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The Mentors

 

Ben Feder, CEO of .Comfax Inc.

Mentor: Strauss Zelnick, CEO of BMG Entertainment

How they met: Feder met Zelnick when he took his first post-M.B.A. job at 20th Century Fox. Though Feder did not report directly to Zelnick, the two worked together on some projects. Zelnick then left to found a Silicon Valley company, and the two kept in touch. "He was someone I respected a great deal--he has extraordinary judgment--and so, when I had an idea for a business, I asked him to take a look at the business plan simply for his feedback," Feder recalls. "I got that and more, since he was more interested than I had expected. Today he sits on my board and is highly active in the company."

How often they meet: Often. "We meet once weekly and exchange E-mail or talk almost daily," Feder says.

Best advice given: "Treat a start-up like a real company," Zelnick told Feder. "Keep your standards high and get the best help you can, given limited resources." The advice has been valuable, Feder reports. "Every time I've cut corners because I've thought of this as a small company, I've regretted it," he says. "Strauss showed me that start-ups are about building value quickly. You can become a real company only if you behave like one from the start." --Mike Hofman

Finding the right mentor for you

People like Kent Sutherland may make it look easy to talk your way into the good graces of a great role model who will help you grow your business, but it isn't always easy to find that one special person. In fact, suggests Kathy Kram, an associate professor of organizational behavior at Boston University School of Management, putting all your mentor eggs in one basket can be a mistake. "I think people really ought to think in terms of multiple mentors instead of just one," concludes Kram, the author of Mentoring at Work. And they don't all have to be grizzled business veterans. "Peers can be an excellent source of mentorship," she says.

Once you've identified a mentor candidate, how do you persuade him or her to sign on to your cause? Would-be mentors are most receptive to people who ask good questions, listen well to the responses, and demonstrate that they are hungry for advice and counsel, Kram says.

In the best of all worlds, it's not just the protÉgÉ who benefits from the relationship. The mentor, as well, should see the opportunity as one for personal growth. "In today's context, mentors learn new skills and competency themselves," observes Kram. "It's a chance to revitalize their own learning." --Karen Dillon

Mentoring programs

If you can't find a mentor on your own, there are many places you can turn to for mentor "matchmaking." Here's a selection of some of the options across the country:

Organization: Service Corps of Retired Executives Association (SCORE) Services: SCORE offers formal mentoring arrangements as well as team counseling, one-on-one counseling, and advice via E-mail.

The scoop: SCORE's 389 local chapters deploy 12,400 volunteers each year, all of whom have experience in owning or managing a company. Phone: 800-634-0245

Web site: www.score.org

Organization: Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs)

Services: SBDCs offer free counseling, with access to training programs and information resources.

The scoop: SBDC counselors are located at 970 centers across the country, 48 of which are on college campuses. The centers offer "nuts and bolts, A to Z" mentoring, according to Kathleen Kelley, director of membership services at the Association of Small Business Development Centers, in Arlington, Va.

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