Betsy and the Emperor….

 

Let us start by narrating the well-worn tale of a child inspiring the Emperor and helping him become the famous history giant! 

 

So iconic is the name “Napoleon” that an entire era bears it. In the times when birthright dictated the society, Napoleon was the pinnacle of power, who rose to the top with his strong military sense that led to many successful campaigns during the French Revolution. 

 

But as every rising thing is bound to fall one day, Napoleon’s glory days soon became over with his exile to Saint Helena. Although he was a warrior and his intuition in the heat of the battle was beyond comprehension, Napoleon too suffered from a downfall. This is when he met “Betsy”, a 14-year-old girl who dared question the Emperor and his knowledge with her witty replies, winning his heart and friendship along the way. Betsy and her friendship came as a ray of hope to the 46-year-old grappling with severe depression and suicidal thoughts. Together the two larked and played pranks on other children, thus helping Napoleon rediscover his lost inner-child. This is how a child, untainted by societal intervention and norms, changed the script of the world! 

 

This relationship between Napoleon and Betsy Balcombe is the greatest example of reverse mentoring ever known to mankind. Such was the charm of a teen’s exuberance that it helped an exiled Emperor regain his youth.  

 

This shows that if young people are treated as a useful resource and not merely as an amorphous lump of clay that can be molded in the future, it opens doors to new opportunities, uplifting ideas, and fresher approaches.

This unleashes the true power of reverse mentoring! 

 

The Why and Who of Reverse Mentoring 

 

Did you know that Millennials will outnumber Baby Boomers by approximately 22 million by the year 2030? So, if you are still tagged on Baby Boomers, it is time to welcome the new generation with open arms in your workplace because the world is going to be theirs in the next few decades! 

 

Although there is diversity in the thoughts and actions of the two generations, they can come together as one strong entity with mentoring and more so with reverse mentoring. This is why it is important to develop a reverse mentoring system in the organization much like Target, Coca-Cola, Mastercard, etc, have created. 

 

Flip the script! 

 

Reverse mentoring is the method of building professional relationships between a senior and junior employee for the purpose of planning things, exchanging ideas and skills, etc. It mainly focuses on harnessing the unique perspectives of a junior employee to ensure that the team is not locked into echo chambers operating on the principle of status quo! It mainly challenges the world-renowned notion that the master knows everything and the apprentice knew nothing once. 

 

Although this practice might seem a misnomer, it is slowly gaining momentum, especially in the technology sector because of its long list of benefits. It serves both sides equally well, helping juniors, as well as seniors, grow by providing a faster route to climb up the ladder. Reverse mentoring also creates an honest dialogue between the two parties, thus encouraging collaboration, diversity, and inclusiveness! 

 

This is why Baby Boomers and Gen Y need to embrace reverse mentoring and use it to their advantage! 

 

 

It comes with benefits 

 

As the telling numbers indicate, reverse mentoring has a lot of benefits beyond skill and knowledge sharing. Having said that, let us study these benefits in a bit more detail:

1. Increases Millennial participation and retention:

With Millennials owning the workforce by approximately 43%, it is becoming a constant battle to keep them engaged. This is where reverse mentoring has shown positive results. How? By turning the organization upside down, Millennials feel valued and confident as they are given the opportunity to work and guide their seniors. 

2. Fosters cross-generational camaraderie:

Beyond flipping the traditional hierarchy, reverse mentoring fosters cross-generational camaraderie by influencing both the mentor (junior) and mentee (senior) to work together as a single entity. The younger mentor is exposed to greater opportunities and areas helping him expand his network. This also helps in inducing strategic thinking as both the seniors and juniors are willing to learn from their counterparts to gain new skills. These can be technical or other skills that can be leveraged such as new enthusiastic ideas, passion, or simple energy that brings a breath of fresh air to liven up the work environment. 

