The Impact of Mentoring on Leadership
Identity
Annelies Meulepas1, Koen Marichal1; Jesse Segers2
1Antwerp Management School, Belgium
2 University of Antwerp/Antwerp Management School, Belgium
The Future Leadership Initiative
Only one study that links mentoring with leadership
development (Lester, Hannah, Harms, Vogelgesang, &
Avolio, 2011)
Aim: Open and explorative research format to investigate
the impact of mentoring on leadership development
Defenition
= a developmental relationship between a more
experienced and a less experienced person (Kram,
1985)
– Not necessarily direct supervisor/member of the
organization
– Mentor= an influential person, devoted to support and
promote the mentee’s career using the own knowledge
and experience
• 2 functions: personal & professional development
Important features
Life cycle of 4 phases (1 – 5 years)
Formal vs. Informal mentoring
– Informal mentoring => better results (Underhill,
2006)
Relationship quality & motivation as crucial
factors
Leadership is more than a role, leadership as a
matter of identity (Day, Harrisson, & Halpin, 2009)
– Self-image  static or one-dimensional
– Possible selves (Ibarra,2010)
« “personal dominance”
« “influence”
« “relational dialogue”
(Drath 2001 in Day et al., 2009)
Leader identity development = a social process
– It is a relational category
– With 3 aspects (DeRue & Ashford, 2010):
• Personal internalization
• Relational recognition
• Collective empowerment
“Development of any system = purposeful
simultaneous transformation toward higher
levels of differentiation and integration.”
(Gharajedaghi, 1999)
« planned reflection
« organized experience
« feedback
« support
(Robert Kegan, 2010)
(Daniel Day et al., 2011)
Mentoring’s potential to develop leadership
identity:
– By definition, mentoring relationship to develop
the mentee, both professionally and personally
– reflection, experiences, feedback and support as
important ways to come to such development
Formal mentoring program of a Flemish management
association (vMA)
Open instructions
Semi-structured interviews
Interview questions:
– Concrete activities, change in leadership of the mentee, other
specific effects, probable causes
– Extra question mentors: impact on own learning experience
and leadership vision
18 interviews (2 excluded)
To minimize bias: 2 interviewers, anonimity reassurance,
setting, handwritten notes, common interview protocol
–
Limitations: cross sectional, small sample
Based on an inductive, grounded theory
development process (Eisenhardt; 1989)
Iterative process => data - relevant literature - own
emerging concepts
– Focus on the ‘how’ and ‘why’
Independent analysis by 2 of the authors – 3th
author as guard of objectivity
Comparing 10 cases through subsequent rounds of
coding and analysis
Overcoming the distance, both hiërarchical as content-wise
"... Of course you go there with a healthy dose of tension..." (YM6)
"A whole other world opened for me." (YM3)
The importance of matching
"...it clicked and that is really important ..." (YM2)
Self disclosure and trust
"Open atmosphere is very important, it seems evident, but nevertheless
it’s crucial." (YM9)
"A very good relationship arised. Confidence, complete confidence, so I
felt that I could discuss everything with him/her, that I could really trust
him/her. "(WM4)
Increased self-confidence of the mentees,…
"It has given me confidence. That's in my opinion the strength of the
program. "(YM8)
…which made change possible
e.g. changes in their professional context
"I do not think he/she realizes that he/she really had an impact on my
choice." (YM4)
Mentors and their effects
"... It was very refreshing, to get to talk with someone openly about
“what are the fundamentals? What is it really all about?" (WM6)
“ It makes you think about yourself. Questions are asked concerning
things you don’t really think consciously about.” (WM5)
Different level of reciprocity
« the mentor as coach
« the mentor as advisor
« the mentor as tour guide
Mentoring Description
dynamic
Effects mentee
Effects
mentor
Rather
developing:
identity &
awareness
To learn &
possibly
develop
Tour guide Open and equal approach
Relational
Experience, informal contact as dialogue
key elements
Rather
developing:
identity &
awareness
To learn &
possibly
develop
Advisor
Rather learning:
substantive
results
To learn
Coach
Leadership
identity (Day et
al. 2009)
Structured, focused en rather
Influencing
formal approach
Work questions or assignments
and offering of experiences
Advisory and professional
Personal
approach
dominance
Answering questions from their
own perspective
Preliminary motivation
– Motivation letters mentees => corresponding the outcomes
– Only one mismatch
Complementarity and leadership identities
– Differences reported as factor of success
– Advisory mentors: highlighting the similarity as important
=> learning quickly
Maturity of mentors
Initial setting
Process
Outcomes
+
Instrumental
learning
Advisory
Informal
format
+
Overcoming
Distance
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
Positive
match
Trust
+
+
+
Selfconfidence
+
Relational
quality
+
+
Stronger
leadership
identity
+
+
Open world
++
Disclosure
Motivation
+
Tour
guiding
+
Coaching
+
More relational
leadership
scheme
Limitations
– Cross-sectional
– Built on an existing program
Future research
– Each link in previous framework
– Possible hypotheses:
• The orientation to lead of mentors defines their mentoring style
• Mentors with a relational orientation to leadership are more effective in
developing leadership identity
• Mentors with a tour guiding style develop relations with a higher quality
and therefore obtain overall higher outcomes
• The right balance between distance and initial trust is needed as condition
for an effective mentoring relation
• Mentoring is effective for leadership identity development because of the
initial hierarchical distance
Mentoring indeed a specific and valuable impact
on leadership and identity development
– General practical implications
• Informal setting to enhance intrinsic motivation and
trust building
• Certain level of support
• The importance of the matching process
Mentoring indeed a specific and valuable impact
on leadership and identity development
– Leadership development implications
• Mentors’ leadership identity and mentoring style
• Mentees preliminary motivation
• ‘Tour guiding’ style => strongest impact
Through exercising mentoring, the mentors reinforce
their own leadership identity
Questions ?