Mentoring Transformed: An Approach That (Actually) Promotes & Accelerates Professional Growth

By Terry Stotka, CEO of DHW Insurance Brokers

At DHW, mentoring is more than a templated program where the assigned mentor and mentee go through the necessary steps to check the box and neatly file the experience away in some Human Resources repository. Here, mentoring is part of our everyday life. It’s the essence of our culture. We call it Sharing the Way, structured as two types of mentoring: Mentoring Initiatives and Mentoring Moments.

The Structure of Sharing the Way

Mentoring Initiatives 

When the goal is tactical–for example, the mentee is to learn a new job or process–we engage in structured mentoring projects called Mentoring Initiatives. This transfer-of-knowledge system results in an accelerated learning path because the mentor engages in actions and behaviors that focus on the mentee’s motivations. The mentor will:

• Partake in conversationswhere experience, knowledge, and wisdom are shared. (This is at the heart of the relationship.)
• Make a caring commitment to the mentee.
• Plant seeds of confidence.
• Inspire positive change.
• Celebrate the Aha!moments.

Mentoring Initiatives tend to have a definitive end date in sight and are laser-focused. Goals are established, andthroughout the year, those goals are supported by mentoring. What that looks like day-to-day depends on the unique mentoring relationship, grounded on authenticity and commitment to the mentee’s success. Our simple, yet comprehensive, system sets mentees on a positive learning journey that promotes confidence and progress towards their career goals.

Mentoring Moments

Mentoring Moments are more subtle and speak to the core of our culture at DHW. Mentoring Moments consist of encounters or events that are recognized as they occur. For example:

• At the water cooler, someone shares with a colleague a bit of information they learned on a call with a carrier.
• After marketing a client’s coverages, an associate shares how they were able to lower the rate of a renewal.
• A producer shares his personal value proposition with account managers so they can get a different perspective on how clients experience insurance.

These moments aren’t stifled by protocol and formalities (like scheduled meetings or trepidatious emails), which can create barriers to learning from authentic and in-the-moment experiences.Mentoring Moments imbue the office with comradery, sharing, and transparency every day. We celebrate each other’s accomplishments, learn from each other’s mistakes, and share our knowledge to help each other grow. 

Why Mentoring Matters

Four years ago, when I re-imagined what DHW would stand for (dedication, heart, and wisdom), I made a commitment that, first and foremost, what mattered was the people. We had to make sure that at all times, we put our colleagues, clients, and carriers at the center of service and help every person realize their unique goals if it was in our capacity to do so. For our colleagues, it means possessing a shared value system where we are each committed to each other’s success.

Whenever I speak to a producer or account specialist who is considering joining the company, at the center of our conversation is a candid exploration of their professional goals and how we will work to support them. That’s where mentoring comes in.

Learn more about our forward-thinking mentoring approach. Write to me at tstotka@dhw-ins.com.

I’d love to hear from you!