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LATEST BLOG: When Mentoring Meets Coaching
LATEST BLOG: When Mentoring Meets Coaching
By Lee Dunn, Mentor with XSectorMentor®
I’ve worked across various professions through a variety of roles over the years. The one common theme at the heart of my career has been learning, or rather the personal and professional development of people and how we interact and relate to each other. Although learning can be an individual event, most of us learn more effectively when we speak with other people and where we collaborate and co-construct new knowledge.
I often hear colleagues talk about mentoring and coaching interchangeably. But what do they actually mean and what’s the relationship between the two? One can consider them to be informed by the same ideology; a more knowledgeable person imparts experience and information to another, and that through that exchange there’s a transactional process that allows learning to take place.
Mentoring is perhaps seen as the traditional norm, whereby the more knowledgeable mentor is well versed as a subject matter expert and usually has several years’ experience working within a particular profession or environment. They use this knowledge to provide information, advice and guidance to the mentee. Typically, this process will manifest naturally as a hierarchy via a superior or line manager, or often a peer who has ‘seen it all before’. There’s nothing wrong with this approach and its inherent human behaviour, instilled within us from the moment we’re born. The problem here is that the cycle of knowledge needs to be repeated several times before we become programmed to think or behave in a certain way. Indeed, individually we apply that process daily. We learn from our mistakes as well as our achievements.
Coaching still involves a transaction, however the coach doesn’t need to be a subject matter expert, nor do they need to have any knowledge of the professional or environmental working conditions of the person they’re coaching. Instead, knowledge is constructed through verbal interactions and body language, with increased confidence and productivity based on an ability to think critically and to listen to and to react to the exchange of information. This itself allows new knowledge to be built, however the coach is not providing their experience or advice but rather leading the coached to draw their own conclusions. This can happen quickly through a coaching conversation in the communal kitchen at work, or it can be a more in depth and structured series of interventions designed to explore a particular issue, problem or goal.
There is a clear marriage between mentoring and coaching and it’s easy to see why the two are confused when we talk about them. I’m not particularly enamoured with one word or the other, but rather to the process itself. Psychological safety and fostering positive communication with empathy is an effective way to realise the values that most of us share and to build the capability and talent within our workforce.
Come and visit XSectorMentor® who will be exhibiting at the forthcoming Hr NETWORK ‘Our New World of Work’ Conference & Exhibition 2022 taking place on Thursday 12th May at BT Murrayfield Stadium, EDINBURGH.
Lee Dunn is a Mentor with XSectorMentor® and
Head of the Scottish Digital Academy with the Scottish Government
Vodafone introduces new policies to further support parents and carers in the workplace
Vodafone introduces new policies to further support parents and carers in the workplace
Vodafone has announced policy changes to further support employees in the UK through key life stages. The new commitments, announced today, have been brought in to ensure greater support for carers and parents and include added assistance, more flexibility and extended paid and unpaid leave.
To bolster its existing offering for employees who look after loved ones who are older, disabled or seriously ill, Vodafone’s new Carer’s Leave will offer 18 weeks’ leave per dependent adult*, the first week of which will be fully paid. This mirrors the company’s Parental Leave Policy, which offers the same benefit for those caring for a child, up to the point they turn 18, with a maximum of four weeks’ leave to be taken in any one year. With 6000 people becoming carers in the UK every day**, this type of additional support is increasingly needed.
Vodafone has also introduced free access to Legal & General’s Care Concierge Service, providing support and assistance to employees who find themselves balancing elderly caring responsibilities with employment, often in addition to other commitments.
The Care Concierge service provides one-to-one telephone support alongside tailored information and guidance to help navigate what can be a complex elderly care system for a loved one.
The new benefit includes a 30-minute telephone session with a Care Expert to help employees understand what care is needed and how to arrange it plus guidance on typical care costs and the different ways of paying for care. Additional discounted services are also available to provide extra help with finding care or if employees would like a Care Expert to act on their behalf.
After reviewing feedback from its workforce on where it values additional support, Vodafone has also amended its existing Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Leave policies to support parents whose baby is born prematurely. The updated policies recognise that when a baby is premature, employees may want to delay the start of their leave until the baby is discharged from hospital. This is often the point at which the time away from work is most valuable so employees will now have the option to adapt their leave to suit their circumstances.
