Managing a Multigenerational Workforce

Ransom Cooner is a 63-year-old owner of a successful small business. Recently, he agreed to an intern program to mentor new, younger employees. Last week, he invited the newest intern to sit in on a sales meeting with his best customer. When he arrived in the conference room, he found his customer talking to a young woman dressed in cargo pants, a tight tee shirt, and a ring in her pierced eyebrow--his newest intern! This was the magna cum laude graduate recently hired? He couldn't believe what he was seeing. What was HR thinking?

Mr. Cooner's experience isn't unusual. Today's workforce has at least three generations, each with distinct characteristics that are products of their unique circumstances--economic, social and historical.
The oldest group--the veterans came of age during the Great Depression. When duty called, they willingly participated in WWII. Tom Brokaw has called this the "Greatest Generation". Through their sacrifices they prospered. After the war they rebuilt the economy and produced the largest number of Americans ever-the Baby Boomers.

Their values were based on these experiences--respect for authority, honor, and delayed gratification. They were conformist in their dress, their life style and their commitment to law and order.
Veteran wives stayed home in new track housing and raised their children. These children enjoyed coming home to mom, got help with homework, and were encouraged to "play nice" with their numerous siblings and friends as they participated in social activities. The focus was on "youth".
Boomers believed they were the center of attention. They redefined traditional family roles, raised the divorce rate, and challenged the rules of their veteran parents. They took pride in being individuals, and looked for opportunities to "stand out". They became a generation of driven achievers. They worked overtime and weekends. They bought expensive cars, designer eyeglasses and accumulated unprecedented credit card debt.

In the workplace they got along pretty well with their veteran bosses. They had a strong work ethic, and were willing to stay with an employer for the long haul. At least, until the mid 1980s.
While Boomer moms and dads worked, day-care centers for their children proliferated. And, when the kids were older, they got their own key to the house and let themselves in after school. Generation X filled the "home alone" hours with the telephone and the computer. They became adept at talking on the phone while talking online--all in the company of the television. The nuked their dinner and dealt with household chores. These experiences made them very creative, self-reliant and adept at multi-tasking--all useful skills in the workplace.

While this generation was at home becoming techno literate, they were not involved in group activities, like their predecessors. Consequently, they tend to lack the people skills of their parents. They like informality and fun, and are not impressed with titles and hierarchies.
Their approach to work is one of balance. They see work as a means to an end. They are quick to say they “have a life”, and work is a part of it, not the end all.
Which brings us back to Mr. Cooner. If he is going to get the full benefit of this talented new intern, he’ll need to learn the messages that motivate this generation. (You’ll probably want to hear this, too.)

·Appeal to her sense of self-reliance. “I’ll give you the assignment. Let me know if you need any help. “ Don’t try to micromanage.
·Understand they don’t relate to workaholism. “I want you to have a life.”
·They watched their parents go through downsizing, right sizing and re-engineering. They know there are no 30 year jobs, so they’re looking to build their skill sets. “You’ll get several weeks of training this year.”
·You’re going to need a “business casual” dress code, but to minimize surprises, it would be a good idea to define it.

The Boomers have begun retiring. Over the next eight years, industry anticipates losing approximately 30% of their workforce to retirements. The public sector is experience a greater impact. Recently, Keith Charles, Director, Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Career Management, estimated the Department of Defense will lose 50% of their workforce by the year 2008. Add to that there are roughly 5 million fewer Generation Xers than Baby Boomers to fill the jobs vacated by the retiree. Employers will need to find ways to assimilate this newest addition to the management team into the work culture.

Education is the key to understanding these differences. Being open to new business practices will make the difference between successful business, and business focused on intergenerational differences instead of the work at hand.