Mentoring: A Powerful Tool.

I was fortunate enough to participate in a Whirlpool Corporation Mentoring Program, first as a mentor, then as a sponsor of the Talent Pillar in Finance, a role in which I had the support of Claudia Hinojosa as project manager and the entire team. Tax, Foreign Trade and Social Security team, not only to run the Mentoring Program, but also the rest of the Pillar activities such as Social Responsibility, Finance Academy and the Summer Integration Event. I will also not forget the support of Miguel Ruvalcaba from the HR team.

I lived the program inside and out. The attitude of service and the human aspect is a legacy from my father, so it was very natural for me to take care of people in my role as Area Manager. Being a mentor was a fantastic opportunity to try to influence others. I had already been trying to do this in my work teams, but mentoring allows you to take your ideas to people outside your regular sphere of influence.

I always look for a personal connection with the people I work with, I think it's the most authentic way to interact with others, so I look for the same with my mentees. I planned my sessions, looked for a formula, documented myself to play the role in the best possible way.

Then I had the opportunity to participate in the design of the program and to work on everything I had criticized in the previous model, both in the matches, in making the information of the mentors available to the mentees in order to make the best choice, in doing a good training for the mentors, a kickoff, giving due importance to the process, etc.

Then I returned to my role as a mentor, so I can say with absolute certainty that mentoring is a powerful tool that can help organizations retain their people, set goals such as career path, create networks that would not have been possible otherwise, meet talents outside the area, even facilitate work when mentor and mentee coincide in work projects, etc.

There are issues that sometimes it is not feasible to discuss an issue with the direct boss, and that is when a mentor assumes the role of a listener, guide, confident, friend. People as human and social beings need to share, a relief valve. Mentors share their own experiences, what were the paths that led them to where they are today. They can give advice on conflicts in the department, with the boss, with colleagues, even with subordinates.

There are issues to be resolved along the way, for example, confidentiality rules, what happens in the mentoring stays there, filtering what is shared there, you can lose trust in the whole project if people cannot open up and be honest with each other. It happened to me that some of the mentoring came to my personal evaluation with mi Boss, you have to be careful, not all people, no matter how much experience and seniority they have, necessarily have the maturity and quality of discretion.

The training of mentors is key, defining a basic structure for first time mentors is vital, many people need guidance and support but do not know how to capitalize on their mentor's time, usually the programs are mentee driven, but it is somewhat naive to think that a person going through their first experience will know how to run their own program, maybe a second year mentee or later will know how to do it, but the first time they need a basic idea of how to start, so the programs need to be flexible enough to provide additional support when needed.

Not all Bosses, no matter how high they are, are good Bosses, and the same goes for Mentors, so the role should not be imposed on everyone, even if they want to, if Mentees are allowed to make the choices, it will become clear in a natural way who has the natural profile to carry this great responsibility.

The process must be voluntary for both mentors and mentees, and the number of mentors must be commensurate with the workload of the people. When choosing a mentor, the mentees can give an option a, b, c and as many as they like, so that they end up with someone of their choice, otherwise it doesn't work, many don't even set the first session.

I highly recommend the program and give it the best possible maintenance, which does not depend on one person, but becomes institutional, a key part of development, succession plans, calibrations, etc.

I say goodbye until the next release:

Cheque,