Vodafone UK employees will also see the introduction of two weeks of paid leave for expectant parents, regardless of gender, who lose a baby before the 24th week of pregnancy. Such leave is already available to those who lose a child in the later stages of pregnancy or at any time before a child’s 18th birthday. This is inclusive of whether the loss occurs to an employee or their partner.
Clare Corkish, HR Director, Vodafone UK said: “As an employer we are committed to helping protect and support our people and their families through important life stages. These new policy changes have been made in the belief that we can have a positive impact at a time when people are dealing with sensitive and stressful situations – and ultimately need support the most. Our ground-breaking Maternity Leave, Parental Leave, Domestic Violence and Abuse policy and more recently our Global Menopause Commitment have all been curated to best meet the needs of our employees and we expect these enhancements to make a real difference.”
Inclusion for all is integral to Vodafone’s purpose, reinforcing its ambition to be a company whose global workforce reflects the customers it serves and the broader societies within which it operates.
Vodafone’s goal is for women to hold 45% of UK management and leadership roles by 2030. To meet its ambition to be recognised as a leading employer for women, Vodafone has gender target monitoring and action plans in place and has developed and introduced a series of pioneering global programmes. These include progressive flexible working policies; maternity and parental leave that supports families to share caring responsibilities in the home; ReConnect to attract people who have taken a career break back to the workplace; a commitment on menopause and a Domestic Violence and Abuse policy.
Keynote Speakers Announced for Our New World of Work Conference & Exhibition #hrnc22
Keynote Speakers Announced for ‘Our New World of Work’ Conference & Exhibition taking place at BT Murrayfield Stadium on Thursday 12th May 2022
Hr NETWORK is very excited to announce the SIX KEYNOTE SPEAKERS who will attend the forthcoming ‘Our New World of Work’ Conference & Exhibition at BT Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh on Thursday 12th May 2022.
Experts, practitioners and commentators from all sides of the HR and people management & development spectrum, who have created and implemented a sustainable workforce plan in the midst of a pandemic and are reaping significant organisational benefits that have led to increased productivity, improved job satisfaction metrics and gained a clear competitive advantage in their marketplace, will provide valuable insight for implementing a sound and measurable people plan following the catastrophic impact from the Pandemic.
Keynote topics covered during the Conference:
- Our New World of Work
- Critical Leadership
- Team Dynamics
- Hybrid Working
- Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
- PTSD in Women
- Leading Through Crisis
- Health & Wellbeing for a Hybrid Workforce
Please visit the Conference & Exhibition page to BOOK YOUR DELEGATE PLACE and for details on getting to BT Murrayfield: https://hrnetworkjobs.com/events/conference/
For further details on sponsoring or exhibiting at the Conference & Exhibition, or hosting a Table of 10 at the Leaders Dinner on the evening before the Conference & exhibition, please contact the Conference Planning Team on Tel: 0131 625 3267 or email: subscriptions@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk
Privacy and security concerns dominate as workers return to the office
Privacy and security concerns dominate as workers return to the office
The changing attitudes of UK workers returning to the office after two years of home working during the pandemic should prompt a rethink of how offices are designed, with a special focus on privacy for individuals at work. That’s according to the latest research from eFax, the cloud-based fax solution for businesses, which found that 42 per cent of workers are already struggling with a lack of privacy in the workplace.
While the research did find that a third of office workers appreciate being able to access technology at work, 28 per cent find it harder to concentrate, and 16 per cent actively dislike the lack of privacy compared to home working.
Scott Wilson of eFax, stated: “Before the pandemic, the conventional view was that offices were essential to productivity. Companies focused on solutions that were seen to promote collaboration, and this, in turn, meant open-plan offices, hot-desking, and people working side by side in limited spaces.
But during the pandemic, office workers at home in lockdown quickly adapted to regularly using technologies such as video calling and conferencing, plus other digital collaboration tools. They got used to the privacy afforded by working from home. There is an appetite now among workers for the same level of privacy in the workplace. Demand for this – and the technology that supports it – is now a reality.
In early 2022, eFax conducted a major research project to gain a greater understanding of how UK workers felt about returning to the office after the Covid-19 pandemic. The company commissioned a survey of 503 UK workers in large enterprises, small to medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and public sector organisations.
