INTHEBLACK December 2025 / January 2026 - Magazine - Page 38
“Maybe the young person provides insights
to the older person on emerging technologies
or new trends that are important to the mentor’s
customer demographic. The relationship can
become, over time, mutual or reciprocal learning.”
F E AT U R E
JULIE COGIN, PROVOST OF AUSTRALIAN CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
“The purpose is to help that person up to
the next level,” Pasas says. “To get them to start
believing more in themselves, to understand
the strengths that they may not realise they have
and to help them better utilise those strengths.”
CPA Australia’s program provides careful matching
of goals and backgrounds, and has resulted in
an almost 90 per cent satisfaction rating.
Outside of formal mentoring programs, well-suited
pairs will often find each other, says Professor Julie
Cogin, provost of Australian Catholic University.
“In Australia, we’re starting to see less structured
mentoring programs and younger generations
coming into mentoring via a more informal and
organic process,” explains Cogin, who has authored
several research papers on knowledge sharing
between generations, based on research across
numerous countries.
“People with similar interests gravitate toward
each other, so the mentee just comes forward
and asks,” she says.
“In countries such as China, Vietnam and Taiwan,
there is still a prevalence of more formal programs,”
Cogin continues. “In these territories, the fact that
you are part of one of those high-potential programs
would be an honour and would single you out as
a rising star in the organisation.”
A MUTUAL EXCHANGE
There are other notable differences between cultures,
Cogin says. In China, one of the sample countries
in her research, there is a powerful level of respect
for wisdom and age. This creates a hierarchical
relationship based on the mentor teaching
the mentee, and the mentee learning and
following instructions.
“In Australia, it is more of a mutual
38 INTHEBLACK Dec 2025/Jan 2026 SPECIAL EDITION
exchange,” she explains. “Maybe the young person
provides insights to the older person on emerging
technologies or new trends that are important to the
mentor’s customer demographic. The relationship can
become, over time, mutual or reciprocal learning.”
Eastern cultures are also more likely to be made
up of a senior mentor and a junior mentee.
In Australia and other Western countries, the mentee
might have multiple mentors or what Cogin refers
to as a “committee of mentors”, where each mentor
might represent a different area of expertise.
McLeod says that there is an additional benefit
for mentors when they are retired or semi-retired
in that they remain involved and engaged with
the business, and feel valued as a result of their role.
Plus, the company gets to keep valuable, experienced
players in reserve.
“They may no longer be involved in full-time work,
but they want to give something back and it suits
their lifestyle,” McLeod says. “A couple of our
mentors are semi-retired and they are a very
valuable resource.”
Sweeney says being a good mentor is often
as much about listening as teaching.
“Quite often, the mentee’s perspective challenges
the mentor,” she says. “So, a lot of senior people also
use mentoring as a way to stay in touch with what’s
happening, to really understand what’s going on
within an organisation at a grassroots level or
to understand a different part of the business.”
WHAT MAKES A GOOD MENTOR?
A mentor is not a sponsor or a coach. For mentors,
the role is about more than passing on technical skills.
“You’ve got to be diplomatic and develop
a relationship of trust,” McLeod says. “I’ve worked
with people where I’ve seen potential in them
