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The Big Questions #1 - Raven Strategic

The Big Questions #1

What’s the difference? Why do I need to worry about coaching, and mentoring for my leaders? Aren’t they just the same thing?

By Daryl Raven

Mentoring, leadership development and Executive coaching are often mistaken to be a similar – and even directly interchangeable, when in fact they differ quite a lot:

  • Mentoring is an ongoing relationship, whereas a coaching relationship generally has a set duration
  • Mentoring is informal, while coaching tends to be more structured in nature with meetings scheduled on a regular basis
  • Mentoring focuses on career growth and personal development and coaching on development and organisational efficiency
  • A mentor is generally a senior person in the mentee’s organisation or someone who can pass on knowledge and experience.
  • A coach need not have direct experience of a person’s organisation or role

Mentors frequently double as executive coaches. They also serve as confidants, sounding boards, supportive listeners, guides, and tutors. Compared to an executive coach, your mentor may meet with you less frequently. But mentoring sessions are normally longer and more far-ranging than coaching sessions.

“Mentors frequently double as executive coaches. They also serve as confidants, sounding boards, supportive listeners, guides, and tutors.”

Because its scope is considerably broader than executive coaching, a mentoring relationship typically lasts at least nine or ten months. Sometimes they last as long as two or three years. Moreover, once a formal mentoring relationship runs its course, many people choose to have occasional “check-up” visits with their mentor for years to come. 

For more insights into Coaching vs. Mentoring – and how the combination of both might benefit the leaders in your business – click here, or contact us today

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