Since our inception, the leadership team at Advance Financial has emphasized being present and accessible to all employees. This focus on having the right team of proactive individuals has enabled us to become one of the fastest growing companies in Nashville – and in the country.
In order to keep our employees happy and thriving, we focus on ensuring they have everything they need to grow personally and professionally. This is where having a corporate mentor comes into play.
In large companies, it’s easy for employees to feel uncertain about who they should go to for feedback, advice and a listening ear. Having a dedicated mentor to help you focus on your goals and work through your challenges can make it easier to identify where you fit into the organization, and it has benefits beyond just establishing a relationship.
Knowledge sharing
Because of their deep experience in business, your industry and your company, a corporate mentor can teach you how to develop your leadership style, improve your efficiency and prioritize your tasks. Additionally, they can teach you the ins and outs of the company’s culture – some of which may be unspoken. For these reasons, mentors are a great resource for brainstorming new strategies or sharing ideas.
In our company, every team is headed by a manager who helps employees learn and grow in their roles. Managers make sure that each team member is on-task and performing to the best of his or her ability through regular check-ins and trainings. With great managers to share their wisdom, great employees develop.
Genuine feedback
Sometimes all you need is a little honest feedback to set you up for success. Knowing what you’re doing well and where you could improve helps you focus on your weaknesses and set more realistic goals. Since Advance Financial is family-owned and operated, we believe in listening to and supporting our colleagues like they’re family. We strive to walk in our employees’ shoes and get to know their ambitions so we can provide the most meaningful feedback and advice.
Self-confidence
Having someone to bounce ideas off before following through with them can help reduce the anxiety that comes with taking big steps. This can be especially helpful if your mentor knows the company’s leaders on a personal level and can predict how they may react. Improved self-confidence can also help you become a better communicator and improve your interpersonal relationship skills.
A listening ear
Despite Advance Financial’s recent growth, we believe in keeping our small business mindset, which emphasizes open and free communication within the company. We believe everyone should feel comfortable sharing their concerns, ideas, frustrations, and aspirations with any member of our team, and having a dedicated contact for such conversations can improve our open culture. Additionally, having a mentor provides a channel for celebrating individual successes and tracking growth, which can motivate us to accomplish more than we ever have before.
Achieving openness
Above all else, Advance Financial strives to maintain an open flow of communication across all levels of the organization. We encourage employees to talk to anyone they need to in order to find a solution. We believe in sharing our mistakes so that others may learn from them. At the end of the day, what’s most important is that everyone works together for the good of the company. Establishing mentor-mentee relationships not only improves work-life quality for those directly involved but for the entire company and its culture. Strong relationships between our team members allows us to more easily foster the collaborative and transparent environment we’re constantly working to maintain.
