Reverse Mentorship: What tomorrow’s publishing stars can teach us today

Are experience and seniority the only sources of wisdom? What can we learn from each other in a rapidly changing world?

Alicia Liu, founder of Singing Grass, spoke in a joint Masterclass by International Publishers Association - PublisHER and the Frankfurt Book Fair (Frankfurter Buchmesse) about how publishing businesses can benefit from letting younger professionals take the lead where they are strongest.

Our key takeaways: 

In the traditional Chinese culture, there is respect for elders. however, for online platforms, especially since the pandemic, have democratised work as the younger generations are leading sales and content creation.

In China, there is a hierarchical structure around age, and the respect that should be given to elders. The structure carried over into the business world, and impacted how employees were viewed, promoted, and trusted. Now, however, the huge generational difference between employees is stark and can be seen in the key differences of skillsets and educational background. 

Many of the younger people in the workplaces studied abroad, and they grew up with technology and the digital connectivity that companies are trying to leverage. The younger employees have an inherent advantage with the pace that society is advancing, and can adeptly use the subculture of the internet, social media, and technology to drive positive changes. 

This will not restructure the whole culture of work in China, but it has allowed for more co-creation and the democratisation of the work structure. We see younger employees taking the lead and responsibility for projects; the expansion of global networks; and most importantly, we see their impact on short video content creation, live-streaming driven marketing approach and mobile purchases.

Watch the PublisHer Frankfurt Masterclass - Reverse Mentorship online here: