Are you working with a team of orange-haired GenYs and gray-haired GIs? Are you suffering from a generation gap at work?
In an economy where young talent stay with employers an average of 18-36 months and veteran employees work well past age 65, companies are challenged by the expectations and dynamics of four distinctly different generations at work.
Four generations at work can sound like cacophony, like the noise a symphony makes when it's warming up. No one is playing the same song. Everyone's jamming on his or her own unique instrument. When you listen, your hair bristles. It gets louder and louder. Your ears start to bleed. Forget nails on a chalkboard, cacophony is awful!
Then a small miracle happens. A conductor steps to the platform. After some brief eye contact and a sharp wag of the baton, a melody begins. Then comes the harmony. Soon full-blown creative expression is springing, plucking, and pounding from instruments that just a moment ago sounded like hell.
Multi-age teams can be like that. Disorganized. Chaotic. Icky. Or they can be like a symphony: coordinated, creative, and captivating. Which do you want to be?
Snapshots: Four Generations at Work
So let's take a look at the four generations at work. We'll start with seasoned pros and trickle down to the newbies.
GIs
Birthdays: 1925-1942
Also Known As: "Veterans" or "Traditionalists"
Events that Shaped Them: Great Depression; Franklin Delano Roosevelt; WW2
Defining Question: "Where were you when you heard the atomic bomb was dropped?
Typical Workplace Characteristics: Somewhat risk averse; "by-the-book" mentality; value security, bank, and authority; punctual, won't skip work because their hair hurts.
Cutting Edge Technology: Punch card machine
Famous Folks: Neil Armstrong, Gloria Steinem
GIs are patriotic. Many were first or second generation Americans, or they and their families fought in World Wars. GIs have a strong sense of "Americanism" and respect authority. The values of hard work, dedication and honesty they espouse are still referred to today as "traditional" or "family" values.
BABY BOOMERS
Birthdays: 1943-1960
Also Known As: "Me Generation"
Events that Shaped Them: Vietnam War; Woodstock; ERA; The Pill; Watergate
Defining Question: "Where were you when you learned President Kennedy had been shot?"
Typical Workplace Characteristics: First generation of "workaholics" and dual-income families; willing to work 60+ hour weeks; brought consensus building and TQM to workplace.
Cutting Edge Technology: Computer
Famous Folks: Angela Davis; Steven Spielberg
Many Baby Boomers were squeezed out of work in the massive lay-off's of the mid-80's and are still suffering from "the broken promise" of loyalty between corporations and employees. Boomers may feel a general sense of dis-ease with risk, but believe they must "innovate or die" as the Baby Boomer management icon Tom Peters suggests.
GENERATION X
Birthdays: 1961-1981
Also Known As: "13th Generation;" "Lost Generation"
Events That Shaped Them: Missing children on milk cartons, cable TV; mid-80's recession; computers in classrooms; internet
Defining Question: "Where were you when the space shuttle Challenger exploded?"
Typical Workplace Characteristics: Gen Xers change jobs every 18-36 months; have a healthy disdain for hierarchy; and want a "fun" workplace where they can learn new skills, build their contact database, and enhance their portfolio.
Cutting Edge Technology: Blackberry
Famous Folks: Jeff Bezos; Alannis Morisette
Gen Xers are America's first generation of latchkey kids. They have been self-sufficient from early ages. They're skeptical of institutions. They are savvy with media, information and technology. Gen Xers are comfortable with change, and constantly seek new opportunities to advance their skills. They're the largest generation of entrepreneurs in the country.
MILLENNIALS
Birthdays: 1982-2001
AKA "The Echo Boom," "Generation Y"
Events That Shaped Them: President Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal; school shootings; Nintendo and Sega
Defining Question: Where were you when you saw the World Trade Centers collapse?
Typical Workplace Characteristics: Millennials value information and communication; favor a democratic work atmosphere; want their ideas to be heard and demand hands-on management and leadership.
