Reverse Mentoring

When General Electric head Jack Welch realized that GE was falling far behind other companies in its use of the Internet as a business tool, he knew he needed help. But who could he ask? Welch himself rarely surfed the Web, finding it overwhelming, but he realized that understanding and embracing online technology was critical to GE’s long-term success.

To catch up, Welch instituted a “reverse mentoring” program at GE. He required more than 500 of his top executives to find a younger, tech-savvy “Web mentor” to teach them how to use the web and understand e-business. Following Welch’s lead, over the past five years, a growing number of organizations, from Proctor and Gamble to the Seattle Public Schools, have implemented reverse mentoring programs to help them understand technology, business trends, and pop culture.

Reverse mentoring can take place either formally or informally. Wharton School of Business requires older MBA candidates with long resumes to partner with younger, full-time students. The exchange of information goes both ways.

Of the organizations using reverse mentoring, 41 percent of respondents used the method to share technical expertise, while 26 percent said their executives gained youthful perspective. (The poll was conducted by The Center for Coaching and Mentoring as reported in American Way magazine in January 2004.)

Emerging implications for church leaders: What if seasoned ministry leaders followed such an example and used reverse mentoring to gain understanding of the emerging culture? As postmodern thought continues to permeate our culture, church leaders would be wise to become fluent in the language of the emergent conversation. The best way to do this is to become a willing and intentional student of the culture, to become the humble proté;gé; instead of the mentor.

Getting started:

Create a “focus group” of high-school or college students. Reassure them that they can say anything they want and you welcome their analysis and criticism. (This means you need to sit quietly and fight the urge to refute or explain anything.) Take notes, the take their comments to heart and prayerfully consider their implications for ministry.
Find a leader in your area who is fluent in the emerging culture. Meet monthly to learn more about the emerging generations. Ask about ways to involve them in church life and leadership.
Attend the next Emergent Convention which runs simultaneous with the National Pastors Convention, or sample local Gathering (www.emergentvillage.com).
Ask teachers or professors what their students are talking about these days. What are the hottest bands, TV shows, movies, and political issues?
Check out these Christian websites: www.theooze.com; www.the-next-wave.org; www.faithmaps.org.
Buy (and read!) a copy of Entertainment Weekly. Spend several hours browsing the magazine covers at Barnes & Noble. Watch a week’s worth of the opening monologues on late-night TV shows.
Read more about it:http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/0,4621,298986,00.htmlhttp://www.galtglobalreview.com/education/learning_in_reverse.html

Angie Ward is writer, ministry leader, and pastor’s spouse living in Durham, North Carolina.

If you have engaged in an intentional reverse mentoring relationship in your ministry, we want to hear from you. Tell us how it worked and what was learned and taught. Write to Newsletter@LeadershipJournal.net.