Jenny Headlam‐Wells, Jane Craig and Julian Gosland
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the barriers facing women aiming to progress in their careers, or return to work following a career break, and evaluate the effects of an…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the barriers facing women aiming to progress in their careers, or return to work following a career break, and evaluate the effects of an innovatory e‐mentoring scheme designed to overcome such obstacles and promote career development.
Design/methodology/approach
An online community of practice was formed for professional women in four UK regions. A survey of the career barriers they experienced was carried out and 122 participants were matched using psychological profiling and computer processing. The e‐mentoring process and participants' development was evaluated by means of pre‐, mid‐, and post‐mentoring evaluation questionnaires.
Findings
Mentees showed improvements in many key employability skills. For example, their ability to identify their weaknesses and ways to develop professionally improved substantially, as did their networking skills and ability to identify their strengths. Mentors also indicated that they had experienced development, for example, greater self‐awareness, increased confidence, improved reflective skills, and development of online skills. A large proportion of participants viewed mentoring as a fundamental aid to women's development. The majority felt that electronic communication was effective in facilitating this mentoring.
Practical implications
The e‐mentoring programme which has been developed may be transferred to a range of other target groups. Matching mentees and mentors is one of the key challenges in e‐mentoring design: an innovative system was designed which was able to provide personalised matching for each mentee.
Originality/value
E‐mentoring is still relatively under‐researched, particularly from a European perspective. This paper provides evidence for the benefits of e‐mentoring in the promotion of gender equality.
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Jenny Headlam‐Wells, Julian Gosland and Jane Craig
Purpose – This paper aims to advance the argument for the transformative potential of e‐mentoring for professional women. Design/methodology/approach – Existing mentoring and…
Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to advance the argument for the transformative potential of e‐mentoring for professional women. Design/methodology/approach – Existing mentoring and e‐mentoring models are evaluated as the context for the development of an innovative e‐mentoring programme for professional women in the UK (Empathy‐Edge). The European Union‐funded programme consisted of 122 participants who were matched by a combination of psychological profiling and analytical processing of these data to produce optimal matches. The e‐mentoring system employed a comprehensive range of resources and communication media which are often not included in similar systems. Findings – Initial evaluation data are presented. The benefits and challenges of e‐mentoring are analysed, together with initial recommendations for implementing effective schemes. Practical implications – The paper argues that e‐mentoring is a valuable tool for the career and management development of both returners and employed women who wish to break through the “glass ceiling”. It also indirectly improves their information and communications technologies (ICT) skills. Additionally, the paper demonstrates the strategic importance of psychological profiling for matching mentoring participants. Originality/value – The field of e‐mentoring is relatively new and is under‐researched, particularly from a European perspective. Combining insights from the fields of mentoring, gender in management, and computer‐mediated communication, Empathy‐Edge offers a new approach to career development for professional women.
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Mentoring is frequently cited as playing an important role in the career development of successful women managers. E‐mentoring is relatively new and under‐researched, particularly…
Abstract
Mentoring is frequently cited as playing an important role in the career development of successful women managers. E‐mentoring is relatively new and under‐researched, particularly outside North America. The present research investigates the advantages of e‐mentoring for women through a pilot programme set up with 28 mentor pairs. E‐mentoring is compared with traditional mentoring, and the potential of e‐mentoring for women's management development is evaluated. Challenges included encouraging participants to use all the resources of an e‐mentoring system and to develop fluency in online communication. The quality of the mentoring relationship remained the most important factor in the success of e‐mentoring. The paper identifies areas for further development in e‐mentoring.
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To provide a concise briefing on the most topical issues and relevant implications from the top 400 management publications in the world.
Abstract
Purpose
To provide a concise briefing on the most topical issues and relevant implications from the top 400 management publications in the world.
Design/methodology/approach
This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the argument in context.
Findings
This excellent article provides a clear‐cut account of e‐mentoring. It documents the benefits to those involved, while pointing out potential difficulties that may arise in establishing and managing an e‐mentoring scheme. The article employs a readable style and includes a relevant mini case study to illustrate many of the points made. Any business practitioner should find the practical implications in this article extremely useful.
Originality/value
Provides implementable strategies and practical thinking that has influenced some of the world's leading organizations.
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S. Gayle Baugh and Sherry E. Sullivan
This special issue seeks to examine mentoring relationships and offer new perspectives and frameworks, suggesting exciting avenues for future research on mentoring and career…
Abstract
Purpose
This special issue seeks to examine mentoring relationships and offer new perspectives and frameworks, suggesting exciting avenues for future research on mentoring and career development.
Design/methodology/approach
In the last two decades, the workplace has been dramatically transformed. Individuals traditionally had careers entrenched in organizations, relying on the paternalistic firm for career development. Increasingly now, individuals are enacting careers outside organizational boundaries, defining career success on their own terms rather than by the organizational measures of salary and rank. Rapid technological change and globalization have intensified the decoupling of individual careers from organizations, putting more emphasis on individuals for their own career development and creating an even greater need for mentoring.
Findings
Although much research has been done on the impact of mentoring on subjective and objective career success, there are still many unexamined and under‐explored aspects of mentoring. This collection of ten articles tackles some of these areas, providing new insights and offering new avenues for research and practice.
Originality/value
These articles are authored by individuals from a variety of disciplines (e.g. organizational behavior, psychology, health care), and countries (e.g. USA, UK, Nigeria), with each article bringing a unique lens to the study of mentoring and careers. Individually, each article makes a contribution to the better understanding of how mentoring has evolved and is enacted today. Together, this collection of articles provides important insights that it is hoped encourage even further research into the complexities of developmental relationships and their impact on career development.
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Frederike Hennig, Jenny Sarah Wesche, Lisa Handke and Rudolf Kerschreiter
Mentoring supports children, adolescents and young adults on their career paths and presents an important extracurricular educational format. The COVID-19 pandemic created a…
Abstract
Purpose
Mentoring supports children, adolescents and young adults on their career paths and presents an important extracurricular educational format. The COVID-19 pandemic created a strong impetus for the deployment of virtual mentoring programs (VMPs), in which mentors and mentees communicate completely or predominantly through information and communication technologies (ICTs). Because it is unclear whether VMPs remain an attractive offer to mentors and mentees in post-pandemic times, this study aims to investigate the specific motivations of mentors and mentees to participate in VMPs and to draw conclusions about the effective design of VMPs.
Design/methodology/approach
In a qualitative study, the authors recruited 200 university students for an online survey, in which participants provided text responses regarding their motivations to participate in a youth or academic VMP as a mentor or mentee.
Findings
Potential mentors and mentees expect social components in VMPs. However, the results suggest that participants expect less psychosocial compared to career-related support from virtual mentoring, expect meaningful connections to be established only to a certain extent and do not expect role modeling from mentors. Furthermore, participants voiced mixed opinions about the virtual nature of mentoring programs, revealing a general field of tension (i.e. virtuality improves flexibility vs virtuality impairs relationship building). On this basis, design suggestions regarding VMPs are provided.
Originality/value
This study expands existing knowledge about VMPs by analyzing relevant factors when forming the intention to participate in a mentoring program, considering both youth and academic mentoring.