Final answer:
Mentoring is the assignment of an early career employee as a protege to a more senior employee for professional advice and career guidance. It has various benefits and positively affects the protege's career success.
Step-by-step explanation:
Mentoring is a form of informal training in which an experienced employee guides the work of a new employee. It involves assigning an early career employee as a protege to a more senior employee for the purpose of professional advice and career guidance. The mentor provides support, shares knowledge and expertise, and helps the protege develop skills and achieve career goals. Research has shown that mentoring has various benefits for both the mentor and the protege. It can enhance the protege's career success by creating connections to informal networks, reducing feelings of isolation, and overcoming discrimination in job promotions. Mentoring also positively affects a protege's performance, motivation, satisfaction, compensation, and number of promotions compared to non-mentored employees. In conclusion, the correct answer to the question is b) mentoring.