Understanding the Science Behind Mentoring at Work

In an increasingly competitive climate, organisations need to do more than ever before to ensure they are not only hiring the right people, but also progressing and retaining them. This means creating a truly inclusive workforce where all have an equal opportunity to succeed. One of the best ways to achieve this is via effective mentoring at work.

The Belonging Crisis

Our research finds that millions of UK employees are struggling to feel included at their current organisation. Just 34% of UK office workers feel as though they completely belong within their company – this is a significant problem. Belonging is an essential component for employees to feel motivated, engaged and included.

Many employees are suffering from a lack of connection in the workplace – as a result, millions are considering leaving their current roles. We’re already starting to see this with “The Great Resignation”.

The Benefits of Mentoring

Mentoring with purpose is key for addressing and responding to HR’s growing crisis, through fostering belonging and human connection amongst all employees – particularly for individuals working remotely. Purposeful mentoring is proven to be successful in directly supporting employee development and progression within a company, with individuals with mentors found to be promoted five times more often than those without, on average.

What’s more, purposeful mentoring can help businesses to boost their I&D work by creating an inclusive and supported workplace culture in which employees of all backgrounds are given equal opportunities to succeed.

As a result, mentoring results in happier, more loyal, and more engaged employees, which has a direct impact on a business’s bottom line.

The Demand for Mentoring

Research has demonstrated just how valuable mentoring is to employees:

• 94% of employees would stay longer at their company if it invested in their careers
• 97% of those with a mentor say they are valuable
• Mentees are promoted five times more often than those without mentors
• 79% of Millennials see mentoring as crucial to their career success
• 89% of those who are mentored will go on to mentor others, creating a cyclical culture of learning and development

Despite these statistics, the lack of organisations running mentoring schemes demonstrates a clear disconnect between appetite for mentorships and the opportunities available.

More on Mentoring

Employers can no longer afford to view mentoring as a simple tick-box exercise. Mentoring programmes with purpose provide huge benefits to all involved.

Connectr has worked with leadership consultant and former President of EMCC UK, Rita Symons and behavioural science company, Cogco, to explore the science and best practice behind delivering effective and purposeful mentoring. We’re proud to release our report: The Science of Effective Mentoring.

The report offers a detailed look into the behavioural science behind mentoring programmes with purpose and offers practical insights for implementing programmes that are scientifically proven to succeed.

Get your free copy of the report here.