MentorcliQ Is Fostering Community and Connections Through Mentoring Relationships

No one is an expert at everything. From junior employees entering the job market to tenured CEOs, there is always something new to learn at every stage of navigating the corporate landscape. To help employees excel at every stage of their career and companies at every stage of development, Columbus-based MentorcliQ is providing mentors at “the click of a button” to build meaningful relationships that expand skill sets, diversify perspectives, and grow professional connections.

“Employees can enroll through our platform in just a few minutes,” CEO and co-founder Phil George said. “They let us know what they’re looking for and how they could help others if they want to be a mentor. We use a scientific matching algorithm to connect them in a great mentoring relationship within their company, and our platform provides both sides with training resources, and ultimately, measures the outcome of those relationships.”

MentorcliQ fosters these relationships in all areas of a company, from onboarding programs and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives, to workforce engagement, otherwise known as enterprise mentoring, which provides mentoring opportunities for employees eager to grow their careers. These overarching programs also help organizations target mentoring opportunities for more specific employee populations.

“In the past five years, we’ve seen a tremendous amount of energy and effort put towards building inclusive cultures and workplaces at companies,” George said. “Mentoring has been a tremendous tool for DE&I leaders around the world to bring employees together and connect them. Ultimately, it leads to a sense of belonging at work, which leads to higher employee retention, and that’s a big win for companies building their brand and trying to attract diverse talent.”

MentorcliQ’s mission hasn’t shifted since TechOhio last sat down with the company, but its impact has grown exponentially. The organization now works with Fortune 500 companies across the country, many of which employ thousands, if not tens of thousands of people. If that isn’t evidence enough, MentorcliQ’s 2023 Mentoring Impact Report shows that 92 percent of Fortune 500 companies now have a mentoring program, up from 70 percent when the organization first got its start.

“It’s taken a lot of support from central Ohio to get here,” George said. “Over the years, MentorcliQ has become a market leader, and we’re thrilled about that. There are so many more companies that can benefit from what we already offer today, but we’ve been working towards additional opportunities that offer our customers even more value. We’re excited to continue offering more to those customers who can then offer even more to their employees over time.”

The company is well positioned to scale itself into its next phase. In March of this year, MentorcliQ closed an $80 million funding round, with participation from one of Ohio Third Frontier’s partners, Rev1 Ventures.

“Rev1 supported us from the early days when we were building a prototype, landing our first customer, and expanding our team,” he said. “We have some ambitious growth plans based on the size of the funding round, which include expanding our value proposition to customers and doing even more than mentoring. Our customers are going to be thrilled with everything we have planned, and they’ve been a big part of our strategy. We’ve been really listening to and understanding what we can help solve for them.”

Some of those ambitious growth plans include expanded DE&I support and branching out to even more Fortune 500 companies across the globe. As MentorcliQ prepares for the large-scale shift on its horizon, George said the Columbus and Ohio, startup ecosystems have played a big part in propelling the company forward.

“Ohio has been a really important part of being a home base for us and an incredible part of our story,” he said. “My wife is from San Francisco, and we actually decided to move from California to Ohio to start this tech company. I’m really proud to be a part of the story that is the Midwest startup scene, and for companies like us, succeeding helps other future entrepreneurs know they can do this, too.”