Many workers also benefit from informal mentoring -- a strategy that Hunsinger claims works better than a formal program that pairs a senior worker with a junior colleague.

He says formal arrangements might not work because "sometimes it clicks, sometimes it doesn't." And while leaving mentoring to informal connections might mean that some people slip through without that extra guidance, Hunsinger says he finds such relationships to be much better when they're not structured.

"It's really a personal relationship that you have to build," he says.

Others, however, find benefits in more formal arrangements.

Kay J. Palmer, CIO and executive vice president at J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. in Lowell, Ark., has a leadership development program for her department that uses both in-house training and customized training developed with a local firm specializing in leadership development. The training involves standard practices, such as 360-degree assessment tools, in which coaches get feedback on an individual from various professional circles.