I’ve sat in a few sessions at work recently where senior leaders were asked this question: What’s the difference between mentorship and sponsorship? Aren’t they kind of the same? The short answer is no, they’re not. But they’re related. Here’s a quick primer on the difference between a mentor and a sponsor.
A mentor provides guidance.
A mentor is someone who can bounce ideas or struggles off of. They’re someone who will listen to you without bias or judgment, and offer advice on how to move through whatever you’re dealing with at the time.
Often, a mentor is someone who is walking the same path you are, but maybe is a little further ahead than you on the journey. Maybe they’re a level or two above you in your organization.
On the other hand, there can be a lot of value in having mentors who are completely outside of your line of work, because they can offer you a fresh perspective that you might not have considered otherwise.
The good news is that you don’t have to choose: there’s nothing in the rulebook that says you can’t have more than one mentor at a time. In fact, having multiple mentors who each bring a unique perspective to the table is one of the best ways to set yourself up for massive learning and growth in your career.
A sponsor provides advocacy.
Sponsors are individuals who will help open doors for you, whether it be by introducing you to others in their network, by referring you to a hiring manager and putting in a good word, or something else along those lines.
A sponsor doesn’t necessarily provide advice or guidance; they simply pay it forward by trying to help you get to where you want to go in your career.
Mentors can also be sponsors.
Mentors and sponsors aren’t mutually exclusive. An individual can play both roles for you, lending an ear and offering advice, while also going to bat for you with others.
However – and this is where most people get tripped up – you can’t assume that, just because someone is your mentor, that they also want to be your sponsor. Mentorship usually takes place privately, behind closed doors in one-on-one conversations. Sponsorship, on the other hand, is public by definition. That means that the individual is putting their personal brand on the line to create opportunities for you.
Let’s pretend for a moment that you’re someone who has a LOT of room for growth in your current role, and you find a mentor. They agree to mentor you because they sense you have potential… but it’s buried deep and needs a helping hand to get it to the surface.
Then, right after they agree to become your mentor, you ask them to become your sponsor.
First off, they will probably say no, because you’re not ready to take the next step in your career yet, and they wouldn’t put their reputation on the line to advocate for you in that situation.
Second – and I cannot stress this enough – you ask someone to be your mentor. If you’re doing things right though, you should never ask a mentor to be your sponsor. If they want to do that, they will. Otherwise, you risk putting them in an awkward position where they have to say “no” to you.
Wrapping it Up
As you can see, mentors and sponsors are both important to your career growth and learning trajectory. And while they might overlap from time to time, the reality is that they aren’t the same thing. Knowing the difference can help you have better, more enriching conversations with both types of individuals, while keeping you from putting your proverbial foot in your mouth and asking for too much, too soon.
