Mentoring and its meaning for HRD in all-consuming organization

Abstract

In order to in troduce mentoring each organization ought to comply with several rules. First, mentoring-friendly environment has to be provided. Second, the relation between mentoring and career success must be made clear and future benefits are to outweigh costs (Gibb, 2005). However, the above mentioned circumstances may differ between organizations. In this way different kinds of mentoring outcomes can be achieved. There is very little agreement in the literature as to what mentoring is and what it is not (Bierema & Hill, 2005). A very specific example of mentoring outcome are all-consuming organizations. Such companies are characterized by fairly charismatic leadership, separation from community and demand for a cult. Hence, they are often described by a comparison to religious sects (Amott, 2000, Ochinowski & Grzywacz, 2003). Unfortunately this phenomenon has so far never been described in HRD literature. The article attempts to create a proper research tool for indicating mentoring in all-consuming organizations. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.