3. Empowers inclusiveness:

Reverse mentoring fosters inclusive relationships without taking age, gender, ethnicity, and other social barriers into consideration. This leads to a more connected environment, where juniors are on a par with seniors and vice-versa. 

4. Diversifies and broadens the talent pipeline:

With diverse mindsets being paired into a single mentor-mentee relationship, reverse mentoring helps in boosting the talents of both parties. This leads to empathetic relationship building without any biases. It also helps in boosting upper management roles and responsibilities. 

5. Drives cultural changes:

Gen X and Gen Y have to go through a learning curve as they are both born into a digital world. In this way, they are seasoned to speak the language of modern business better than previous generations with decades of experience. This is why reverse mentoring proves to be beneficial as it helps the organization stay ahead of trends by leveraging the knowledge of junior employees. 

6. Takes technological advancements to a much greater level:

Organizational growth is hard and technological advancements to keep up with the changing trends is even harder. Reverse mentoring helps shake things up by challenging the ongoing strategies and processes. This propels and sets in motion the technological advancements which are necessary to survive in the competitive business environment. 

 

As we are slowly advancing towards a newer world, unlike anything in the past, many companies are on the verge of getting extinct. The skills of many entrepreneurs are becoming rusty and require fresh ideas to break free from their stereotypical ways of operating. Also with the playbook being rewritten time and again, there is a need to provide enough support to Gen Y to take control. Here are 20 templates to help harness the power of reverse mentoring. 

 

20 Reverse Mentoring Templates to help you get started! 

Template 1

Engage and retain newer talents in your organization by deploying this reverse mentoring guide. Use it to initiate a successful two-way conversation that benefits both the mentor and mentee. This template with 22 editable slides is a great option to dispense information and develop a mentorship plan that helps in creating an all-inclusive environment in the workplace. 

 

Reverse Mentoring PowerPoint Presentation

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Template 2

Consider this template as a mini-guide to succeed in your endeavors of building a reverse coaching program. This template comes with many slides, so a large amount of information on the topic can be presented using this creative bundle. Additionally, it comes in an entirely editable package that increases its user-friendliness manifold. 

 

Reverse Mentoring Planning Ideas

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Template 3

What is traditional mentoring and how it can be differentiated from reverse mentoring is what this template explains using various points. As such it can be used for comparisons and to make the topic of reverse mentoring a bit more clear to the viewers. For this, all you have to do is, download this design, make necessary amendments and you are ready to present your thoughts on the go! 

 

Reverse Mentoring Vs Traditional Mentoring PPT

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Template 4

The concept of reverse mentoring is relatively new and so many organizations are not aware of how to use it to their advantage. This template can be added to your reverse mentoring guide to explain the benefits of reverse mentoring and how to adapt its principles. It is also available for individual use if that is what you desire. 

 

Why Reverse Mentoring PPT

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Template 5

Although reverse mentoring is a relatively new concept, it has become a prerequisite to growing your business. This template highlights some basic tools that help improve your reverse mentoring program. Some sample recommendations have been added in the large content boxes, but you can alter them as per your needs. 

 

Tools For Reverse Mentoring PPT

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Template 6

Now that we have catered to the who and why of reverse mentoring, the next step is to target the how of reverse mentoring. This template presents a sample illustration of how you can execute a reverse mentoring process for your organization. So take inspiration from this design and create your own reverse mentoring program much like bigger organizations are doing. 

 

Reverse Mentor Cycle Process PPT

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Template 7 

A good mentorship program is a prerequisite to retaining newer talents. This template is designed on the principle of reverse mentoring and how it is useful for the organization in the long run. The flipping of the traditional hierarchy and its use in career development, inclusiveness, and diversification can be highlighted with this pyramid design template. 

 

Reverse Pyramid Showing Five Steps

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Template 8

If Millennial retention is your biggest concern, then this design will surely be of help. This layout caters to the concept of reverse mentoring and its induction in the organization. Since reverse mentoring can be considered a stepping stone to retain Millennials nowadays, this template has a lot of utility for every user out there. So, download and use it to your advantage.  

