Mentors are a pillar in the commercial real estate industry. Young professionals lean on senior executives to navigate the business, foster contacts and develop a personal brand—all of which are essential to finding success in an industry with performance-based compensation. We talked to both emerging leaders and experienced veterans to get an inside look at the mentor-mentee relationship.

The Most Common Questions from Mentees

Mentors help guide rising stars on issues both big and small. Theresa Fesinstine, director of people and culture at Sage, says that mentees most commonly ask her how to speak to C-suite executives to make internal connections and grow within a firm. "I've certainly experienced this in previous organizations as a young professional where questioning or challenging an executive on a position or with a different perspective just wasn't done," Fesinstine says.