Mentorship can be an essential tool for anyone seeking guidance from someone more experienced in a particular aspect of life, whether personal or professional. While there are numerous techniques to provide direction, mentorship is ultimately based on communication. Typically, we think of mentorship as a top-down approach in terms of a hierarchy of experience; however, many companies are taking advantage of reverse mentorships in the workplace, where leaders learn from younger, newer, or underrepresented employees. How does this benefit a company?
Fresh Perspectives
Younger, newer, or underrepresented employees often bring new ideas and perspectives to the table, especially when it comes to technology, social media, and trends. These employees can help their counterparts stay up-to-date on current happenings and cutting-edge technologies.
Skill Development
Reverse mentorships allow for the exchange of skills, where less experienced personnel can gain insight and knowledge from someone with more proficiency in a particular field, and senior employees can discover new resources and tools from their mentors.
Enhanced Communication
Bringing leaders and their employees together with open communication promotes a culture of learning, sharing, and understanding. Leaders can better understand the strengths possessed and the obstacles faced by their employees. Similarly, employees can get a sense of the broader strategic challenges and decisions faced by more senior staff.
I found a brief TED Talk by executive coach, Patrice Gordon, where she offers 6 tips to make reverse mentorship work. Check it out below!