Cutting Edge Technology: IM
Icons: Jennifer Lopez; Kobe Bryant
Millennials say their goal is to be "smart." They value information and learned conflict negotiation skills in elementary school. They believe in democratic processes on the job and want everyone's voice to be heard. Raised in zero-tolerance school environments, Millennials have lower rates of violence, drug use, sex, and abortion than the two preceding generations.
Troubleshooting Guide for Multi-Age Teams
Following is a list of common quirks, conflicts, and complaints among multi-age teams. Where do you see yourself? Your team? Use this guide as a conversation starter at your next staff meeting. Don't forget to read the fourth section of this chapter for a checklist on moving from conflict to cooperation!
If the problem is... Then you might try to...
We can't hang onto young talent.
Readjust your expectations. Most young employees stay with a company between 18 and 36 months. They sometimes leave for more money. They often leave for new opportunities. What can you do to offer new opportunities at your company? Flexible scheduling, various and interesting projects, and rotating team leadership are popular for young talent. Young employees aren't interested in climbing a career ladder. They're building a career web.
Younger employees want things to happen yesterday and our older employees resist change.
Organize a "Knowledge Café" to unearth the unspoken intergenerational conflict. Pour some fresh coffee and divide the team into subgroups of 4-6 people. If your team has less than 6 people, everyone works together. Ask the following questions: What do you find frustrating about working with people who are older than you? What do you find frustrating about working with people younger than you? After each group has shared their perspectives, challenge them to devise some ground rules for working together. Post the ground rules at all future meetings.
Older employees aren't willing to embrace the technology we've put in place to make our division run more smoothly.
Match them with a tech-savvy youngster. In general, employees of any age will learn what's required of them if the expectation is clearly explained. If you've done that, then your veterans may need additional help. Match them with a younger employee who understands the technology and can teach its uses to the older employee.
Checklist: 6 Steps to Move from Conflict to Cooperation
- Say "Hi" to everyone, everyday. Most people greet coworkers who are like them due to age, rank, ethnicity, department, or interests. Tomorrow, learn the name of one new coworker and make a point of saying "Hi" to them each day. Rinse. Repeat.
- Stop trying to be right. Focus on being effective. Each generation has their own "right" way, and many of those ways work. Honor each generation's differences. A young saleswoman may prefer to email a Thank You greeting instead of writing and mailing a note. As long as the client feels appreciated, does it really matter how employees communicate their thanks?
- Give every new employee a seasoned employee as a mentor for six months. The goal of intergenerational mentoring is to make the implicit norms, values and OPs (operating procedures) explicit for new hires. There's a lot of stuff that goes on at your bank that's not in the Policy and Procedures Manual! As a mentor once told me, "We old dogs know how things work around here, so shut up for a minute and let me show you."
- What's good for the goose is good for the gander - try "Reverse Mentoring." Give seasoned talent their own youngster to help learn new software or technology upgrades.
- Look in the mirror. Does your bank or department have only "one kind" of leader? If every manager is a cookie cutter of the next, you're not valuing all generations. Your leadership team should accurately reflect the ages, ethnicities, and interests of your workforce, clients, and partners.
- When all else fails, call an expert. Next Generation Consulting provides a complimentary list of experts, consultants, and authors on multi-age, diverse workplaces. Call us toll free at (888) 922-9596.
What are you doing to help GIs and Gen-Ys work together at your company?
Recommended Resources:
The Productivity Path by Rebecca Ryan, et. al.; © 2001; Marocom
Generations: The History of America's Future, 1584 to 2069 by William Strauss & Neil Howe; © 1991; Quill
Generations at Work by Ron Zemke, Claire Raines, and Bob Filipczak; © 2000; Amacom
Mentoring for Success by Dr. Elizabeth Weinstein; American Media Publishing
The Greatest Generation by Tom Brokaw; © 1998; Random House
Comments
