Metropolregion Rhein-Neckar

"Cross-mentoring" is a concept for promoting talent regardless of gender, organisation, sector or location. In view of the demographic development and the threatening dearth of professional workers, such a goal-oriented development of human resources is a key location factor for the sustainability of the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region.

Analogue to classical mentoring, with cross-mentoring tandems are formed from a mentor with a certain edge in terms of experience and a mentee with a potential for development. The special characteristic of cross-mentoring is that mentees and mentors are interchanged between two organisations, disciplines, institutions or locations, resulting in crossover relationships. With cross-gender mentoring, mixed-gender tandems are formed as well, in particular for training female executives. The advantages of setting up cross-organisation tandems are neutrality and individual and independent feedback on the executive's development. The insights into other corporate cultures, the sharing of specialist information and establishment of networks are further strong points of the cross-mentoring instrument which are beneficial to both sides.

At the suggestion of working groups, Metropolregion Rhein-Neckar GmbH took up the subject of cross mentoring during Baden-Württemberg's 2010 Women In The Economy Days and then analysed it from both a theoretical and a practical viewpoint. An exchange platform called the Rhine-Neckar Cross-Mentoring Network was founded as the result of this event. This is aimed at people who have already gained experience of cross-mentoring in their companies or who plan to implement such an instrument in the future. The "Vibrant job market" area thus supports regional networking, the pinpointing of synergetic effects and ongoing development in the field of human resource development.