Bridging the Generational Gap
Ashley Tare | City of Lynchburg [email protected] (434) 455-3932
Today’s Current Workforce
• Baby Boomers • Generation X • Generation Y / Millennials • Generation Z / Boomlets
Objectives:
• To give you practical tools to use in your workplace • To help you gain a better understanding of different generations • To help you more effectively supervise and work well within teams • To help you intentionally equip the next generation of leaders
Article by Ira S. Wolfe: “I Asked Managers to Describe Millennials, Here's What Happened Next”
Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 (55-73)
Popular Songs
Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 (55-73)
Events:
• End of World War II • Vietnam drafts
Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 (55-73)
“Pioneers”
• Car phones • Space exploration • Instant camera • “Lazy Bones” • Direct dial telephone service
Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 (55-73)
“Pioneers”
• Cassette tapes • Shopping malls and Walmart • American moon landing • Barbie doll
Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 (55-73)
Medicine:
• Polio vaccinations • Anti-smoking campaigns
Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 (55-73)
Entertainment:
• “I Love Lucy” • Elvis Presley, The Beach Boys, Buddy Holly
Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 (55-73)
Politics:
• Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech • President Kennedy’s assassination • President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act
Born before 1946 What’s trending?
• Face-to-face interaction • Auditory learners • Meetings and committees • Resistant to change • Company loyalty and legacy • Technology averse • Value hard work: “Live to Work"
In practice:
• Face-to-face news and updates • “Talk things out” • Action items in meetings • Working with change: “What would need to be in place to make this work?” “Is the way we’re currently doing it most effective?” In practice:
• Acknowledge loyalty and legacy • Ask their opinion based on their experience • Longevity vs. competence • Communicate values • Train technology use
Generation X: 1965-1982 (37-54)
Popular Songs
Generation X: 1965-1982 (37-54)
Events:
• Landmark TV series: “All in the Family,” “Wheel of Fortune,” and “Saturday Night Live” • Mass layoffs, unemployment, and inflation
Generation X: 1965-1982 (37-54)
“Advancers”
• Home personal computers • Flight travel • Medicine • Visual stimulation
Generation X: 1965-1982 (37-54)
Entertainment:
• Superbowl • Woodstock • Drug overdose
Generation X: 1965-1982 (37-54)
Medicine:
• AIDS
Generation X: 1965-1982 (37-54)
Politics:
• Voting Rights Act • Feminism • Watergate scandal • End of Vietnam war • President Nixon’s resignation
Baby Boomers
1946 - 1964 What’s trending?
• “Latch-key” kids • Visual learners • Workplace freedom and flexibility • “Work smarter, not harder” • Distrust institutions and authority • Technological multi-taskers • Value family life: “Work to Live"
In practice:
• Independent • Visual news and updates • Productive meetings • Efficiency • Trust is earned • Work-life balance
Generation Y/Millennial: 1983-2001 (18-36)
Popular Songs
Generation Y/Millennial: 1983-2001 (18-36)
Events:
• Explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger • Stalking, child abuse, and sexual abuse • Columbine shooting • Y2K • 9/11
Generation Y/Millennial: 1983-2001 (18-36)
Entertainment:
• “60 Minutes” and “20/20” • WWE • Nintendo entertainment system • “The Simpsons”
Generation Y/Millennial: 1983-2001 (18-36)
Medicine:
• Eating disorders
Generation Y/Millennial: 1983-2001 (18-36)
Politics:
• President Bush declares “War on Drugs” • Gulf War • President Clinton’s scandal • No Child Left Behind Act • Invasion in Afghanistan
Generation X
1965 - 1982 What’s trending?
• Communication via technology • Kinesthetic learners • Workplace individuality and flexibility • “Why?” • Competency in leadership • Educational pressure • Instant gratification What’s trending?
• Technology for efficiency • “Adaptors” • Value passion: “Pursue satisfying work”
In practice:
• Bite-sized; clickbait • Learn by doing • Give them directives, goals, and development • Speak to the “why” • Earn their trust • It takes time; “Good things don’t come easy” In practice:
• “Tech support” • Equip the “adaptors” for change • Find their motivators
Gen Z/Boomlets: 2002-Current (0-17)
Popular Songs
Gen Z/Boomlets: 2002-Current (0-17)
Events:
• V-Tech shooting • Stock market crash • Rise in mass murders • Clicklist and online shopping
Gen Z/Boomlets: 2002-Current (0-17)
Technology:
• Facebook • iPhone • Social media
Gen Z/Boomlets: 2002-Current (0-17)
Entertainment:
• YouTube • Twitter • Netflix binge watching • “The Office,” “This is Us,” and “Game of Thrones”
Gen Z/Boomlets: 2002-Current (0-17)
Medicine:
• Mental health disorders
Gen Z/Boomlets: 2002-Current (0-17)
Politics:
• A lot
Generation Y
1983 - 2001 What’s trending?
• Virtual communication • Technologically immersed • Socially connected, socially isolated • Highlight reel • Live feed • Collaborative
What’s trending?
• Rapid information processing • Peer reviews, SMEs • Value impact: “Do meaningful work”
In practice:
• Value the human connection • Allow failure • Close the feedback loop • Mind the authority gap • Tie work to impact In practice:
• Organization, systems, software improvement • Collaboration • Know your facts Objectives:
• To give you practical tools to use in your workplace • To help you gain a better understanding of different generations • To help you more effectively supervise and work well within teams • To help you intentionally equip the next generation of leaders
How can you empower the next generation?
• Identify and appreciate their differences • Draw out the good characteristics • Be mindful of how you’re raising the next generation • Invest in the next line of leaders
Bridging the Generational Gap Contact Information:
• Ashley Tare | City of Lynchburg • [email protected] • (434) 455-3932