75-year-old Poul and 29-year-old Morten have a unique partnership

23. Oct 2023

5 min

Aged 29, Morten Zøllner Otte is the youngest at the office while Poul Søe Pedersen, aged 75, is the senior in the department.

They are an odd couple, yet perhaps not that odd.

Platform engineer Morten Zøllner Otte and system programmer Poul Søe Pedersen sit next to each other at the Danske Bank office in Høje Taastrup.

Aged 29, Morten Zøllner Otte is the youngest at the office while Poul Søe Pedersen, aged 75, is the senior in the department.

Whereas Poul has worked with Danske Bank’s systems since he first set his foot in the bank in 1976 – with a few secondments over the years – Morten only just joined four months ago as part of Danske Bank’s collaboration with Specialisterne. Specialisterne is an organisation that helps organisations integrate so-called neurodivergent people into the workplaces.

In a cold sweat for two weeks

Neurodiversity covers many things – ranging from ADHD, autism, mental illness or dyslexia. Neurodivergent people are often very good at specific things at the cost of being challenged in other areas.

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“I was in a cold sweat for most of the first couple of weeks, because I had to get to know my new colleagues.”

- Morten Zøllner Otte, Platform Engineer at Danske Bank

Morten Zøllner Otte has a knack for databases and computer systems. He can see and find system connections that others may not necessarily notice in the same way.

“I’m usually quite good at retrieving data and establishing links between data and getting it organised and arranged,” he explains.

And this is the very idea behind the bank’s collaboration with Specialisterne, namely that neurodivergent people should be integrated into the workplaces as valuable employees who think and solve problems differently.

Morten Zøllner Otte stutters sometimes – especially if he gets nervous. And socialising is challenging for him.

“I was in a cold sweat for most of the first couple of weeks, because I had to get to know my new colleagues, but now I don’t notice it as much,” he says.

Good teamwork

Being mentored by Poul Søe Pedersen and working closely with him has helped him in his daily activities.

Despite the big age difference and the fact that they are at very different stages in their professional lives, Morten Zøllner Otte finds they have a lot in common.

”None of us speak very much, but we work well together,” he explains.

And he is very impressed with Poul Søe Pedersen’s brain.

“He knows all these little functions, codes and shortcuts by heart. And not a week goes by without him teaching me a new trick or function that I cannot figure out how he remembers. It is truly impressive,” Morten Zøllner Otte adds.

“He is no more different than anyone of us. I have seen many different characters in my time with the bank. We are all different – and wouldn’t it be boring if we were all the same?”

- Poul Søe Pedersen, System Programmer at Danske Bank

Neurodivergence

The term neurodivergent means that the characteristics of the brain “diverge” from the majority, possibly leading to a diagnosis of ADHD, autism, mental disorders, epilepsy or other conditions. In essence, if you are neurodivergent, your brain is different from the majority.
Neurodivegent is an umbrella term invented to encompass all the different ways in which the brain may function atypically.

Source: Specialisterne (Danish glossary)

“He is no more different than anyone of us”

Poul Søe Pedersen is also pleased with the collaboration with Morten Zøllner Otte. In fact, he doesn’t buy into the idea that his 29-year-old colleague is different.

“I just don’t see it. He is no more different than anyone of us. I have seen many different characters in my time with the bank. We are all different – and wouldn’t it be boring if we were all the same?” says Poul Søe Pedersen smiling.

He did not know what neurodivergence was before Morten Zøllner Otte joined the department – admitting that he still doesn’t know what it really is, shrugging his shoulders.

He says that what distinguishes him the most from Morten Zøllner Otte is the fact that Morten comes into office and goes home at the exact same times every day.

“The working hours are more fluid to the rest of us, and we do not give it much thought whether we go home at 4 or 6pm,” says Poul Søe Pedersen.

A mutually benefiting relationship

Sometimes Morten Zøllner Otte has to solve tasks that Poul Søe Pedersen has never handled before. Then, they look up manuals together and try to come to a solution.

“It's good fun having a go at things you haven’t done before. In this way, he gives me just as much as I give him,” says Poul Søe Pedersen.

Despite his advanced age, Poul Søe Pedersen has no concrete plans of retiring any time soon. That said, he does believe it matters that he is mentoring Morten Zøllner Otte at a stage in his working life when he is fully aware that the next career step is retirement.

“I am probably a little more relaxed and don’t get worked up about this and that. What he doesn’t get done today, he’ll get done tomorrow,” he explains.

Time and openness

His best advice to others who will be working with a neurodivergent person is therefore to take the time needed to sit next to them during the day.

“It's no good if everyone is too busy with meetings and all sorts of things; then they will just be left in the corner doing nothing,” says Poul Søe Pedersen.
Morten Zøllner Otte’s best advice is to be open about the challenges you may have.

“We started off with an intro meeting where no stones were left unturned.” A really good idea in his opinion.

He also recommends having someone like Poul sitting next to you, so you can ask for advice during the day.

“Try to find a mentor figure if you can. Someone you can look to and learn from, until you have settled in.”