Reverse Mentoring

Humans at Work with Michael Glazer

Ever wondered what happens when we flip traditional corporate hierarchies, allowing the young to mentor the old? This episode zeroes in on reverse mentoring, showcasing its power to drive innovation and foster understanding across generations. Patrice Gordon, a pioneer at Virgin Atlantic and author of the book “Reverse Mentoring: Removing Barriers and Building Belonging in the Workplace.”

Patrice explains how embracing uncomfortable moments and challenging our assumptions can lead to growth for both people and organizations. She also shares advice for setting up and running reserve mentoring programs and strategies for bringing more humanity into our organizations. Tune in to discover how you can harness the potential of reverse mentoring to not only enhance leadership but also create a more inclusive, dynamic workplace.

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Episode Highlights

• Explore reverse mentoring's role in driving innovation and understanding between generations.
• Gain insights from Patrice Gordon on fostering inclusive leadership and authentic self-expression at work.
• Learn strategies from Virgin Atlantic's reverse mentoring for cultivating an inclusive culture.
• Steps to implement effective reverse mentoring programs for organizational change.
• Tackle misconceptions and challenges in reverse mentoring and DEI for better outcomes.
• The role of trust in reverse mentoring success and how to assess and build it.
• Criteria for selecting the right participants for pilot mentoring programs.
• Establishing psychological safety for impactful mentorship relationships.
• Enhancing workplace communication and connection through reverse mentoring.
• Keeping reverse mentoring programs alive and impactful with leadership commitment.

Patrice’s view on the greatest unmet wellbeing need at work today

“I think it's about connection. So post-pandemic, like, you know, you've got better up service talks about like people who don't feel connected at work, people who would rather not be connected with the people at work, and people who really want to be connected with people at work.

And so for me, well-being is about connection. Especially when we're talking about in a hybrid world, when we're talking about, you know, a lot of the work that I do is with the Gent with Gen Z and it's about them entering the workforce properly for the first time, and how things that we maybe took for granted being like seasoned, seasoned corporate employees.

But what does that look like now especially being like digital natives, and now heading into a space where it may not actually be the Digital First, it's more people first. But really that connection and building authentic connection within an organization where people are more like people's opinions or views are more polarized than ever.

And now we're living our lives at work as well. So, historically, we maybe didn't have the opportunity to bring all of our viewpoints and opinions to the office. But now we have no option but to write because it's just weaved into every part of our being now.

And so connecting at a deeper level, from a pace of like honesty and transparency, but also with respect, that all feeds into that connection piece for me.”

What "working with humans" means to Patrice

“Be more human. Like, bring as much of yourself to work as you feel comfortable in doing I always say, and, but it's recognizing people's individuality and respecting that and acknowledging that you have these wide policies.

But actually, the one-on-one interaction those conversations…just will mean so much more to people to feel like seen and heard and valued. And I think everyone just needs to create bit more time to do that.”

Resources

Follow: Patrice on LinkedIn

Visit: Eminere

Read: Reverse Mentoring: Removing Barriers and Building Belonging in the Workplace

Watch: How reverse mentorship can help create better leaders

Visit our website for a full transcript of this episode and for more episodes that give you fresh perspectives and actionable ideas for making working with other humans better for everyone.

© Michael Glazer