Mentoring in the construction industry

Abstract

This thesis presents an evaluation of Seattle area construction companies’ use of mentoring. Historically the local work force has not had adequate qualified manpower to fill vacant positions throughout the area. This thesis contains an analysis of a survey taken to ascertain if companies in the Seattle area were using mentoring in order to develop their employees. The survey was taken of both union and non-union firms to ascertain whether the apprenticeship program offered by the unions was influencing union companies’ use of mentoring for field labor. The survey also focused on management personnel, such as project engineers, to evaluate management training. The survey results indicated that few companies use formal mentoring plans, but most did some type of mentoring. It also found those who did use mentoring found it to be of great use with few drawbacks.