January is National Mentoring Month, a time to celebrate the role of mentorship in personal and professional development. At Washington Gas, we’re dedicated to helping amplify mentoring as part of lifelong learning and growth.
Mentoring can be formal or informal and will look very different for each of us. Its common core lies in supportive, guiding relationships where experienced mentors share their knowledge with others to help develop skills, knowledge and growth. Ideally, these journeys begin early and continue throughout our lives and careers.
As a powerful tool for personal and professional growth, mentoring plays a pivotal role in developing new skills, confidence and potential career advancements. It also serves as a vital bridge for knowledge transfer between worker generations, providing continuity while helping preserve essential skills and institutional wisdom.
Research shows that people with mentoring relationships are promoted five times more often, while mentors are six times more likely to receive promotions. *
Next Generation: New Graduates
As we begin a new year, Washington Gas is excited to continue developing our New Graduate Program in partnership with area universities. This initiative aims to identify and hire new college graduates for a rotational program leading to engineering, finance, operations and customer experience careers.
The first group of engineering students joined the pilot cohort in 2023 and will progress throughout the program in the coming year. Real-world experience and one-on-one professional mentorships are critical tools for early professional development. Stay tuned as 2024 unfolds, and more details become available.
Ongoing Success: Workforce Training
Career development should be a lifelong opportunity. Washington Gas is committed to providing training and workforce skills development for solid job opportunities and careers in the energy and construction sectors.
Our workforce training programs with DC Infrastructure Academy and TeamBuilders Academy offer cohort-based accelerated adult career training. These are great opportunities to attend paid training programs that provide knowledge, skills and credentials for construction, energy and utilities careers.
We’re excited to announce that these highly successful programs are moving to bigger locations later this year. Washington Gas also hired program graduates to join our corporate family in 2023. We look forward to welcoming more graduates to the energy workforce in 2024 as we provide safe, reliable and affordable energy to our DMV region.
Peer Support: Employee Resource Groups
Washington Gas Employee Resource Groups, or ERGs, are volunteer-led groups bringing together employees who share common characteristics, interests, or experiences and their allies. They provide the space to have courageous conversations, find mentorship/sponsorship and grow professionally.
We are proud of our ERG members’ strong community involvement and active volunteering. Current groups include the Women’s Leadership Network (WLN), Veterans of WGL (VOW), African American Resource Council (AARC), Latino Empowerment and Diversity (LEAD), InspirASIAN and PRIDE (LGBTQ+ Ally).
Sparking Success: Early Opportunity
Through multiple opportunities and initiatives, Washington Gas enthusiastically supports future professionals’ early curiosity while giving back to our community. These programs are instrumental in shaping the future workforce and instilling the values of mentorship among young individuals.
For example, our sponsorship of Junior Achievement (JA) Finance Park locations is a collaborative effort among regional school systems, businesses, educators, and volunteer mentors to inspire students to be financially literate. Through hands-on experiences like goal-setting, budgeting and bill-paying, students gain practical skills that serve as a foundation for the future.
Washington Gas employee volunteers can also be found supporting the Maryland/DC Regional High School Science Bowl competition each January as judges, moderators, timekeepers and scorekeepers. Hosted by Montgomery College, this annual competition encourages proficiency in math and science, with the winning team representing Maryland in the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Science Bowl Competition.
And sometimes, it’s all about the play! The YMCA’s annual Thingamajig Invention Convention encourages youth aged 5-14 to showcase their creativity and problem-solving skills. Washington Gas volunteers lead activities, staff stations and serve as judges in the Presidential Challenge—a unique event encouraging young inventors to think critically while developing a love of learning.
Gaining new perspectives. Fostering fresh ideas. Increasing workforce skills. Improving careers. Developing leaders. These are just a few advantages of mentoring across its many forms. Washington Gas is passionate about people and their progress, and we hope you will find fresh inspiration in 2024.
Happy National Mentoring Month!
