local management.

In order to tackle the challenges, businesses aim to position themselves as desirable employers in the labour market. As a result of the persistent shortage of experts and managerial labour, businesses must position themselves as desirable employers in the eyes of job searchers. Due to high costs, small and medium-sized enterprises struggle to address human capital issues.

Talent mentoring, as a tool for talent acquisition (TA), is described as a process initiated and fostered by an organisation that involves a mentor who is a staff person and a mentee who is a student. In this case, a firm sees a student as a potential employee. An organisation selects both participants based on specified criteria to ensure their motivation to participate. Businesses may easily recruit and manage talent by identifying the required competencies and selecting a student for a mentoring programme based on them at the pre-recruitment stage.

The company's support and coordination of their progress create a stronger bond between mentors and mentees. This strategy allows students and employees to build skills and distinctive competence and acquire relevant knowledge. Talent mentoring helps to close the skill gaps by providing proper knowledge transfer. As a result, an organisation attracts better-qualified individuals with the required skills and knowledge because they were previously handled outside of the organisation's structure during an earlier stage of recruitment. Businesses can use a talent mentoring tool to reduce the time it takes for new hires. To get up to speed, increase employer brand awareness, ensure higher candidate quality, create a talent pool ahead of time, and begin the learning and development of current employees.

Furthermore, mentoring enables information transfer from experienced workers to students who are viewed as prospective employees. More crucially, the effort addresses the aspirations of Millennials. They prefer to be mentored rather than supervised and want frequent feedback for personal development, resulting in a high demand for mentorship. Finally, mentoring helps students acquire firm-specific skills and competencies outside of the organisational setting, ensuring that the company obtains highly qualified individuals with relevant capabilities.

Values:

Mentoring mainly aims at creating an environment that allows and promotes opportunities for workers to have direct relationships with more experienced colleagues that can help them with their professional growth by providing them with guidance and advice in their careers. Effective mentoring can lead to several extremely desirable outcomes regarding workers 'general behaviours and attitudes towards their careers and workplace. Such effects may manifest in the following ways:

Research shows that mentoring can lead mentees to have more positive attitudes towards their jobs and related duties. Through their experienced guidance and support, mentors can help their mentees to stay clear of the usual mistakes employees make. Leading them to have better personal satisfaction about their role in the organisation and accelerate their achievement of a healthy work-life balance.

Mentoring can also significantly contribute to the improvement of the mentees' mental and overall health. One is certain to come across obstacles in their jobs that have the potential to seriously damage their ability to perform their job well and even negatively impact their personal lives. In such inevitable situations, mentors have a critical role in easing those hardships by listening to the mentees' struggles and providing advice on handling them in the best way possible. Furthermore, a mentor may boost overall well–being and confidence by recognising a mentee's effort and praising them on the good work they produce.

Mentors greatly influence personal and professional relationships between co-workers. This can be seen when a mentor assists staff members in creating the best plan for their interactions with co-workers.

Empathy:

Empathy is the capacity to grasp and relate to another person's thoughts, emotions, or experiences. A type of empathy beyond basic sympathy is the ability to comprehend and assist others with compassion or sensitivity. The basis of leadership is empathy. According to several leadership theories, a key aspect of effective leadership is empathy.

Several leadership philosophies, such as transformational, charismatic, and servant leadership, have also been linked to empathy. In transformational leadership research, for example, leaders with high levels of empathy, openness, and communication were connected with low job turnover, leadership effectiveness, and individual improvement.

Empathy has also been identified as a powerful tool for developing leadership skills, which are critical in developing dependable and motivated employees. Empathy increases interactions between leaders and employees while also eliminating defects or blunders.

Transformative leaders must possess empathy to demonstrate their concern for the goals and needs of their followers. Empathetic leaders are aware of others because they have empathy. According to many experts, developing emotional intelligence, which includes empathy, is essential for leadership success.

A leader may demonstrate empathy via both words and actions. Words may initially elicit positive responses and strongly indicate that the leader cares about her or his followers. However, the leader must follow up on displaying empathy with actions that reinforce such feelings. For example, suppose a follower was having difficulty sleeping because of a new infant at home. In that case, a leader may offer sympathy but would need to back up these words with actions (perhaps by finding the worker a quiet, unused space to take short naps during break times). Empathetic leadership should positively affect followers' innovative behaviour in one of two ways. To begin, compassionate leadership should inspire followers to be more inventive because they feel more confident taking risks and less stressed, both critical components of creativity and invention (Amabile, Schatzel, Moneta, & Kramer, 2004; M. Mayfield, 2011).

Accountability:

According to Management Mentors (2012), most leaders are at ease with responsibility when they take a more passive stance or avoid conflicts in the hope that solutions will emerge on their own and resolve issues. When pressing concerns are raised, leaders either ignore them or deal with them in a roundabout way, either retaliating against the person who raised them or attempting to find a group solution.

One can only truly master the art of accountability under the direction of an experienced mentor and by building networks. "Because learning is the primary goal of mentoring, accountability must play an important part in the relationship" (Austin Community College, 2012, p.2). Furthermore, courageous talks are a prerequisite for accountability, which is especially tough in reverse generational mentorship.

What prevents leaders from holding individuals accountable might be due to various circumstances. Intimidation, dread of a destroyed bond, and knowledge of another's sensitivity to the stress of failure can all inhibit healthy accountability. The capacity to handle conflict is a vital skill set that helps deal with these various circumstances more simpler, decreasing the negative impact and increasing the required trust in social connections.

When mastered, the leadership trait of accountability may offer a wealth of advantages. It can support the development of credible and long-lasting professional careers and relationships of trust with colleagues and superiors. Leaders, whether transformational or situational, have a responsibility to those they are in charge of to be able to hold others accountable and be willing to hold themselves accountable. Without this important quality, a leader's credibility may be tarnished, and it is frequently challenging to recover.

Young people starting the workforce may feel anxious about their place in the organisation and their contribution to it and intimidated by their new co-workers, particularly if those employees are older and more experienced. Our young millennials were raised in the digital era and may need more communication skills to advance quickly through their firm and create connections, making this experience more difficult. On the other hand, the older generation of co-workers in the new workplace can benefit from the new millennials' strong technical expertise. Reverse mentoring and workplace generational diversity are barriers that must be overcome if institutions are to reap the benefits.

Professionalism:

Experience is sometimes required for a professional to begin in a new role. However, in most organisations, becoming truly clear needs more than simply being competent. Companies in a variety of industries are looking for employees that are skilled, communicative, dependable, and generally pleasant to work with. Your look and behaviour in a professional setting may transmit various messages to hiring managers and co-workers. Employees who act professionally are generally regarded as more talented and valuable. It is also critical to recognise that almost everyone can improve in this area.

Your workplace professionalism involves how you show yourself, conduct job assignments, and engage with others. Being professional may help you make a good first impression, develop beneficial relationships with people, and establish a strong reputation within your organisation and industry. Respect is at the heart of etiquette. Being considerate regarding your relationships, respecting other people's time, and keeping your workspace clean are critical. Workplace etiquette is important since it ensures that your presence does not interfere with anybody else's ability to do their job.

According to the US Department of Labor, few things are more prized by employers than employees who carry out their responsibilities professionally. Co-workers generally see persons with high degrees of professionalism as more trustworthy and credible. Being adept in workplace etiquette may give young professionals an advantage when their careers begin. Professionalism transcends age in the most generationally varied workforce we have ever seen.

Although everyone defines success differently, functioning properly at work may help you achieve it regardless of your long-term goals. Building an outstanding reputation inside your company will happen if you keep your word and are devoted, productive, and respectful to others.

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