Blackburn offers one-on-one mentoring that sits outside the company and alongside your internal programs. Each early career employee who chooses it works with one dedicated mentor on routine, follow-through, money, sleep and decisions around a demanding first job. Conversations stay private: an employer would see only what the employee agrees to share, kept at the level of engagement rather than content.
What outside one-on-one mentoring adds to an internal program
Internal mentors, buddies and managers each have a real job: teaching the work, explaining the culture and building careers inside the company. Some things are hard to raise inside, though, even with a great internal mentor:
- Struggling to keep pace and not wanting it to show.
- Money stress after a first paycheck, a new lease or a move.
- Sleep, fitness and relationships sliding under long hours.
- Doubts about the role or thoughts of leaving.
- Simple follow-through problems that feel too basic to admit.
An outside mentor has no role in evaluation, meets weekly or several times a week, and stays in touch by text and phone between sessions. Technical training and career advice about your business stay with your managers and internal mentors; mentors do not give technical, legal, medical or financial advice. Our guide to new grad onboarding explains how the roles fit together.
Who it is for, and who it is not for
It tends to fit early career employees in their first years at work, including:
- New graduates in their first full-time role; see early career mentoring.
- Hires who relocated for the job and are building a life in a new city; see moving to a new city for work.
- First-generation professionals learning norms nobody explained; see first generation professionals.
- Employees in demanding roles with long hours; see working long hours.
It is not a performance management tool, a replacement for an employee assistance program or clinical care, technical training, or a channel for HR matters. If an employee is struggling with their mental health, a licensed professional or your EAP is the right step. In a crisis, call or text 988.
What it looks like week to week for an employee
- One dedicated mentor, matched on experience and style.
- Goals the employee chooses, broken into weekly steps.
- Sessions of 30 or 60 minutes, weekly or several times a week, scheduled around the workday.
- Text and phone contact between sessions, where much of the follow-through happens.
- Video anywhere in the United States, in the employee’s time zone, or in person in Los Angeles.
See how mentoring works and support between sessions for more detail.
Who sees what, and how confidentiality is handled
The employee is the client, and that shapes everything else:
- The employee decides whether to take part. A manager or HR partner can suggest it, but no one is assigned a mentor.
- What the employee and mentor discuss stays between them: goals, struggles, plans and personal matters.
- Nothing about an individual is shared with the employer unless the employee agrees, and then only what they agree to.
- Mentors do not report on performance, attitude, commitment or plans to leave.
- If an employee is in crisis, the mentor points them to urgent help.
This is what makes outside mentoring useful. Employees talk openly only when they trust that nothing will travel back to their manager.
Can it support employee resource groups?
Yes, as an individual option an ERG can point members toward. A first-generation professionals group, a new-to-the-city group or an early career network might share outside mentoring as one resource among several. Blackburn’s work is one-on-one, so it fits best as something individual members choose, not as a workshop series; see group vs one-on-one mentoring for the difference.
How engagement is reported without private details
If an employer sponsors mentoring, it is reasonable to want to know whether it is being used. Reporting would stay at the level of engagement, agreed with you and explained to employees before anyone starts:
- Whether sponsored employees are participating and sessions are taking place.
- Aggregate information only, never session notes, topics or goals.
- Anything individual only if that employee chooses to share it.
We do not publish packages, contracts or prices. Every arrangement starts with a conversation about what you are trying to support and whether one-on-one mentoring is the right fit.
Questions to ask any outside mentoring provider
- Who is the client: the employee or the company?
- What exactly will the company see, and what will it never see?
- Will each employee work with one consistent mentor?
- What is in scope, and what is referred to managers, HR, an EAP or a licensed professional?
- How is contact between sessions handled?
- How does an employee start, pause or stop?
To start a conversation, call (888) 305 5422 or email contact@blackburnmentoring.com. An individual employee can begin directly with the five-minute assessment. If you work with schools or clinicians as well, see our pages for colleges and universities and for professionals.
Related
- Early career mentoring
- New grad onboarding: why an outside mentor helps
- First generation professionals
- For professionals
Common questions
Do you offer an employer package or published pricing?
No. Prices are not published and there is no standard package; we talk through what you want to support and review rates on a call.
Is this an employee assistance program or counseling?
No. Mentoring is non-clinical support for routine, goals and follow-through. Mental health concerns belong with a licensed professional or your EAP.
Can a manager refer an employee?
A manager can suggest it, but the employee decides and contacts us. Nothing about the employee goes back to the manager without the employee’s agreement.
Is mentoring available nationwide?
Yes. Sessions run by video anywhere in the United States, scheduled in each employee’s time zone, and in person in Los Angeles.
Get started
Exploring outside mentoring for your early career hires? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.