Leadership and mentorship

Abstract

This thesis aims to learn more about mentoring relationships in organizations. Through detailed one on one interviews with mentors and mentees from a variety of different backgrounds, different age groups, genders, races, ethnicities and experiences, I develop a perspective on how mentoring relationships are structured and what met individuals expectations and what failed. The thesis then applies principles of system dynamics to understand the complexities of organizations. Applying the assumption that the demographics in the system are represented by demographics in Fortune 500 companies today, we analyze reinforcing and balancing loops within the system to understand why there is resistance to mentorship policy and why despite good intentions, many formal mentorship policies fail. I explore the case for mentorship through the value proposition of a mentorship relationship from the perspective of the mentor, mentee and the organization through responses collected from the interviews with mentors and mentee about why they enter into mentoring relationships and what motivates them to seek them out. The thesis uses system dynamics principles to understand mentoring policies and the barriers posed by the system.

(cont.) I examine examples of mentorship policy that have worked and aim to understand their success through the framework of the model. Using learnings from the model and interviews, I try to build a list of useful elements to consider when designing effective mentorship policy. Mentorship policy like all other policies feels the tension between equity and efficiency. On one extreme, too much regulation leads to bureaucratic policy and mentoring relationships that exist long after they stop working but a lack of any regulation can leave a whole group of employees that provide diverse voices and experiences without a supportive environment to realize their potential.