Mentor the young to shape future leaders

How are future leaders developed? This is the question that many leaders are mulling over as they look at their current dynamics on approach to good leadership and success.
Unfortunately, this is a question which can be answered in more than one way.
Interestingly, there is almost universal agreement that a common feature in leadership preparation, especially in the formal leadership sphere and increasingly in on-the-job preparations, is mentorship. Mentoring has been an important concept in modern life and it traces its roots to the late 1980s.

MILLENIALS
Over the past couple of weeks during the commemoration of Global Money Week, I led a team of staff on a tour of various schools across Nairobi and Kajiado Counties where we got an opportunity to talk to many students particularly those who are beneficiaries of our education scholarship programme.

The visits involved us engaging the teachers and the students in conversations about the importance of life skills and more so saving from an early stage in order to secure their future.
Throughout the visits, one critical aspect that stood out was the role of mentorship and how it helps shape perspectives on life issues. Many students reckoned that one of the missing links within their daily interactions has been mentorship: A deliberate act that involves preparing them for change while helping plan for their future.
Mentorship has been touted as one of the greatest acts of leadership because mentors act as teachers, role models and cheerleader. A mentor is capable of reinforcing the knowledge and tools learned in school as correct and work in real life.

PURPOSE
Many subjects and courses are offered as part of our curriculum, yet often students question why they need to take certain courses. The mentor can help the student leverage their academic knowledge in a real-world setting.
Mentoring has become more dynamic in the millennial age as millennials look for ways to further explore their life choices in non-conventional ways. According to the 2016 Deloitte Millennial Survey, 63 per cent of millennials say their leadership skills are not being fully developed.

It also found those intending to stay with their organisation for more than five years are twice as likely to have a mentor (68 per cent), than not (32 per cent).
It’s therefore safe to say that institutions that fail to mentor young people are likely to lose them. Millennials are frequently looking for purpose in their work, so allowing them to explore that space while they move through their career will increase their job satisfaction and engagement.
Where we go wrong sometimes is that we fail to realise the obstacles the young face on a daily basis. The mentoring relationship at its core is a mutually enhancing relationship for both the mentor and protégé.

POTENTIAL RISKS

The protégé gains advice and support entirely focused on their needs or personal directions, while the mentor gains positive feedback, often in the form of respect and recognition.
Mentorship as a skill also continues to evolve and there’s been an emergence of a few different types of mentoring: Co-mentoring or reverse mentoring, micro mentoring, and group mentoring. Depending on which type of mentorship an institution adopts, both the mentor and protégé need to understand and agree on the expected benefits while taking care of the potential risks involved.
This kind of critical approach to mentoring will benefit not only those involved directly but also benefit other peers around the protégé as tough ideas, such as what is a good leader and how can a leader most effectively lead a diverse workplace, will be addressed with increased self-reflection and commitment. For mentorship to work best start early. Imagine a future led by good leaders what a difference that would make!

The writer is the General Manager - Risk & Compliance for Liberty Life & Heritage Insurance. [email protected]