Mentoring External Female Organization Development Consultants: Discovering New Theory Using Grounded Theory Methodology

While much has been written about the benefits of mentoring there has been relatively little written about the value of successful mentoring for external female Organization Development (OD) Consultants. Using grounded theory as the methodology to explore what constitutes the successful mentoring of external female OD consultants, one theory emerged throughout this iterative process that provided insight into this topic. For successful mentoring to occur, mentors demonstrated specific, identifiable attributes (part 1) that contributed to the creation of a relationship based on mutuality with the mentee (part 2), and as a result of a successful mentoring experience, external female OD consultants could identify tangible and intangible positive results (part 3). Unifying these parts of the theory are a focus on paying forward the gift of mentoring and making positive contributions to the field of OD and the world.