Technology and its tools seem to advance at an accelerating rate each year. Younger employees who grew up with technology, almost from birth, are adept at keeping pace with the new tools and can quickly adapt in the workplace. Older employees are sometimes disadvantaged because they are not born digital natives, which can create a digital literacy divide between employee generations.
Reverse mentoring, in which tech-savvy younger employees mentor more seasoned employees, is a successful strategy for knowledge and skills transfer when authentic and structured to fit employee and company needs. What is becoming clear is that other benefits accrue on both sides of the mentoring relationship and in the organization, if the program is designed to maximize results. They include increasing employee engagement, boosting inclusion and belonging, and developing promising talent for future leadership roles.
Reverse Mentoring is Mutually Beneficial
Traditionally, mentoring was structured with a seasoned organizational leader mentoring a newer employee who was being groomed as future leader. Reverse mentoring changes this model in a couple of significant ways. First, it empowers younger employees to mentor older ones, giving them a platform to showcase their skills and knowledge. Second, the mentoring relationship can involve any younger and older employee, not just senior leaders. The rate of technology advances means there are older employees at all leadership levels striving to keep their tech skills current, making them candidates for reverse mentoring.
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