The key findings included:
- 42 per cent of workers are finding it hard to adjust to working in an office with less privacy. When asked what was the biggest change, they noticed on returning to the office,16 per cent of all respondents cited a lack of privacy
- Being overheard at work is the biggest concern for 26 per cent of respondents, while 32 per cent disliked being disturbed and 28 per cent found it harder to concentrate
- When asked what would help their return to the workplace, 45 per cent of respondents said they wanted more spaces for virtual meetings. A further 19 per cent wanted bigger roles for conference AV equipment
- More than a fifth of respondents – 22 per cent – highlighted the need for better technology solutions for sending confidential files and data
“Privacy – and the security that requires – is obviously a key priority for workers returning to work. In today’s digitalised economy, data is an essential and valuable commodity and organisations have a responsibility to put in place effective measures for workers to operate both privately and securely.
“This responsibility extends to the secure transmission of sensitive and confidential data. It’s for this reason that faxing remains a critical part of many organisations’ communications infrastructure. However, too many organisations still rely on out-dated, insecure, and expensive on-premise fax servers when other more reliable and secure cloud-based alternatives are available,” concluded Wilson.
Is the UK’s skills crisis reaching a tipping point?
Is the UK’s skills crisis reaching a tipping point?
The number of applications per vacancy have steadily decreased as the skills crisis continues to grip the UK, with figures dropping 40% between January and February 2022. That’s according to the latest data from the world’s largest network of job boards, Broadbean Technology.
According to the statistics, the number of professionals applying for new jobs fell 37% between February 2021 and February 2022 as vacancies spiked 52%. While this data highlights a concerning picture for the UK’s skills availability, pre-pandemic comparisons provide a clearer indication of the talent crisis facing the recruitment sector.
Broadbean’s analysis revealed a 55% decline in the number of people applying for new jobs between February 2019 and February 2022, indicating the extent of the impact of Covid and Brexit on the UK’s labour market.
Across the sectors, the data reveals a significant decline in the number of people applying for roles across the engineering, IT, retail and healthcare sectors. In the retail arena, applications per vacancy fell 45% between January and February of this year, while figures in engineering and IT were down 41% and 38% respectively. Medical and nursing job applications also reported a 30% decline which is indicative of the continued pressure being felt across the healthcare sector as it attempts to play catch up on routine services following two years of significant demand.
Alex Fourlis, Managing Director at Broadbean Technology commented: “The UK’s skills crisis has been well documented over the last year, impacting almost every business, of every size, across every sector. The uptick in recruitment activity at the beginning of 2021 was initially welcomed with open arms in a Covid-hit economy, but we all soon felt the squeeze on resources as we found ourselves in a unique scenario where everyone was recruiting at the same time. And while Brexit may feel like a lifetime ago, the impact this has had on the labour market wasn’t immediately felt, largely due to the pandemic. There is no quick solution to rebuilding dwindling talent pools and we fully expect this squeeze on resources to continue over the coming months. We do, however, expect to see more employers and recruiters using innovative technology and maximising partnerships with external talent suppliers to tackle this skills crisis.”
GLOBAL EVENT: 2nd annual Innovation@Work Global Week 2022 – Reimagining leadership, collaboration and productivity
The Future of Work is Here, Transforming the Now!
2nd annual Innovation@Work Global Week 2022 – Reimagining leadership, collaboration and productivity
How do we beat the “Great Resignation” and retain talent? How do we leverage the benefits of technology while being empathetic toward the wellbeing of employees? Should we all be asynchronous by default? What ground rules are needed and what are the symptoms of imbalance between different ways of working? How do we ensure those who are working remotely are not overlooked in a hybrid model? HR leaders need to foster connection between distributed employees and be more intentional about building a predictable rhythm for when people will convene. So how do we ensure our sterile post-pandemic offices are able to breed collaboration and co-creation?
Join virtually or in-person this March 28th-31st for the 2nd annual Innovation@Work Global Week. Over four days 120+ speakers (50+ c-level) will debate the most pertinent issues for today’s c-suite, giving you fresh inspiration and takeaways to apply to your own 9-5. Don’t miss the new Back to the Future of Work in-person day in London on Tuesday, March 29th or the Wellbeing@Work Day taking place on Wednesday, March 30th
Event format:
- Monday, March 28th – virtual day
- Tuesday, March 29th – in-person day, London, UK
- Wednesday, March 30th – virtual day
- Thursday, March 31st – virtual day
Click below to register:
