If you're managing a workforce that spans Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z and Gen Alpha, you'll know that getting multiple generations to work well together is easier said than done. 

In fact, 56% of workers find generational collaboration challenging, citing issues over technology, communication, reply speed, emoji and slang use causing friction, according to research from The Adaptavist Group. They also found that 67% of workers believe the advance of AI tools will only further splinter the divide between generations. 

For the first time in history, up to five generations are working alongside each other simultaneously. 73% of senior business leaders say they have multiple generations in their workforce right now, according to research by Lancaster University, but only 18% of organisations include age in their EDI policies.

Some companies have dedicated multigenerational employee resource groups and other initiatives that consider age inclusivity. But for many employers, age diversity rarely gets the same airtime as other dimensions of inclusion, so it often goes unaddressed. 

There is a way to embrace the benefits of a multigenerational workforce without having to invest beyond staff time, and that’s reverse mentoring. Some workplaces have implemented this to great success, benefiting from record high retention rates with older employees, or strong engagement within senior leadership. 

What is reverse mentoring?

Reverse mentoring pairs a junior employee with a senior one, with the junior person in the mentor role. It was popularised by Jack Welch at GE in the 1990s, initially to bring senior leaders up to speed on the internet. It's since grown into something much broader: a structured way to exchange knowledge across generational and hierarchical lines, build cross-generational trust, and give younger employees direct access to leadership.

Why should more companies embrace age diversity?

It’s important that workplaces manage age diversity properly, because this is a trend that’s set to stay; workers aged 65 and over are the fastest-growing segment of the US workforce, AARP International reports. 

Retaining talent across generations will become more important, as European workforces are projected to be 25% smaller within two decades, according to the Financial Times. 

But it’s not just about retaining talent; there are performance benefits to embracing age diversity, too. For example, teams with a 25-plus year age span met or exceeded expectations 73% of the time, compared to just 35% for teams with a narrower age range, according to Forbes. 

“There’s a general sense that age equates to how much value your opinion holds,” shared Zoë Robinson, Social Media Specialist at Hurree. “It’s 2026, age shouldn’t be creating bias.”

What each generation brings — and why it runs both ways

One of the most persistent assumptions about multigenerational workplaces is that knowledge flows in set directions: older workers share institutional wisdom; younger workers bring digital skills and fresh perspectives. 

Northern are focused on ensuring different age groups are represented in the same workplace, and creating opportunities for people to share knowledge, challenge perspectives and learn from one another.

“The real value comes from creating an environment where different generations can learn from one another, combining fresh thinking with years of knowledge and experience,” a spokesperson explained.

Reverse mentoring benefits both mentors and mentees; AARP's 2025 survey of over 1,200 working adults found that 90% had positive attitudes to age-diverse teams, and that the benefits run almost identically in both directions:

• For older workers collaborating with younger colleagues, 85% gained new perspectives, 73% stayed more current with technology trends, and 55% learned more about AI from them.
• For younger colleagues working with older teammates, 87% gained fresh perspectives, 85% learned new skills, and 78% said they contributed to more productive environments.

But this multigenerational collaboration doesn’t happen everywhere. LinkedIn reported that one in five Gen Z workers hasn't spoken to a colleague aged 50 or over in over a year.

Why do leaders really sign up as reverse mentees?

“I sought out a Reverse Mentor as I had very positive experiences of doing so in my last business,” explained Gordon Pitman, MBDA Executive Group Human Resources Director. “I find reverse mentoring is a great way for me to keep connected to other parts of the organisation I might not otherwise get exposure to and hear more diverse voices and opinions. I hope to be able to use the mentoring as a way of getting inputs into some of the ideas I have for the people strategy of MBDA and making sure I can have a different sounding board to the ‘usual voices’ I get to hear.”

There are many reasons why senior leaders choose to get involved in reverse mentoring. Here’s why participants of the Mott MacDonald programme signed up:

• Alejandro Pomares Mora, Technical Principal Systems Engineer, believes “good leadership starts with listening” and saw the programme as an opportunity to continue learning from perspectives different from his own. 
• Dave Mercer, Technical Director, described the scheme as an opportunity to gain a genuine understanding of others’ lived experiences, recognising that while he has always sought to apply EDI principles in leadership roles, there is always more to learn.
• David Willcock, Rail Division Resource Manager, signed up because he believes some of the best development comes from “open, two-way conversations” and is keen to broaden his understanding of different lived experiences across Mott MacDonald. 
• Dimitris Legakis, Project Principal, described the programme as an opportunity to strengthen his awareness of EDI challenges while broadening his understanding of experiences beyond his own. 
• Fiona Barbour, Technical Director Flood Risk, wanted to expand her awareness of different cultures and better understand how she can support diversity in her day-to-day role. 
• Steve Suckling, Technical Director Consultancy, felt that inclusive leadership comes from “listening, challenge, and exposure to the experience and perspectives of others”

How leading companies make reverse mentoring work

There’s no set way to build your reverse mentoring scheme, although research from Frontiers found that the most common topics to focus on were technology adoption (30%), marketing and sales insight (20%), leadership development (20%), employee engagement and retention (15%), and cultural change (15%).

Mott MacDonald has a reciprocal mentoring scheme

Mentors in the Mott MacDonald programme are invited to share perspectives based on their own experiences, and can choose which aspects of their identity they wish to discuss. For example, someone may have experiences across several areas but choose to focus their mentoring on race and culture, neurodiversity, or caregiving responsibilities.

For leaders, it provides an opportunity to hear directly from colleagues about the realities of navigating work through different lenses and experiences. For mentors, it creates meaningful connections with senior leaders, and a platform to influence how inclusion is understood and championed across the business.

Richard Risdon, Regional General Manager, was paired with an early career professional from the LGBTQ+ community. Together, they agreed to regular informal catch-ups where they discussed their backgrounds, career journeys and current workplace challenges.

“There were some really simple points that landed with me around things such as travel, working in the office and moving between teams,” Richard explained. “I also learnt more about intersectionality and increased my awareness of neurodiversity.”

OVO’s reverse mentoring approach

"The thing that still surprises me is how little of it turns out to be about age. It's about assumptions, and we all carry them.," explained Steve Harris, OVO's former Generations Network Co-Lead and Principal, Communities of Practice Lead. "Someone in their twenties assumes the person with thirty years' experience won't want to hear about a new tool, because surely they're stuck in their ways by now. The person with thirty years' experience assumes they've nothing left to learn from a graduate. Both are usually wrong, and both are usually relieved to find out."

For OVO, the generational mix isn't just an internal consideration; it's a customer one, too. As Steve puts it: "A team that's curious about each other is a team that's better at understanding the people it serves, whether that's someone managing their energy through an app or someone who'd much rather pick up the phone."

Kirsteen Sommerville, Welfare Officer and Engender Co-Lead at OVO, joined the scheme as a reverse mentor: “Setting hierarchy aside, we established a warm, welcoming environment built on genuine human connection… In a short time, we developed deep trust around a shared purpose: advocating for our colleagues. I felt truly heard, and I saw the positive impact of our dialogue reflected in internal meetings during and after our mentorship.”

Anglian Water’s reverse mentoring scheme

At Anglian Water, around 100 colleagues are currently part of a reverse mentoring programme connecting senior leaders with colleagues from across the business. The conversations cover race and ethnicity, gender, LGBTQIA+ identities, neurodiversity, disability, and different generational experiences, helping leaders better understand the realities of working life for different colleagues.

Now in its third cohort, the programme has helped transform how senior leaders understand the experiences of their colleagues better. One participant shared: “I got involved in the reverse mentoring programme because sharing lived experience really matters to me. Learning goes both ways, and having open, honest conversations across different perspectives can challenge assumptions, build understanding, and help create more inclusive decisions that lead to real change."

Another participant added: "There were a few light bulb moments, particularly around understanding and perception of different backgrounds and seeing something through that mentee's lens versus my experiences…it really enabled us to share experiences and learn from both sides."