Michel Vermaerke

Board Member, former CEO Febelfin

Inspiring Mentor, edition 2013 - 2014 - 2015 - 2018

Why I think mentoring is important? Oprah Winfrey once said it quite right:

‘A mentor is someone who allows you to see the hope inside yourself, a person who allows you the see the higher part within yourself, even when it is hidden from your view.’

Mentoring is not coaching. The coach focuses more on day-to-day performance and personal evolution. Coaches are performance-oriented. Mentors help an individual to unlock his/her long-term potential. For example, Olympic athletes are surrounded by coaches to evaluate and work on their immediate performance. Mentors keep a distance, but can be important in the retrospective evaluation and consideration of future choices.

Of course, apart from coaching and mentoring, the key is always in the hands of the individual. ‘On ne sait pas approcher les grandes choses sans s'élever soi-même.’

The individual must ultimately determine for himself what his/her ambition is, how he/she uses and stimulates energy, strengthens competences and how he/she as a person cultivates the interaction with others as a social being and potential leader. A mentor can help with specific questions about this. The mentor can thus ask more probing questions, but the door for change always opens from within.

On the other hand, coaches can be very useful, for example in focusing on the development of certain competences and/or skills, of a technical or rather social or communicative nature. A practical example: a mentor can make the mentee think about whether he/she should improve his/her communication techniques and skills. A communication coach can be helpful in effectively teaching and refining communication skills.

However, it cannot be emphasized enough that the person involved, surrounded by mentors and coaches, makes the decisions himself, knows how to muster the energy, overcome the necessary barriers, work on new skills, etc. It does not come naturally, and the intention 'to do something about it' in itself is a good start, but only a first step. People have to do it themselves, they have to want to do it and be able to do it. Neither the coach nor the mentor are going to do it! It is Nina Derwael and Wout Van Aert who win the Olympic medal, not their coach nor their mentor, however important their role may have been in the background.

‘A time comes when you need to stop waiting for the man you want to become and start being the man you want to be.’ (Bruce Springsteen)

What is my motivation to participate in the YL IM program? First of all: my own personal experience. I myself was fortunate enough to have been surrounded by wonderful mentors during my professional career. They truly made the difference. They gave confidence, saw a potential that I didn't always see myself and helped by asking the right questions, and giving me suggestions and practical tips. Many have become lifelong friends, despite age difference and various professional paths. The least I can do now is to take on such a mentoring role to the best of my ability to young people with the right values ​​and leadership potential.

The second motivation has to do with the rapidly evolving world. Our world is evolving faster than ever, partly under the influence of globalization and new technologies. Mentoring allows young talent and potential leaders to be provided with certain 'wisdoms and tips' through questioning. Despite the rapidly evolving world, there are, for example, leadership wisdoms that are and remain quite universal and eternal. Moreover, however universal certain leadership wisdoms are, not every leadership profile is the same. It is important for a mentor to have the mentee detect and try out the leadership profile that best suits him/her. Keep in mind that no matter how different the profiles may be, there is one characteristic that characterizes all leaders: they have followers. Leadership without followers is an illusion. Having followers therefore implies being able to convey a consistent message and that others feel inspired and motivated by it. And it is best not to confuse leadership and the fact of being put at the head of a unit, department, division because of special professional skills. Being at the head is not the same as demonstrating leadership that inspires followers.

A third motivation for taking up mentorship has to do with the many worlds out there and how all of those worlds evolve quickly. One cannot 'experience' all these worlds for oneself. A mentor empathizes with the environment of the mentee, as well as the world we live and work in, socially and economically. That's what makes mentoring so exciting. Although the mentor maintains some distance from the reality of the daily experiences and challenges of the mentee, as a mentor one also discovers new worlds and must be able to adapt to them. Mentoring may for instance be based on universal wisdoms of leadership, the constellation and the personal environment of the mentee require mental and professional adjustment. For example, it is difficult to guide a young talent in the tech world about leadership with mentoring, without delving into the underlying trends and dynamics of the tech world. It also obliges the mentor to be critical of himself or herself and consider whether his own experiences with management and leadership in other worlds and times are still relevant and pertinent in today's world and how to pass on messages to the mentor in time and the constellation that surround the mentee daily.

My experience with YL/IM program was very positive. I should praise the mentees I was presented with, since many of them had the right mindset with a great open mind, were willing to be vulnerable, and were ready to answer the questions and take the tips of the mentor to heart.

I feel gratitude, because after all, there is truth in the fact that there is also such a thing as reverse mentoring; the mentor can also learn a lot from his mentees.