Fluor Corporation - Mentoring Circles Program
The Issue
Feedback from an employee survey and workshops highlighted two issues in the areas of leadership and opportunity: Executive visibility/accessibility and more mentoring processes. As part of our path forward, we developed and implemented a Mentoring Circles Program that allowed us to advance in both of these areas.
Program Development
The objective of our Mentoring Circles Program is to provide a diverse group of employees exposure to leadership in a team-based setting that allows for informal dialog, mentoring, and learning across the circle. The program provides participants with a heightened awareness of the company, varied perspectives through both peer and senior leadership mentoring, and an expanded network of colleagues.
The format of our mentoring circles is quite different from the more traditional one-on-one approach. Mentoring circles consist of approximately eight participants, of which five to seven are mentees and one is an executive serving as mentor. Participation in the circles is voluntary for all.
Participation in a circle requires a commitment to attend a two-hour orientation and a one- to two-hour circle meeting once a month for 12 months. Groups were assigned randomly, although each group was set up to be diverse by function, gender, age, etc. Today, for example, there are 24 active mentoring circles in Houston with 210 members.
Results
Voluntary female representation in the program is 10 percent greater than the percentage of females in the office. Minority representation is 5 percent higher in the mentoring circles than in the general office population. Over the 2005-06 season, the turnover rate for participants in mentoring circles has been almost 50 percent less than that of the entire office.
There are numerous examples of how the results reflect an abiding commitment to access and inclusion in the workplace. Three employees have taken advantage of opportunities within the company outside their local offices as a result of the circles. Mentor/participant coaching sessions have taken place in one-on-one settings for the first time due to the “safe environment” created by the relationships. A great deal of “cross-pollination” among circles has occurred. For example, at least half of the groups have invited another mentor (executive) to participate in their circle and address various issues such as career pathing, diversity, sales efforts, senior management perspective, and international business opportunities.
The program is building momentum. The number of circles in Houston will double next year, and other offices are following Houston’s lead in expanding their programs. Upcoming enhancements include a shared knowledge community (through an electronic database) that will allow a compiling of topics discussed and items that need management attention.
Fluor Corporation
Fluor Corporation is one of the world's largest publicly owned engineering, procurement, construction, and maintenance services companies. Over the past century, Fluor, through its operating subsidiaries, has become a trusted global business leader by providing exceptional expertise and technical knowledge across every phase of a project. Clients rely on Fluor to deliver world-class solutions that optimize their assets, improve their competitive position, and increase their long-term business success.
Consistently rated as one of the world's safest contractors, Fluor's primary objective is to develop, execute, and maintain capital projects on schedule, within budget, and with operational excellence. The individual and collective expertise of our international work force of more than 35,000 employees provides cost-effective, intelligent solutions in a timely manner. In addition to project offices, Fluor maintains a network of offices in more than 25 countries across 6 continents.
