Mentoring global female managers in the global marketplace: traditional, reverse, and reciprocal mentoring

TLDR

Existing research has examined traditional and reverse mentoring, noting that female managers and expatriates often receive less mentoring, and that mentoring can serve as a strategic tool for knowledge creation and competitive advantage for female global managers. The paper aims to introduce reciprocal mentoring as an essential strategy for competition in global markets. Reciprocal mentoring is defined as a third type of mentoring in which senior and junior managers mutually mentor each other, leveraging each other's expertise.

Abstract

A stream of research exists that focuses on traditional mentoring (senior female managers mentoring junior members in a domestic organization). The literature further indicates that females are increasing in number but may receive less mentoring than males and expatriates may receive less mentoring than domestic employees. A new paradigm, reverse mentoring, has emerged (e.g., a junior person, knowledgeable of the rapid technological change and globalization of business, acts as the mentor for a senior person). This paper proposes a third type of mentoring, 'reciprocal', as essential for competition in global markets. It is argued that mentoring can become a strategic tool in the organizational knowledge creation and transfer process. Moreover, mentoring could serve as a competitive advantage in creating an effective support system for female global female managers.