Three primary strategies exist for e-mentoring/e-coaching. The two most straightforward approaches are to simply move coaching and mentoring to the Internet or to blend traditional mentoring/coaching with e-mentoring/e-coaching. The third strategy is to use e-mentoring/e-coaching to support instrumental (tactical) learning, such as assigning a coach or a mentor to help someone who has just completed an online course. Arguably, supporting instrumental learning is not really mentoring or coaching but, as discussed earlier, there are no fixed definitions.

e-Mentoring and e-Coaching Straight Up

The most obvious strategy is to move the relationship from the physical world of face-to-face meetings and dialog to the virtual world of Internet-based exchanges and dialog. The challenge of implementing formal e-mentoring/e-coaching should not be underestimated. As with a traditional program, there must be clear goals and senior management buy-in to get support and help in promoting the program, and a means of program evaluation.

In best practices documented by Single and Muller (n.d.) of MentorNet, they identify the structured implementation as “the most important, and overlooked, elements of a mentoring program. Structured implementation includes the training, coaching, and community building tasks that help participants make the most of the e-mentoring experience.” In addition, e-mentoring/e-coaching programs require reliable and supported infrastructure and technology such as e-mail, instant messaging, threaded discussions, and other applications.

Structured e-mentoring/e-coaching programs can be voluntary or mandatory, but in either case there must be incentives to motivate both mentor and protégés. While incentives are part of traditional programs, they deserve extra attention in virtual programs, where it is easier to lose interest because there is no physical connection. There is also the added requirement of making sure that technical frustrations do not create obstacles. If protégées or mentors are technically challenged using e-mail or they are frustrated by websites that are not reliable, these challenges will consume energy and time that should be spent on the mentoring experience.

The role of the instructional designer or program manager in implementing online mentoring and coaching is significant. Despite the ubiquitous nature of e-mail, instant messaging chat, and the use of other technology for communication, participants must be oriented. Part of running a program is preparing participants to assume their roles, to understand the goals and non-goals of the program, and to recognize boundaries. The task of matching mentors and protégés is a larger responsibly for e-mentor/e-coaching program coordinators than for traditional program coordinators. Selecting and matching virtual pairs has an added dimension of challenge because the program administrator may not know the parties. The greatest effort in these programs is related to the organizational and interpersonal issues.

Blended e-Mentoring and e-Coaching

Blended mentoring and coaching is likely to happen in traditional programs, even if it is not formally organized. Mentors and protégés skilled in using online tools will naturally gravitate to this mode of communication. There are a number of tactics for blending face-to-face and virtual mentoring/coaching. In a model recom- mended by the Australian Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers (n.d.) there is heavy reliance on e-mail for administering the program and as the primary contact mode for mentors and protégés, but it is assumed there will be face-to-face meetings.

e-Coaching for Instrumental Learning

One of the popular value-added services from commercial WBT course library providers is to make an e-coach (sometimes called online mentor or e-mentor) available to learners. These programs provide learners with someone to answer questions about the course content or the mechanics of the WBT program. The coaching takes place via e-mail, online chat, or application sharing.

These relationships are not “mentoring” or “coaching,” as discussed above, but they do share some attributes. The relationship has very clear goals and expectations. One of the key differences is that the mentor/coach does not have an exclusive relationship with the learner. In instrumental coaching there is a generic e-mail address, instant message name, or chat room for the learner to contact. A coach is available 24/7 but may not be the same person all the time. The interactions have more of the flavor of JIT assistance than a personal relationship.

Metacognitive e-Coaching

There is yet another form of e-coaching that does not conform to the definition of traditional coaching—metacognitive e-coaching. This strategy is to provide the learner with coaching or support for learning how to learn online. This kind of coaching is needed in both behaviorist and constructivist programs.

Learners who are either new to online learning or are new to constructivist strategies benefit from being coached in how to learn in these new environments. This is the gray area between technical support and help with learning. This is where students need to learn the skill for approaching an online course the way they have learned the skills for approaching traditional classroom courses, such as how to take notes, engage in classroom discussions, navigate a textbook, or create an outline. These are learning skills, not necessarily skills related to a specific course. Metacognitive e-coaching is frequently found in higher education distance education degree programs. Online degree programs fund roles that are dedicated to supporting learners and coaching them to succeed.

Research done at Glenrothes College, Scotland, found that when using e-mail as part of online instruction learners needed clear guidelines such as the minimum number of e-mails to send during one week and acceptable online behavior and what constitutes an acceptable response for peer critique response (MacKinlay, 2000). Even programs that are considered “page-turners” benefit from coaching learners in how to get the most out of the program. In some cases it may be a simple welcome message, periodic check-ins, and feedback on performance. These coaching activities help learners build confidence and the skills needed to succeed.

When learners are exposed to constructivist instructional designs, such as problem- based, inquiry-based role play, and case-based learning, the instructor also needs to play the role of coach. Ron Oliver (2001) suggests “the role of the teacher . . . be defined as that of a coach and facilitator in place of the more didactic style often assumed. In contemporary settings, this form of learning support is called scaffolding in recognition of the way in which it helps to build knowledge and is then removed as the knowledge construction occurs” (p. 206). Learners unfamiliar with constructivist learning in the traditional world benefit from coaching that helps them assume an active role as learners and helps them make use of the resources available to them.

Upward e-Coaching

Upward e-coaching puts a new spin on coaching. In this strategy, younger workers who are technology savvy are part of a reverse coaching program. In this program e-coaches help more senior colleagues learn to navigate the Internet, coaching them on searching and using new applications. These junior staffers assist senior management in better understanding the potential of the new technologies and how these technologies are viewed and used by members of a generation that has grown up with the Web. The advantage of using the Internet in this kind of coaching is that tools such as instant messaging and application sharing allow coaches and students to share fast, short, and just-in-time questions and support.

John Joseph (2001), a Wharton Fellow in eBusiness, describes such a program at the General Electric Company. In the GE program, senior business leaders receive a coach drawn from a pool of younger talent within the company. Joseph reports, “GE chief executive Jack Welch ordered over 600 of his top managers, ranging in age from 30 to 60, to seek out young Internet-savvy professionals in the company and become their students.” What might surprise some readers is that even Jack Welch has an e-mentor.