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At Compass Group, we believe that learning happens best when it’s shared. In a company as large and geographically dispersed as ours, building strong, human connections among our team members is both a challenge—and a powerful opportunity.
When we set out to design our mentoring programs at Eurest and ESFM, divisions of Compass Group, we knew that the real success of our efforts wouldn’t just come down to which platform we used (although that’s important too). Instead, it would hinge on our ability to get people excited about participating—especially those who had never experienced mentorship before.
So how do you promote a mentoring program to a workforce that’s busy, distributed, and a little unsure of what “mentorship” even means?
That’s what this post is all about. I’m sharing our playbook—the real-world tactics and best practices we’ve developed to build excitement, drive adoption, and keep our programs thriving. From videos and incentive campaigns to embedding mentorship into onboarding, here’s how Compass Group promotes mentoring in a way that actually works.
Start by listening—then build for real needs
Before we ever launched our current programs, we paused to take stock of what wasn’t working.
We had tried a couple of different mentorship formats in the past—from structured mentoring circles to lightweight 1:1 programs. Each had strengths, but neither delivered the lasting engagement we were looking for. Some participants loved the structure of mentoring circles, but others found scheduling group sessions frustrating. Meanwhile, our lower-tech solution for one-on-one matching lacked integration with our existing tools, so reminders were missed and momentum fizzled.
We needed to understand why.
So, we asked. We sent a mentorship survey to employees who had been invited to previous mentoring programs—whether they joined or not—and asked them what they wanted from mentoring, how they defined it, and what barriers were holding them back.
What we heard was enlightening:
- The word “mentor” meant different things to different people. Some equated it with career coaching. Others thought it sounded intimidating or like a heavy time commitment.
- Many just wanted to "connect" with someone who could help them troubleshoot a challenge, share best practices, or simply relate.
- A one-size-fits-all program wasn't going to cut it.
That feedback shaped everything that came next.
Launch with options: “Connect” and “Grow”
Instead of forcing everyone into the same model, we built two separate mentoring programs within the Together platform, each tailored to different engagement styles:
1. Connect Program
Designed for informal, peer-to-peer support, this evergreen program allows participants to browse potential matches and connect casually—whether for one conversation or more. There’s no formal application, no long-term commitment. Just flexible, one-sided matching that supports spontaneous collaboration across the country.
2. Grow Program
This is our more traditional mentorship offering, focused on long-term career development. Mentees submit match requests, and mentors approve. We intentionally designed this program to pair people across different regions to promote new perspectives and reduce unconscious bias in career conversations.
Offering both options allowed us to meet people where they were—whether they were mentorship skeptics or experienced mentors.
Run campaigns with personality (and prizes!)
Once our programs were live in Together, the next step was getting the word out. We knew we needed more than an announcement email. We needed energy. We needed visibility. And most of all, we needed to make mentorship feel approachable and even… fun.
This year, to get the word out about the value of our mentorship programs, we launched our campaign, New Year, New Mentor.
This campaign ran during Q1 and came with a clear message: “Make mentorship part of your New Year’s resolution.”
Here’s what we did:
- Created a campaign-specific video starring… me. (Yes, a little outside my comfort zone—but absolutely worth it!). In it, I briefly explained how the programs worked, who they were for, and what participants could expect.
- Ran targeted communications across town halls, district calls, and regional team meetings to keep the message top of mind.
- Offered an incentive: Everyone who joined and completed at least one mentorship session during the campaign period was entered into a prize drawing. Simple, fun, and effective.
💡 The results?
We saw a 39% increase in scheduled sessions compared to the previous period. Better yet, people kept booking sessions after the campaign ended, with over 60 hours of future meetings already scheduled. The momentum was real—and lasting.
Use storytelling to normalize mentorship
One thing that became clear early on was that the idea of mentorship made some people nervous.
“I’m not senior enough.”
“I don’t have time.”
“I don’t know what we’d talk about.”
To fight that perception, we focused on storytelling. In every campaign, team call, and follow-up, we brought in real voices and real examples.
We highlighted:
- Employees who had great experiences through Connect and Grow.
- People who never saw themselves as mentors but discovered how rewarding it could be.
- Participants who built long-term connections—even friendships—through a single session.
By sharing testimonials and informal quotes from across our field teams, we showed that mentorship isn’t about hierarchy or perfection. It’s about learning from each other. And that’s something everyone can do.
Embed mentorship into onboarding
We didn’t want our programs to be a one-time splash—we wanted them to be part of the fabric of our culture. So we started weaving mentorship into employee lifecycle touchpoints.
In our orientation classes, we introduce the programs and how they work. We reinforce the message during leadership development workshops and on sector-wide calls. And we continue to explore how to formally integrate mentorship into our onboarding and early-career experiences.
We’ve found that even if someone isn’t ready to join on Day One, planting the seed early makes them far more likely to join when the timing is right.
Make it easy to say “yes”
The Together mentoring platform has been critical to making everything I’ve described actually work—especially since I don’t run this program full-time.
Here’s how Together makes promotion stick:
- User-led matching: Participants browse and choose their own matches, which avoids the friction of manual pairings.
- Suggested agendas and meeting guides: No one has to walk into their first session unsure of what to say. The platform does the prep work for you.
- Calendar integrations with Outlook and Teams: Mentorship sessions are automatically scheduled and added to users’ calendars.
- Automated nudges and reminders: I don’t have to chase people down. Together keeps things moving.
- Real-time reporting dashboards: I can easily pull stats on participation and feedback to share with leadership and justify program impact.
Measure the right things
What do I look for to know if our promotional strategies are working?
Yes, I track session counts, active users, and campaign lift—but the most meaningful indicators are qualitative:
- Are people returning for second, third, and fourth sessions?
- Are mentors sharing that they feel valued?
- Are mentees saying they learned something practical or made a real connection?
In a recent campaign, participants rated their mentoring experiences an average of 3.9 out of 4. That tells me we’re doing something right.
Final thoughts: Keep it real, keep it visible
The biggest lesson we’ve learned about promoting mentorship? It’s not a one-and-done push. It’s a drumbeat. It’s storytelling. It’s weaving the program into the day-to-day moments where people learn, connect, and grow.
If you’re looking to promote your mentoring program, start with your people. Ask what they need. Design options that meet those needs. And don’t be afraid to make some noise.
