Mentoring is a reciprocal and collaborative at-will relationship that most often occurs between a eudcators and students or senior and junior employees for the purpose of the mentee’s growth, learning, and career development. Often the mentor and mentee are internal to an organization, and there is an emphasis on organizational goals, culture, career goals, advice on professional development, and work-life balance. Effective mentors often act as role models and sounding boards for their mentee and provide guidance to help them reach their goals.

Mentoring can be formal or informal. In an informal environment, mentees set goals, but they are usually not measurable and the relationships are unstructured. For a formal mentoring relationship, there are actionable and measurable goals defined and set with determined requirements.

Mentoring is not coaching and not counseling. Mentoring relationships are based upon advice giving and direction while coaching is not. Counseling is a paid-relationship in which underlying mental or psychological issues are addressed with solutions given by a medical professional.