E-mentoring offers an alternative way to connect individuals with mentors. In my work here, management students were paired with working professionals for a semester to ask questions about the relevance of course content, learn how topics are applied in practice, and develop rapport. Results indicate that when students and mentors perceived theywere similar to each other, students received more vocational and psychosocial support and mentors provided more support. More frequent interaction was also associated with more support and mentors' satisfaction. Relationships in which students received more support were associated with higher levels of career planning, satisfaction with mentors, and intentions to continue the relationship. Similarly, relationships in which mentors provided more support were associated with higher intentions to continue the relationship. Blended mentoring, e-mail plus talking on the phone or meeting face-toface, increased positive outcomes for both students and mentors. Participation in this experience significantly increased students' propensity to initiate developmental relationships, a critical skill for career development.
This document is the author's final accepted version of the journal article. There may be differences between this version and the published version. You are advised to consult the publisher's version if you wish to cite from it.
Scholars and practitioners are making a strong business case for greater representation of women and other underrepresented groups on senior management teams and boards. A model is developed that highlights how to create optimal developmental networks-groups of developers who help advance people's careers and personal growth-that can assist in propelling diverse leaders into the upper echelons of their organizations and board positions. Several literature streams are integrated in order to identify developmental networks that will help diverse leaders overcome barriers to breaking the glass ceiling in greater numbers. Numerous strategies intended to shape diverse leaders' network structure and content are discussed, as are contextual challenges that may inhibit optimal networks' development. Lastly, theoretical and practical implications for individuals and organizations are highlighted.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.