Commentary on “Frontiers: Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Empowering Female Entrepreneurs Through Female Mentors”

Abstract

Mentoring is vital to developing talent. A critical puzzle in designing mentorship programs involves how mentors are matched to mentees: Would mentees benefit more from mentors with a similar or different demographic background? The article [Germann F, Andersen S, Chintagunta P, Vilcassim N (2024) Frontiers: Breaking the glass ceiling: Empowering female entrepreneurs through female mentors. Marketing Sci., 43(2):239–468] highlights that women entrepreneurs benefit more from having women as mentors relative to men as mentors. In this commentary, I highlight how the implications of this paper depend in part on our understanding of the potential mechanisms underlying the benefits of same-gender mentoring relationships for women. I posit that these benefits stem from differences not only in mentors’ provision of psychosocial support but also in their coaching and sponsorship behaviors. By considering these different mechanisms, I propose an alternative implication that involves training mentors to engage in more appropriate coaching and sponsorship behaviors. Thus, I expand the implications of this article from mentor matching to mentor training. I propose that, by learning how effective mentors coach and sponsor women, mentors in cross-gender relationships can be better equipped to help their mentees. History: Catherine Tucker served as the senior editor for this article.