For many highly successful people, that success is no happy accident. Rather, it is the result of a carefully thought-out career strategy, setting out specific goals early on and ensuring the right building blocks are in place to achieve them as they navigate their career path.
Increasingly, this includes investing in working with a career coach or mentor, a practice that is rapidly gaining momentum.
Angela Burke is a qualified career coach (angelaburke.ie), working with hundreds of people throughout their career life cycle. She says her services are more in demand than ever.
“Throughout our careers, we’ll face all sorts of dilemmas, setbacks and opportunities and with that, comes analysis paralysis, confusion, overwhelm and self-doubt,” Burke says. “I help people to declutter the external noise, remove the limits they’ve subconsciously placed on themselves and their career, become aware of opportunities right under their nose that they just haven’t been able to see and ultimately, increase their career satisfaction and make life a little easier.”
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Burke notes a common misconception, that working with a career coach is simply for when someone wishes to change jobs. “People can think it’s just to get your CV sorted or prepare for interviews, but that couldn’t be further from reality,” she says. “Absolutely, I support people with what I call their ‘job search and application strategy’, but it stretches far before and after that.”
Burke says she has people on all stages of their career path working closely with her – from students, to graduates, to “underperformers and overperformers”.
“Some are figuring out what they want to do next and putting a career plan in place, others are navigating setback and confidence issues,” she says. “There’s also those that are new to leadership and finding their feet, while many are working with me on areas such as their personal brand, identity shifts, networking styles and public-speaking skills, a lot are seeking my support with overwhelm and motivation, and everything in between.”
According to Elysia Hegarty, associate director of the Future of Work Institute, coaching and mentoring are increasingly commonplace.
“What was once seen as a niche service or a remedial tool is now recognised as a mainstream and strategic part of professional development,” she says. “In today’s competitive environment, investing in coaching or mentoring isn’t just an advantage, it’s becoming essential for building true career fitness.”
A post-pandemic reassessment of work, more frequent job changes and the rise of accessible online coaching have all contributed to a surge in demand. Hegarty points out that it is not just individual professionals driving this trend, with many large organisations now running formal mentoring programmes. “These have actually become standard practice across leading companies,” she says. “Mentoring improves retention, strengthens talent pipelines and supports more diverse and inclusive workplaces, making it a core part of corporate strategy.”
The Future of Work Institute worked closely with a well-known public-sector organisation for four years to design, pilot and embed a mentoring programme strategically linked to their retention and DEI [diversity, equality and inclusion] strategy – this included the training of senior leaders in mentoring skills to support high-potential emerging talent.
“Internal mentoring, in particular, delivers exceptional impact: because mentors understand the organisation’s culture, context and daily realities, the support they provide is more relevant, trusted and immediately usable,” Hegarty says. “This leads to richer conversations, stronger knowledge transfer and clearer development pathways, ultimately strengthening culture, leadership capability and long-term talent sustainability.”
MSD is an example of an organisation that has multiple mentoring programmes that are run throughout the company. “These programmes are incredibly important to the organisation as we look to help employees gain confidence, build their networks and build their careers within MSD,” says Ronan Sheridan, MSD’s associate director of global marketing. “Introducing employees to a diverse range of leaders and mentors helps to develop a diverse and dynamic workforce that enables us to be successful.” The programmes also help with employee satisfaction, which in turn leads to improved retention, he adds.
Indeed, mentoring has many benefits to both the mentor and the mentee, Sheridan says.
“For someone engaging with a mentor, they can offer a fresh perspective on someone’s career pathway, skills to develop, improve their understanding of different aspects of the organisation and build their network,” he says. “This is particularly beneficial for the mentees, as it’s a valued opinion that comes from someone who is usually not their direct line manager.”
Sheridan adds that interactions with mentors can help mentees grow in confidence, as they can use them as impartial sounding boards helping them to figure out the best approach to certain situations. “For the mentors themselves, mentoring can offer them an opportunity to share their experiences, learn from other areas of the business and nurture the future talent of the company.”
But, crucially, coaching and mentoring are no longer viewed as privileges reserved for those aiming for senior leadership roles. Hegarty says the greatest impact is often seen when support is extended to early-career employees and under-represented groups.
Increasingly, organisations are also embracing reverse mentoring, where junior professionals share emerging insights, digital fluency and fresh perspectives with senior leaders. “This two-way exchange not only accelerates learning, but also strengthens inclusion, collaboration and leadership adaptability across generations,” she says. “Everyone benefits from structured guidance, clarity of direction and the confidence that comes from having a trusted partner in their development.”
