Background information on conventional mentoring and peer relationship mentoring

Questions:

1.Conduct a research on two real-life Companies, the first uses conventional mentoring method at the work place and the second Company uses the peer relationship in the workplace, compare, and contrast between the two applied methods with examples/reflection from the two Companies of your choice.

2.Draw a System Map for a company from your Local Market.

3.Draw a Multiple-Cause diagram for a situation where the staff are overworked and stressed at work. Explain your diagram in words briefly. 

4.Imagine a situation related to the nature of the Company and as a Manager, you are required to apply the active listening technique in that situation. Apply in details the active listening to resolve the issue.

5.Also as a Manager in your Company, you are faced with Business proposition where you need to negotiate. Use the negotiation technique as discussed in the material to win the situation.

1.Mentoring is an important role played by the management of every organization. Unlike in the traditional mentoring where the process had to be conducted on a one on one basis things have changed with the current technological changes. Conventional mentoring refers to the traditional form of mentoring where the mentors had to have a formal or informal one on one sitting with their mentees for the entire mentoring program (Iomaire, 2008). An Intel organization is a good example of a company that uses conventional mentoring programs, but still manages to successfully mentor their employees (Firth et al, 2017, p. 6). This has resulted to vast opportunities which organization and their employees are taking advantage.

Examples of these opportunities include peer mentoring which involves an organization picking one or a few employees, trains them to become expertise then assigns them a group of their colleagues to a mentor. This type of relationship does not base its functionality on hierarchies rather it is only meant to create a reciprocated learning environment for the entire organization. As Firth et al (2017, P. 8) explain, peer mentoring is currently being applied by the Microsoft group in their attempts to successfully recruit new employees. In comparing the two, it can be said that the peer relationship mentoring is more popular than the conventional mentoring in a number of ways. To begin with, peer relationship mentoring widens the learning grounds because several peers can be used as mentoring experts unlike traditionally where the role was assigned to a single mentor. Second, there is room for diversification of knowledge due to the involvement of a number of persons in the mentoring program (Gladwell & White, 2016). Third, a peer mentoring might be more successful than conventional mentoring as most employees are more willing to listen to fellow collogues than they may listen to a person from a higher rank. On the other hand, conventional mentoring overpowers peer mentoring based and the experience level of mentors.

Examples of conventional mentoring in Intel organization

Peer relationship mentors are less experienced and might not mentor the employees beyond the levels of their received training. While peer relationship mentoring model allows room for development of peer relationships, the conventional mentoring model allows development of close personal relationship between the mentee and the mentor. As a result, employees can learn from their mentors even beyond the intended mentoring program. Conventional mentoring can be revolutionized to fit in today’s first changing work environments by incorporating modernized programs (Smith, 2015, p. 298). An Intel Company has managed to remain current despite their traditional mentoring model application. Conventional mentoring at times faces the limitation of mentor availability. This is because the number of mentors is usually limited this is unlike the case of a company that uses peer relationship mentors where several are available at any given time. Finally, peer mentoring creates a wide ground for networking. (Johnson, 2001) For instance, Microsoft is using their current workforce to reach out to other potential young people working in other organizations. It also enables the company to learn the strategies and performance procedures applied by other organizations, hence offering them a more competitive advantage. Unlike the Intel organization, Microsoft group keeps all their staff engaged and none of them feels left out in the overall running of the organization.

2.A system Map is a diagram that gives a visual representation of a service technical based organization revealing the companies’ business actors, the existing links between actors, and how materials, energy, information, and funds flow through the entire organizational system. Below is a sample of a System Map for McDonalds, which is used in maintaining a company’s integrity in the section of food production. Through the cold chain link the company manages to offer fresh and nutritional food at all times.

3.Multiple Diagrams

The purpose of multiple cause diagrams is to reveal the reasons behind an occurrence of an event and the existing relationships between the causes and variables (Kenneth, 2014, p. 2)

The above diagram shows that employees can resign due to several reasons. Either from the employers stressing issues or from employees related issues

4.Active Listening Technique

Active listening is a form of listening that goes beyond the ordinary hearing. It involves the listener paying ultimate attention to what the speaker is talking about. The main objective of active listening is to allow the listener to understand the major feelings that the speaker has as well as comprehend the main views and opinions possessed by the speaker. Active listening is an essential communication tool that enhances effecting information exchange between two or more persons. Managers irrespective of the nature of their organization are faced with the task of being active listeners. This is important because it is the most efficient means through which they can establish problems existing in the organization if any. Additionally, through active listening managers can identify with the feelings and the views of their clients and subordinates. The role of manager goes beyond giving orders and overseeing employees’ performance. The responsibilities incorporate their need to also be listeners. This creates a big difference between active listening managers from the rest. In a restaurant joint, active listening is important as it enables smooth communication between the management and the staff.

