Entry #1. Reverse Mentoring: Leaders Never Stop Learning
Lana Ivory
Product Marketing, Reality Labs @ Meta ?? || Driving the Future of Wearable AI & AR Technology ??|| 2025 Ad Age “Gen Z to Watch” || Reverse Mentor for VPs & Execs || Dot Connector || Ex- AWS, Amazon
As a leader, you know the importance of continuous learning and staying relevant in the digital age. But have you ever considered learning from your younger GenZ co-workers instead of just trying to understand them?
They are an undervalued asset to senior leaders when it comes to gaining fresh and innovative insights, perspectives, and ideas. That’s why I want to introduce you to a powerful practice called Reverse Mentoring.
Jack Walsh, who was the CEO of 通用电气 , introduced Reverse Mentoring as a way for his senior leaders to learn about the internet from their younger colleagues
Reverse Mentoring is a unique experience where junior employees act as Mentors and senior leaders act as Mentees. It’s a great way to bridge generational gaps in the workplace and foster a more collaborative and inclusive work environment.
Agenda
Benefits for Senior Leaders (Mentee):
?? Builds trust and transparency. By engaging in open and honest conversations with younger colleagues, senior leaders can build rapport and mutual respect, as well as foster a culture of trust and transparency within their organization.
?? Empowers young employees to speak up and share thoughts. By listening to the opinions and ideas of their younger colleagues, senior leaders can empower them to voice their feedback, challenges, and goals, as well as showcase their strengths and achievements.
?? Promotes DE&I. By learning from the diverse and inclusive views and experiences of their younger colleagues, senior leaders can foster DE&I in their organization, and spot and fix any biases or gaps in their policies and practices.
?? Increases vulnerability and decreases ego. By acknowledging there's more to learn and that they can benefit from the fresh and innovative ideas of their younger colleagues, senior leaders can show vulnerability and set ego aside to be more open-minded.
?? Sparks creative innovation. By learning from their younger colleagues about the trends and technologies that influence the customer ecosystem, senior leaders can innovate creatively in their organizations, explore new opportunities, and adapt to changing situations.
?? Drives culture change and retain employees. By learning how to create a more positive and supportive work culture that aligns with their organizational goals and values from their younger colleagues, senior leaders can drive culture change in their organization, which can help them attract and retain talent, improve performance, and enhance reputation.
Takeaway: Put ego aside, be vulnerable, and stay curious! These conversations are facilitated with the understanding that you're open and interested in learning-- already a huge win that will gain respect from younger colleagues.
Benefits for Junior Employees (Mentor):
?? Shape your future. By participating in Reverse Mentoring, you have direct influence on changes in the workplace by sharing your unique and authentic insights, viewpoints, experiences, and backgrounds.
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?? Expand your network and visibility. By connecting with senior colleagues, junior employees can expand their network and visibility within the organization, which can help them with career development and advancement.
?? Boosts confidence and self-esteem. By receiving recognition and appreciation from their senior colleagues, junior employees can boost their confidence and self-esteem, as well as feel more valued and motivated at work.
???Supports personal growth. By engaging in reverse mentoring, junior employees can support their personal growth by discovering their strengths and weaknesses, setting goals and action plans, and overcoming challenges and obstacles.
?? Develops mentoring skills. By sharing their views and experiences with their senior colleagues, junior employees can develop their mentoring skills, such as active listening, empathy, feedback, and coaching, which can help them become better mentors themselves in the future.
?? Enhances skills and knowledge. By learning from the expertise and experience of their senior colleagues, junior employees can enhance their skills and knowledge in various areas, such as leadership, communication, strategy, and problem-solving.
?? Gains perspective and insight. By understanding the challenges and opportunities that their senior colleagues face, junior employees can gain perspective and insight into the bigger picture of the organization, its vision, mission, and goals, as well as their role and contribution.
Takeaway: Be open to conversations with your senior colleagues-- if they're willing to learn, be willing to communicate!
Getting Started
Here are easy ways to start these conversations:
Resources to Learn More
GenZ Article Roundup by Kahlil Greene : HERE
GenZ Creator Spotlight
Include Gen Z voices in your conversations ABOUT Gen Z!
If you want to learn directly from us, here are some of my favorite Gen Z Creators and their niches:?https://lnkd.in/gcTbrEpz
Thank you!
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