Business research repeatedly proves that the vital skill of mentoring enhances the odds of career success among mentees. Further, it provides a sense of fulfillment and purpose among mentors. It helps with imposter syndrome and makes both parties feel a sense of belonging. Further, it can help both sides of the relationship keep in touch with the latest trends and overcome new challenges. So why don’t more organizations take advantage of this type of relationship? Well, because setting it up is somewhat complicated and requires deliberate, wise effort. In this book, Thornton (a former COO for Waffle House) and Hartnett (director of the Executive Marketing Program at the University of West Florida) team up to make this process a bit simpler.
Together, they dissect what makes mentoring work. In the first half of the book, Thornton approaches it more on an individual level. He explains how he has strategically created value in his employees’ lives. Then in the second half of the book, Hartnett explains how mentoring can be implemented across a large group. By dividing up the book in a micro vs. macro fashion, they try to demystify this complex but important topic.
To be honest, this book almost reads like two separate books glued together into one. My personal taste favored the second half of the book on organization over the first half on personal attributes, but I suspect that is more telling of my personality and experiences than anything else. Professionally, I develop software that enhances mentoring relationships, and this book benefitted me by giving language and understanding about what successful mentoring looks like.
It provided a few new conceptual tools about how to understand mentoring. Mentoring consists of more than mere teaching. Rather, it centers on building relationships to aid a mentee’s personal make-up. In so doing, it can also help the mentor push herself/himself towards greater growth and integrity. I personally engage mentoring on several different levels, and the authors provided some concepts to understand these different relationships. Some relationships are built around moving a good leader (a 5/10) to become great (7/10). Other relationships are about bringing a 7/10 to a 9/10. Et cetera.
This book stands poised to encourage mentoring relationships in businesses and non-profit organizations. Having been written in a pandemic year, it ends with a bonus chapter on virtual mentoring. Although this was and is relevant to current culture, the chapter lacks the depth that the rest of the book offered. Thornton offers a more salesman-like approach while Hartnett is clearly a master organizer/administrator. These contrasting styles might appeal to two different types of readers, readers who might not appreciate both styles equally. Still, much stands to be learned about mentoring. I fully agree that mentoring needs to be measured in some way, but that measurement is often elusive. There’s a lot of work that can be done in research and implementation. This book’s varied approach represents a worthy start into that endeavor.
High-Impact Mentoring: A Practical Guide to Creating Value in Other People’s Lives
By Bert Thornton and Sherry Hartnett
Copyright (c) 2021
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ISBN13 9781665303446
Page Count: 251
Genre: Mentoring, Business/Management
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