Mentors offer support, guidance to others

Brian Gillet, a 2001 graduate of Northern Illinois University and senior operations manager at OTR Global, an equities research firm in Sycamore, mentors business students at NIU. He said he has developed a number of mentoring relationships in the business world. “I certainly have found mentors in my company and outside of it,” he said. (Beck Diefenbach – bdiefenbach@daily-chronicle.com)

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SCORE of Fox Valley

When Robert Rothkopf entered the workforce, he didn’t have a mentor. Looking back, he wishes he had.

“Sometimes you make mistakes you could have avoided making,” said Rothkopf, who is now the president and CEO of Semblex, a $60 million manufacturing company based in Elmhurst. “I think everybody needs a mentor, whether it’s good parents, a pastor or a good friend.”

Rothkopf, a 1967 graduate of Northern Illinois University, was one of 34 alumni recruited by professor Wendy Murphy to mentor undergraduates in a business course last semester. Murphy, whose area of expertise is mentoring relationships, found that her students, even those already working, had few connections to business professionals.

“People who have mentors, who have a network of developmental relationships, have higher job satisfaction, get promoted at faster rates and earn more,” Murphy said.

It’s less common today for people to stay at a single company their entire career, Murphy said. That has made mentors even more important.

“Traditionally, we think of a mentor as an older, more experienced person in an organization who takes a protege under their wing and helps them to succeed,” she said. “What has happened over the past 10 years has been a theoretical shift. It’s very difficult for one person to give someone all the guidance they need. ... People need to develop a network of mentoring relationships.”

Brian Gillet, a 2001 NIU graduate, also mentored a student in Murphy’s class. Gillet is the senior operations manager at OTR Global, an equities research firm in Sycamore, and said he has developed a number of mentoring relationships in the business world.

“I certainly have found mentors in my company and outside of it,” he said. “Sometimes it helps to have that outside perspective. ... I have to make the final decision, but a key part for me is having different points of view on decisions I have to make, difficulties I’m facing, even opportunities that may come with risks.”

Finding a mentor can be challenging, Murphy said. Many companies and universities have formal mentoring programs, but the most effective relationships are often informal ones that grow between people with similar interests.

“The biggest hurdle is how intimidating it is to approach people in senior positions,” she said. “A lot of times, younger professionals are not going to approach senior people, so if you’re in a position where you’d like to start giving back, you need to make yourself accessible.”

People in the DeKalb area can get business counseling through SCORE of Fox Valley, a nonprofit organization in which retired or semi-retired professionals mentor those currently in business or trying to start a business.

“Many volunteers have had their own companies and now volunteer to use their expertise to guide people trying to make their business successful,” SCORE counselor Susan Dressler said. “Sometimes it really helps to talk to someone who has no vested interest at all in your business.”

People can use the SCORE Web site to find a counselor whose background matches their topic of interest, Dressler said. The counselor will then listen to the client’s ideas and help him or her to think in concrete terms.

“There’s so much information out there today on the Internet, a lot of people get confused. They don’t understand what’s really out there,” Dressler said. “It’s good to have someone willing to walk down the path with you. And sometimes that means we have to say, ‘This idea is not going to work.’ “

Rothkopf said mentors can “open the eyes” of those they mentor, to both opportunities and risks, and can inspire confidence by sharing their own stories.

“I’ve had about 25 different positions with five different companies,” Rothkopf said. “If my 44 years can help in any way, I feel fulfilled by that.”

Counseling

DeKalb County business owners can schedule a free counseling appointment through SCORE of Fox Valley by calling 815-748-1649 or visiting www.scorefoxvalley.org. Counselors will be available at Resource Bank’s Bethany Road branch in DeKalb on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month.