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A report out this week calls for the creation of a new army of mentors, trained to give one-to-one support to boost the performance of business executives at all levels across Wales. The report "Mentoring in Wales," from the Wales Management Council, highlights the benefits of this increasingly well recognised method of expanding managers' skills and capabilities. The report was formally launched at a high level gathering of 80 people in Cardiff addressed by Professor David Clutterbuck, one of the world's leading authorities on mentoring. The event was organised jointly by Wales Management Council and the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM), whose chief executive Gary Ince used the occasion to unveil details of a new qualification designed specifically for mentors. The Wales Management Council’s report, compiled with the aid of eight senior business figures from Wales, estimates that the creation of a team of 1,500 mentors would enable every company in Wales to benefit from this kind of support. The mentors would meet each manager several times over the course of a year, giving them individual support based on their depth of understanding of the manager they are assisting and the mentor's own wealth of business experience. Christopher Ward, Chief Executive of Wales Management Council said: "Increasing the amount of mentoring carried out in Welsh business was one of the key proposals in our Agenda for Action published in 2003 and we are looking to seeing this become a reality. The benefits will be immense." The new report makes 15 key recommendations. These call not only for significant investment in the recruitment of mentors but also for measures to promote mentoring to industry and to help mentors to continuously expand their own skills and achieve the highest standards in their work. Gary Ince of ILM said the new mentoring qualification would play a large part in gaining acceptance for the practice of mentoring. "What we're talking about here is the art of transferring of a huge volume of business knowledge and experience from one individual to another. Giving greater recognition to this skill through the launch of a formal mentoring qualification will hopefully accelerate the rate at which firms adopt this valuable approach," he added. Christopher Ward added: “Our aim is simple. More mentoring for more people. Because, as Professor David Clutterbuck says, mentoring is one of the most powerful and effective development routes for managers in organisations of any size, in any sector.” Further information from Marianna Marks, 029 2048 8778. Note to Editors The working group which compiled the report on Mentoring in Wales comprised:
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