The bottom-line benefits of mentoring

Each spring, energy companies scramble to hire the best and brightest of the fewer than 1,000 petroleum engineering graduates nationwide. The competition is fierce and the stakes are high. Top-notch salaries, fat signing bonuses, and plum assignments are just some of the ways that oil and gas companies try to entice strong candidates.

No matter how successful they are in the recruiting process, however, energy companies seem to be fighting an uphill battle when it comes to finding talent. Part of the problem is the well-documented “talent gap” created by the oil bust in the 1980s. But an even more significant issue is the industry’s inability to adapt to the needs and aspirations of today’s young employees.

In other words, it’s a “generational thing.”

It takes more than dollars to be successful. One important tool, often underutilized, is mentoring. Mentoring helps young employees navigate through the turbulent waters of a new job and career and makes certain that knowledge transfers to the next generation. Companies that get this right will have a competitive advantage well into the next decade.

The generational lens

Perhaps the biggest issue for young people considering careers today is the perception that energy companies are not as progressive as companies in other industries.

Millennials, born between 1982 and 2002, have a belief system that often directly conflicts with the established structure of the energy industry – an industry in which most managers and much of the workforce are Baby Boomers and Generation Xers.

Weaned on technology and told they can be anything, Millennials are not focused on long-term career paths. They want to work on their own terms. They crave flexibility. They want variety and opportunity. They need constant feedback. And they are used to having their opinions sought out and listened to. They are also assertive and independent. Millennials relish a challenge and are not afraid to get their hands dirty as long as they are doing something they enjoy.

All of this clashes with the more staid approach of Baby Boomers, the last generation to live under the covenant that if you worked hard, you would succeed. They saw their dads, typically, climb the ladder at work, enabling the family to acquire new things. Work – and the lifestyle it provided – was the primary way one measured success. Boomers are very comfortable with hierarchy and authority.

Millennials are not necessarily anti-authority, but they view supervisors in a much less formal manner. Raised to be comfortable speaking honestly to those who are older, they often come across as brash and overly personal – in a way that some older employees find almost insubordinate.

Contrast the Millennial mindset with that of Generation X, born between 1965 and 1981. Gen-Xers were the latch-key kids, suspicious of authority and raised during a time of stagflation, white-collar layoffs, and Watergate. They were told “the world’s a dangerous place” and “you can’t trust strangers.” When they sat down for breakfast, they were greeted by a milk carton with a missing child on it. Boomers saw Elsie and mom in the morning.

Like Boomers, Gen-Xers find they often clash with Millennials. While both value their independence,

Gen-Xers are far more private and not as willing to invest in workplace relationships.

Mentoring helps bridge the gap

These differences can create significant challenges if companies do not work to integrate young employees into the existing company culture. Absent intervention, both sides in these examples wind up frustrated and, more importantly, unaware of the reasons why there was conflict in their interaction. Smart companies are recognizing this and turning to mentorship programs to help.

The best mentorship relationships are those that grow naturally from shared experiences. These naturally occurring mentorship relationships should focus on guiding the new employee’s career, helping him or her feel comfortable with the unwritten rules of the company’s culture.

Companies can facilitate mentorship relationships and build a culture of mentoring by placing a high, visible value on these relationships, encouraging their formation and growth. Mandated mentoring – where the company assigns the mentor and mentee and expects a relationship to flourish – seldom works.

Energy companies, especially, can benefit from a culture of mentoring because knowledge transfer is critical in this complex industry, where a large number of employees are nearing retirement. Mentors who are willing to listen, ask questions, and provide wisdom and guidance can help strengthen not only a young employee’s commitment to the organization, but the organization itself.

Barry Mabry, Partner, and Steven Kuzma, Managing Partner, work in Ernst & Young’s Fraud Investigative and Dispute Services Practice. Chris DeSantis is an independent management and organizational development consultant who specializes in helping companies understand generational differences.

The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Ernst & Young LLP.

Barry Mabry
Steven Kuzma
Ernst & Young

Chris DeSantis
Consultant

This page reflects viewpoints on the political, economic, cultural, technological, and environmental issues that shape the future of the petroleum industry. Offshore Magazine invites you to share your thoughts. Email your Beyond the Horizon manuscript to Eldon Ball at[email protected].