Enhancing entrepreneurial learning through mentoring: a situational and generic mentor role taxonomy

The experiences materialising as learning tasks in the entrepreneurial context do not automatically transform into effective learning for a novice entrepreneur. In this paper, we develop a comprehensive and situational role taxonomy for entrepreneurial mentoring meant to address this challenge.

Entrepreneurial mentoring builds on the assumption that it can facilitate the transformation of experience and consequently enhance the learning outcomes for a novice entrepreneur. By integrating and extending the extant research on entrepreneurial learning and mentoring, we argue for a dynamic and situational approach, scrutinising the fit between discrete entrepreneurial learning modes and the mentoring functions targeting them.

We complete our theorising by developing four propositions and a taxonomy of mentor roles. The role taxonomy comprises a repertoire of four different roles that target the learning modes through learning-enabling mechanisms drawn from the learning literature.

The role taxonomy poses important implications for future entrepreneurship research. The role taxonomy can be directly employed in more targeted, formal training programmes for both mentees and mentors.