Mentoring in health administration: the critical link in executive development.

Career development in the next century will be predicated on the ability to forge hierarchical as well as lateral relationships within diverse organizational environments. Mentoring relationships may provide the critical link for future health executives to remain involved in their organization and their profession. This national study of 540 healthcare managers examined the prevalence of mentoring relationships according to demographic, organizational, and professional variables. Mentors appeared to influence access to promotional opportunities for managers in the healthcare industry and provide a mechanism for executive development.