Management Mentoring in a Social Service Organization

Abstract

Interviews exploring the experiences of administrators in a state social service organization found informal mentoring relationships to be common and individually beneficial. Ninety-two percent (92%) of the managers reported having had a mentor and 77% reported that they had served as a mentor. All reported receiving career and personal benefits. About two-thirds of the reported relationships involved a direct supervisor who served as a mentor. Mentoring was found to be available to both men and women, however women reported a lesser degree of personal and career benefit than did men.

Key Words:

• Mentoring
• training
• human services
• administration
• management
• informal organization