Military Review English Edition July-August 2015 | Page 55

COMMON UNDERSTANDING

(Photo courtesy of U.S. Army Garrison-Hawaii)

An instructor provides feedback and guidance as he mentors a student during a 2008 exercise at the NCO Academy Hawaii at Schofield
Barracks, Hawaii.

mentoring was critical to helping sailors avoid making
destructive decisions involving possible sexual harassment,
sexual assault, and suicide. The chief of naval operations
recognized that “fellow shipmates have the greatest influence in mentoring our next generation of leaders,” thereby
changing the meaning and intent of mentoring.10
Since 2006, the U.S. Marine Corps has taken a more
formal and mandatory approach to mentorship, requiring all Marines to be mentored by the Marine senior
to them in the chain of command. The Marine Corps
mentoring program casts a mentor as a role model,
teacher, guide, and coach. The Marine Corps defines
mentoring as encompassing all aspects of development
in a Marine’s life, not just duty performance. The importance placed on the mentorship program is reflected
in the commandant’s guidance that the skills and effectiveness of a leader as a mentor are to be considered
when completing fitness reports.11
The U.S. Air Force takes an approach similar to the
Marine Corps. Air Force Manual 36-2643, Air Force
Mentoring Program, defines mentors “as advisors and
MILITARY REVIEW  July-August 2015

guides who share knowledge, experiences, and advice in helping mentees achieve their career goals.”12
This manual indicates that the key to the mentoring
process is the direct involvement of commanders,
directors, and supervisors in the development of their
people. The Air Force manual states that mentoring
promotes a climate of inclusion.
We can see from these excerpts that OPM, the Air
Force, and the Marine Corps view mentoring as a function of the direct supervisor. The Navy is attempting to
come to an understanding on whether mentorship is
between a subordinate and a superior or between peers.
The designation of the supervisor as the mentor of all
of the leader’s subordinates differs significantly from
Army leadership doctrine in ADRP 6-22,13 which describes voluntary mentoring that goes beyond the chain
of command. Thus, when Air Force, Marine, Navy, and
Army officers discuss their responsibilities in leader
development through mentoring, they will use the same
word but intend different actions. More important,
Army officers supervised by officers of another service
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