Deesha is making her mark on Barclays through the Emerge employee network’s reverse mentoring program

My name is Deesha, and I’m a Human Resources Analyst. I first learned about Emerge, Barclays’ multigenerational employee network, when I was a summer intern in 2015. I attended the network’s launch event that summer, and immediately knew I would want to be more involved with this network when I joined Barclays full-time. It didn’t take long! During my first month as a Graduate, I was approached by one of the Emerge Steering Committee members to assist with the Reverse Mentoring Program that was rolling out in October.

The purpose of the Reverse Mentoring Program is to foster professional relationships between junior and senior level employees. Unlike traditional mentoring programs, this program aims to foster a two-way relationship which can help senior employees (the mentees) understand the perspectives of junior employees (the mentors), and vice versa. Additionally, this program is a great way for individuals to connect with others who they may not necessarily interact with on an everyday basis. Not only did I sign up to be a mentor in this program, but I have also signed up to be a Reverse Mentoring Ambassador and I helped coordinate the Reverse Mentoring launch event.

Barclays is constantly striving to create an interactive culture amongst employees of all levels.

In preparation for the Reverse Mentoring launch event, I led weekly meetings ensuring that all logistics were in order. I helped create an engaging activity that was used during the launch event, attracting event attendees to participate in this initiative.

Ultimately, our launch event was a success - we had a phenomenal turnout and over 200 individuals signed up to either be a mentor or a mentee! Individuals who signed up ranged from Analyst to Managing Director, and come from divisions including Banking, Markets, Research, Risk, Audit, Finance, Tax, Treasury, Compliance, Technology and Human Resources.

As a Reverse Mentoring Ambassador going forward, I am in charge of overseeing mentor/mentee relationships throughout the course of the program, and will have regular check-ins with each pair of mentors and mentees to ensure that the program is constantly being enhanced and improved.

As someone who is now a full-time employee at Barclays, I feel like I have been able to make a significant impact. Being a part of the Emerge network has been a rewarding experience and has shown me that Barclays is constantly striving to create an interactive culture amongst employees of all levels. I am excited to see the Reverse Mentoring Program continue in action, and how it will engage current and future leaders of the firm.