Why Mentoring Programs Fail — and How to Make Them Worthwhile

Despite the fact that 98% of Wealth 500 companies have mentoring programs, but only 37% of professionals benefit from them. This disconnection exacerbates retention issues. So why are mentoring programs failing to deliver on their promises?

The problem is not in mentoring itself, but in the underutilization and ineffective reach of many mentoring programs. Programs are often limited to a small group of employees or lack the necessary communication and visibility to attract participation. As a result, many employees are unaware of or not interested in participating in mentoring opportunities. Moreover, potential mentors may be too overwhelmed by their own workload to commit to meaningful mentoring, leading to a cycle of under-engagement.

Fortunately, there are ways to turn your organization’s mentoring program into a powerful employee retention tool. It includes effective strategic communication, leveraging storytelling, engaging senior leaders and expanding access.