Think back to the very first job you’ve ever had. What was your first day like? Starting a new career can be incredibly intimidating and stressful, especially if it is your first experience in that field. Having a mentor to guide new hires through these new job jitters can drastically improve employee satisfaction. Here are a few reasons why good mentorship is essential in a business.
Benefits for the Mentor
Being able to mentor a new employee through your company’s onboarding process is a huge responsibility. While it may be easy to get overwhelmed by this role, many benefits also come with being a mentor.
First, being responsible for introducing new employees to office life can be an incredible self-confidence boost. Knowing that your supervisors consider you to be accountable enough to shape new employees implies that your supervisors respect you and the effort you exert. Additionally, being a mentor allows for employees to work on improving their leadership skills. Being a mentor may be a stepping stone to becoming a team leader. Take advantage of this opportunity to show your supervisors that you are qualified to advance within your company if you so desire.
Second, being a mentor can improve communication skills. When you spend your days introducing a new hire to the office, chances are you will be talking to them. Not only will you be talking to new hires casually, but you will also be responsible for verbally explaining job requirements. This can be beneficial to recall and reinforce your knowledge, and it can also help expand your knowledge as you break down the information so new hires can best understand it.
Lastly, mentoring new employees allows you to invest in the company’s future direction. If there is something that your office is working to become, this is your time to start employees on the right path immediately. Instead of waiting till bad habits develop to try and correct them, take the time to invest in new employees from day one properly.
Benefits for the Mentee
On the other side of mentorship is the mentee, also known as the new hire or new employee. While there are many benefits to being a mentor, there are also many benefits to being the mentee.
First, being mentored helps improve the communication skills of the mentee. Similar to the role of the mentor, being a mentee means that you will be spending lots of time with someone and consequently means that you will be talking to them a lot. This form of communication can help mentees learn terms and phrases that relate to the position they will be holding.
Additionally, being a mentee helps new hires grow in receiving feedback. It is not uncommon for a new hire to make mistakes or need further explanation on specific tasks. Mentoring allows new employees to get comfortable receiving feedback and adjusting their actions based on it.
Second, implementing a mentorship program allows new and different perspectives to enter the workplace. Instead of just telling a new hire to do something and leaving, when a mentor works with them and explains why things are done the way they are, the mentor allows room for new ideas to be shared.
Lastly, being a mentee provides new employees with an opportunity to feel included in the workplace. Sometimes new hires can feel isolated when they are left to fend for themselves, but when they have a mentor to show them around, they can start their new position with a connection already established.
Overall, implementing a mentorship program within your company benefits everyone involved. Whether you are the mentor, or the mentee, being a part of welcoming new employees can help support inclusion and generate new connections. To learn how to communicate effectively with your coworkers with the Bigger Brains course, Increase Your Listening Power.
