5 Generations Excerpt
There is a great generational divide that exists in our culture which began around 2011. This causes confusion, conflict, productivity challenges, customer issues, leadership and management gaps, workplace tension, and loss in revenue and profitability. How can we manage these gaps and even more importantly, use them to our advantage? Read on…
How can we manage the generational diversity gaps at work?
Our first goal is to clearly define each generation. Understanding the generations from a black and white viewpoint will then help us more clearly understand the grey zones. There is no one size fits all, put someone in a box method here. There are Traditionalists who are agile on a Smartphone and Gen Y’s who prefer to use a paper planner to track their calendar. Never assume.
As you read this, identify your own preferences. Perhaps create a page of notes for each employee, supervisor, manager, etc. to identify their preferences. As you do this, you will gain clarity as to how the generations work (or potentially are not working) in your company. This simple exercise can become the awareness piece necessary for change.
Here is a scenario to consider: the culture in your organization when you consider your people, processes, and technology align with Baby Boomers. You hire a young Gen Y or Gen Z with the expectation that they should fit right into how you do things and then find them unhappy, non-productive, rebellious, critical, etc. This move may have the best intentions in getting some younger people into the organization, but it sadly ends in turmoil and turnover. Typically, we blame the new hire for the problems and scapegoat them for all of “their issues”. Let us ask you, “What is your part in it?” That question will get a myriad of responses from a mystified look on one’s face to frustrated finger-pointing. As you read this book, we hope that you will gain much more clarity in understanding the answer to that question. We also hope that this book becomes your handbook for understanding the people around you with a heightened level of awareness and acceptance.
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