Adult-youth mentoring programs provide an array of positive impacts. For benefit leaders, adding these programs to their offerings is a way to bring
Youth mentoring organization Big Brothers Big Sisters of America (BBBSA) has been pairing young people who face various types of adversity with working professionals for more than a century, with the
"Most of the mentors say they were excited about doing something for others — they wanted to help a young person, they wanted to give back — there's a very caring, altruistic kind of motivation," Baugh says. "And 90% of them say they got more out of this than the young person."
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The good that comes from giving back
The quest to find employee benefits and programs that attract and retain talent is endless, and employers who prioritize social impact are at an advantage: Research shows that this is an area of interest for all workers, especially Gen Z and millennials, the majority of whom consider a company's corporate social responsibility (CSR) when deciding whether to accept a job.
It also benefits employees directly: A study from Great Place to Work found that when employees are happy about the way their workplace contributes to the community, they are 60% more likely to say they have a high level of well-being.
Mentoring in particular gives employees a sense of purpose, improves communication skills and empathy, and increases their pride in work, Baugh explains. Mentors and mentees are matched based on shared interests, ensuring they will have lots to talk about. By starting off with simple discussions about their career journey — why they chose the company and what they like about their job — a deeper connection is enabled between the Big and their Little.
"[Talking about this] builds a lot of pride in people," Baugh says. "We find that the adults communicate so much more about their personal journey, [including tough topics] such as navigating disappointment."
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BBBSA partners with large global companies such as UPS and accounting and advisory firm BDO, as well as local businesses. In addition to job satisfaction and retention impact, employers are expanding their talent pipeline by exposing mentees to possible professional opportunities of interest within their company, says Baugh.
"When a company is committed to marrying their social impact with their own HR needs, we're a really great fit," she says. "Data shows that [mentoring], even for two years, sets a young person on a different trajectory. There's a 15% increase in their income and they are 20% more likely to go to college. That measurable impact is really appealing to the C-suite as it's making decisions of where to invest."
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Long-term experiences leave a lasting impact
Unlike many other one-off or sporadic corporate volunteer opportunities, the mentor-mentee relationships in BBBSA are expected to be a minimum of a year, with meetings available both virtually and in person. It is something that anyone in a workforce can take part in, and the blend of personal and professional connections that are made have a lasting effect, Baugh says.
"Everybody can do it; you just have to be able to listen with empathy first, and then you can bring your professional skills into the mix," she says. "[Employees] love doing both, because you get to [use] your head and your heart, and when [they] can see the impact on people, that boosts employee engagement and connectedness in powerful ways."
Read more about mentoring programs as benefits within the workplace:
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