 

Reverse Pyramid With Four Steps

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Template 9

This is another inverse pyramid template to help you explain your reverse mentoring hierarchy in detail. By deploying this slide, you can execute successful mentorship programs that benefit both the mentor and mentee. It opens gates to new innovations and plans that can help a business in growing its operations. 

 

Reverse Pyramid With Five Different Stages

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Template 10

This is a topic-specific template that can be used to explain reverse brainstorming and its benefits. It is a very creative layout that helps in improving the aesthetics of boring business presentations. This fully functional slide makes the inclusion of important information hassle-free. 

 

Reverse Brainstorming Ideas

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Template 11

This is another template inspired by the concept of reverse brainstorming and its requirement in the modern business world. It presents various pointers that can help expand the knowledge of your audience. It also offers an expressive layout that can be edited as deemed necessary. So grab it now to reap its full benefits. 

 

Reverse Brainstorming PowerPoint Slide Deck

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Template 12

Any individual or company can use this template to dispense important information and valuable insights on the reverse brainstorming program. It makes both the explanation and execution process very easy and convenient because of its prefabricated design. Not only that, you can also modify it as per your requirements. 

 

Reverse Brainstorming Problem

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Template 13 

The concept of reverse mentoring is very vast. So use this template to cover the necessary ways of inculcating and executing reverse mentoring activities in your organization. You can use it to explain the entire mentoring process, its benefits, its limitations, and other facets by adding information in the large content boxes. Download it now. 

 

4 Ways To Increase Reverse Mentoring Programme

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Template 14

Explain how flipping the relationships can induce inclusiveness and diversity among different executives using this template. Also, the 6 major rules that help in creating a successful reverse mentoring environment in the organization can be discussed in detail using this slide. So use it as per your business demands. 

 

6 Rules Of Engagement For Reverse Mentoring

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Template 15

Download and use this great design to make your presentations more informative. It comes with editable features like color, font, shapes, design, etc. that can be modified as per need. Not only that, but it is also available for immediate download in PNG, JPG, and PDF formats. 

 

Reverse Brainstorming Challenges

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Template 16

The what and why of reverse mentoring can be demystified with this single slide that comes with editable features. Therefore, its adaptation in any business presentation is hassle-free. Not only this, but it is also available for download in various formats and two screen options that increase its user-friendliness.  

 

Reverse Brainstorming Idea What When And How

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Template 17 

This is another slide that helps explain the topic of reverse mentoring and its uses in business. You can jot down various reasons to pursue reverse mentoring programs and adopting its principles like millennial retention, boosting employees’ confidence, optimum utilization of resources, and others. Everything comes in an editable format so make the changes you desire in this template. 

 

5 Reasons For Reverse Mentoring In Business

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Template 18

Explain the benefits of flipping the organizational hierarchy with this template. It highlights all the major points and presents them in an easily understandable format that can be downloaded in an instant. It is also available in two screen options for embracing a more user-friendly approach. 

 

4 Reasons To Consider Reverse Mentoring

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Template 19 

This template presents a holistic view of the crucial aspects of reverse logistics. Since it is presented in a dashboard form, complex information can be interpreted with ease. Not only that but also all the components of this layout are also editable and modifiable, thus adding a personal touch to your presentation.

 

Reverse Logistics Dashboard Badminton PPT

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Template 20 

Download this template design and alter its elements. This design can be downloaded in PNG, JPG, and PDF formats that can be viewed on standard and widescreen. Thus, it makes it a very good option to include in your reverse mentoring program and presentations as well. 

 

Reverse Pyramid With Three Stages

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Reverse mentoring is a two-way street that benefits both the younger mentor and older mentee in its own unique ways. Therefore, it comes to a full circle when leveraged correctly and intuitively. However, it is important only until digital technology is replacing the worn-out techniques, which, in our opinion, will continue for centuries to come. 

 

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below!