Managers as Mentors: Building Partnerships for Learning

Mentoring is more important than ever. Younger workers expect it or they’ll walk. Organizations need to provide it to stay competitive. This latest edition of the classic Managers as Mentors is a rapid-fire read that guides leaders in helping associates grow and adapt in today's tumultuous organizations. Thoroughly revised and updated, this edition places increased emphasis on the mentor as a learning catalyst for the protégé rather than as someone who simply hands down knowledge—crucial for younger workers who prize growth opportunities but tend to distrust hierarchy.

As with previous editions, a fictional case study of a mentor-protégé relationship runs through the book. But now this is augmented with six case studies of some of the top US CEOs. New chapters cover topics such as the role of mentoring in spurring innovation and mentoring a diverse and dispersed workforce accustomed to interacting and getting information digitally. Also new to this edition is the Mentor’s Toolkit, six resources to help in developing the mentor-protégé relationship.

This hands-on guide takes the mystery out of effective mentoring, teaching leaders to be the kind of confident coaches integral to learning organizations.

Chip R. Bell is senior partner of the Chip Bell Group and former director of management and organization development for NCNB (now Bank of America). He was a highly decorated infantry unit commander in Vietnam with the elite 82nd Airborne Division and is the author or coauthor of several bestselling books, including Wired and Dangerous.

Marshall Goldsmith was recently recognized as the number one leadership thinker in the world at the biannual Thinkers 50 ceremony sponsored by Harvard Business Review. He is the author, coauthor, or editor of thirty-one books, including the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers Mojo and What Got You Here Won’t Get You There.