Leadership and mentoring

Previous articles in this series explored the differences between management and leadership, various styles of leadership and the differences between clinical and strategic leadership. This article examines the use of mentoring within leadership. I've spent a considerable amount of time over the last few years researching, talking to staff and evaluating various managerial roles within the health and service industries. Two common themes have emerged underpinning the results from the variety of work I've undertaken evaluating management skills, leadership ability, staff moral, professional development, and standards of care; the two themes are, a specific training course and personal mentoring.

The courses vary and will be explored later in this series, but the focus for this article is personal mentoring. Nearly everyone I've ever spoken to who has gained any sort of promotion has identified a specific person who was instrumental in their career development. Sometimes the mentorship relationship is a structured and formal arrangement that is part of the organisations human resources developmental strategy. Sometimes the relationship is less strategic and institutional but organised in a structured and formal way. Other staff have spoken of a mentoring type relationship that's less formal and structured but equally meaningful.