Examples of peer relationship mentoring in Microsoft

As a manager of Golden Trusts Limited at some point a poor performance of employees, resulting too weak employees’ interpersonal skills and customer relationships is a challenge. This situation might appear simple, but it is excessively complex and requires application of the well-designed skills. To start with, the greatest first step is to show the employees that I care about them. When employees realize my concern for their well-being both at a personal and organizational level they reciprocate by working harder. This is because they feel appreciated hence work more and can even exceed the manager’s expectations. To achieve this as a manager my care and concern go beyond the workplace to the general wellbeing of the employees. The second step of active listening is engaging me in all matters that are important to the employees (Brown8ing & Waite, 2010, p. 150). This is especially when they share their opinions and views regarding different situations. By engaging, I encourage them, follow up with and hold myself accountable for their performance. As a result the employees will feel that they are being listened to and the manager wants to understand the issues affecting them. Active listening also requires a manager to be emphatic.

Poor performance can be as a result of stress on employees either personal or organizational. Managers need to understand how each employee is affected by stress. Empathy shows the employees that their leader listens to them and shares in their frustrations. An emphatic leader is easily approachable. Employees can openly share their frustrations with them without fear. In addition, even after receiving the frustrations that employees might be having it is important not to judge anyone. Instead of being judgmental, an active listening leader embraces diversity and the different approaches applied by employers. Through the process, the leader might either learn from the employees or change them for the better. A manager acting as an active listener will pick new ideas and ideals from the employees that are needed in the first changing organizations of the 21^st century.

As a manager applying active listening means, that one is mindful of an entire process. Being at the limelight every person in the organization keenly watches what the manager does. This means that managers should engage in dialogues when faced with the situation such as poor performance. Active listening ensures that the manager does not get disconnected with ongoing conversations. Finally, a manager employing active listening should not interrupt an ongoing conversation. Even if a manager feels that an employee is not making any point, as an active listener, rude interruption is the least expected. Employees respect and appreciate leaders who listen to them and this is the only way solutions to poor performance can be reached.

Comparison of the two mentoring methods

5.Negotiation Technique

By definition negotiation is the process that involves two parties bargaining on a business deal with an aim to reaching mutual agreement stand.

Negotiating for a Business Tender within University of Bahrain University

Following a tender advert in University of Bahrain that requires negotiation between Golden Trust Management and University of Bahrain, application of negotiation techniques are important. As managers of Golden Trust Ltd, winning the tender requires application of effective negotiation techniques.  To start with, confidence is critical in starting this negotiation. No matter how badly the Golden Trust needs, the tender University of Bahrain should not have a chance to view the company as desperate for the tender. Having confidence will make the university have confidence with their ability to deliver desirable results (McCarthy & Hay, 2015, p. 143). Second, as a manager prior research on similar negotiation is required. This will foster the manager’s preparedness and equip them with knowledge required to leverage the situation especially when faced with difficulty situations while in the middle of negotiating.

As a startup company, it is important to have deep research of what such processes entails. Additionally, the process requires building a buffer. This means that as a negotiator the manager should never start by stating his final offer to the second party. The initial request and offer and an initial one creates a room for negotiation. This is important in the Process above as it makes Golden Trust Ltd appear as a flexible organization in the eyes of University of Bahrain. The Manager of Golden Trust also requires having a well outlined final offer. To successfully win a negotiation process a manager should not compromise for ay negotiation that goes below their final limit. It is preferred that the manager leaves the negotiation unsuccessful that settling for a deal that will not benefit the company (MaCarthy, 2015, p. 144). With this in mind, it is therefore critical that the manager known the organization’s limit before initiating the negotiation process.  Last, the final step to winning a negotiation is giving realistic offers and remaining cool even if a heated discussion arises. The remaining pool show a business maturity and might be the biggest breakthrough for Golden Trust to win the tender.

References

Browning, S., & Waite, R. 2010. The Gift of Listening: JUST Listening Strategies. Nursing Forum, 45(3), 150- 153. doi:10.1111/j.1744-6198.2010.00179.x

Frith, L., May, G., & Pocklington, A. 2017. The Role of Peer Mentoring in Universities. The Student’s Guide to Peer Mentoring, 6-20. Doi: 10.1057/978-1-137-59996-4_2

Gladwell, NJ, & White, GE. 2016. Mentoring 101. Parks & Recreation, vol. 51, no. 5, pp. 20-22.

Iomaire, MC. 2008. Understanding the Heat–Mentoring a Model for Nurturing Culinary Talent. Journal of Culinary Science & Technology, vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 43-62

Johnson, B. 2001. Mentoring 101: learning never goes out of style. National Real Estate Investor, vol. 43, no. 4, p. 63.

Kenett, R. S. 2014. Cause-and-Effect Diagrams. Wiley StatsRef: Statistics Reference Online. 2-4 doi:10.1002/9781118445112.stat03928

McCarthy, A., & Hay, S. 2015. Strategic Framework for Negotiation. Advanced Negotiation Techniques, 143-148. Doi: 10.1007/978-1-4842-0850-2_15

Smith, K. 2015. Mentoring. Mentoring for Learning, 283-298. Doi: 10.1007/978-94-6300-058-1_13