How can you satisfy your staff’s engagement and professional development needs while at the same time having a positive impact on your organization? One of the most cost-effective ways is to start an employee mentoring program. Here are four ways mentoring will transform your organization in 2019.

In this digital era, it seems everybody’s connected. We’ve got open concept offices and team messaging apps. We’ve got flexible work schedules and remote working opportunities. Life’s great, right? So why’s there an increasing disconnect? Why do workers feel lonely? You need look no further than the other side of the modern workplace coin to find the answer. Sure, the flexibility and technology are great, but they also bring a latent detriment: workplace loneliness and disconnection.

To counteract this effect in 2019, we need to bring people back into the fold. We need to engage with our employees if we expect them to engage with the business. When businesses invest in employees in a mutually beneficial way, it directly benefits the company’s bottom line.

So, how can you satisfy your staff’s engagement and professional development needs while at the same time having a positive impact on your organization? One of the most cost-effective ways is to start an employee mentoring program. Here are four ways mentoring will transform your organization in 2019:

It Creates a Culture of Learning

In 2019, employees don’t just want, but demand, a culture of learning. Over 80 percent of employees expect interactive learning experiences that are accessible anywhere and at any time. Sewing a mentoring program into your cultural fabric makes it quite explicit that professional development matters.

In this digital world, it’s essential to provide employees with opportunities to learn new skills and hone existing ones. What better way than to learn from an experienced colleague?

It Promotes Both Personal and Professional Development

The best mentor-mentee relationships have both a professional and personal dynamic. Having a mentor reduces the anxiety of taking big steps, cultivates leadership skills, and helps employees focus on achieving their goals.

Mentees gain insight from mentors’ professional experience. Mentors are able to say to mentees: “In a similar situation, I did this and here’s how it worked out.” This insight provides invaluable guidance for career decisions.

It Reduces Workplace Loneliness

Employee mentoring programs match ambitious mentees with seasoned mentors. Their shared goal: helping each other grow. The programs create personal bonds that counteract loneliness and create a feeling of community in the workplace. Camaraderie at work definitely increases employee engagement, retention, and professional growth.

It Increases Work Satisfaction and Reduces Turnover Rate

By creating an employee mentoring program, companies show their commitment to their employees’ career development. This creates higher workplace satisfaction. In a recent study, millennials with mentors report 81 percent higher job satisfaction, according to the Deloitte Millennial Survey. Those people with mentors also experience lower turnover rates and increased career mobility.

As I often tell people, setting up mentoring is effectively mining your own gold. The mentees are people you want to retain and develop. The mentors are a vast pool of experience at your disposal. Not leveraging that would be silly.