Generational Diversity at Work: a Systematic Review of the Research

Working Paper Series 2015/48/OB Generational Diversity at Work: A Systematic Review of the Research Ian C. Woodward INSEAD, [email protected] Pisitta Vongswasdi INSEAD, [email protected] Elizabeth A. More Australian Institute of Management, [email protected] July 2015 - Version 1.0 Note: This paper is part of an ongoing series of research projects in INSEAD’s Leadership and Communication Research Group. For the first time in modern history, workplace demographics now span up to four distinct generations. Therefore, intergenerational diversity is a timely issue, gathering increasing interest amongst academics, organizations and business executives. However, the evidence base in scholarly research on generational diversity at work is often contradictory and unclear. In this study we aim to identify and examine existing empirical research on generational differences in work-related characteristics to inform future focal areas for generational research related to leadership and management; as well as to synthesize the existing evidence of generational differences in a variety of work- related characteristics. We conduct a systematic review of the literature to synthesize empirical research in a rigorous manner (following a disciplined screening process, a final sample of 50 studies is examined). In the analysis, six key themes emerge: communication and technology; work motivators or preferred job characteristics; work values; work attitudes; workplace/career behaviors; and leadership preferences or behaviors. Our systematic review also reveals that the majority of empirical studies provide results which fully or partially support the existence of generational diversity; highlighting the importance of future research to address the potential differing needs and characteristics of each generation as they interact and work within organizations. Our study contributes to the development of generational theory, proposes specific areas for important future research priorities on the topic of generational diversity, and highlights some implications for organizational practice. Although the systematic review is not commonplace, our study does contribute to its application in the field of management. Keywords: Generational Differences; Intergenerational; Communication; Work Values; Work Attitudes; Work Behaviors; Careers; Leadership; Systematic Review. Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2630650 A Working Paper is the author’s intellectual property. It is intended as a means to promote research to interested readers. Its content should not be copied or hosted on any server without written permission from [email protected] Find more INSEAD papers at http://www.insead.edu/facultyresearch/research/search_papers.cfm Generational Diversity at Work: A Systematic Review of the Research “Each generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it.” George Orwell “As is the generation of leaves, so is that of humanity. The wind scatters the leaves on the ground, but the live timber burgeons with leaves again in the season of spring returning. So one generation of people will grow while another dies.” Homer, in Iliad Introduction In recent decades, workplace demographics are changing significantly (Roberson, 2012). One particular trend is an unprecedented shift in the composition of workforce populations—with three or four generations coming to work side-by-side in many organizations (Lancaster & Stillman, 2002). The challenge for organizations is to retain valuable senior employees whilst recruiting bright young talents. This hinges upon understanding different rewards requirements, development and training needs, and the motivations of different generational cohorts (Beechler & Woodward, 2009). Generational diversity might also hold important implications for interactions in the workplace that influence team and organizational operations and outcomes. On the one hand, interactions among generations with different experiences and perspectives can foster creativity and innovation (Meredith et al., 2002). On the other hand, generational differences can lead to negative organizational outcomes such as conflicts, misunderstanding, and miscommunication (Jurkiewicz, 2000; Smola & Sutton, 2002). As a result, organizations and practitioners are expressing interest in identifying ways to manage people from several different generations, and to better adapt the workplace to this multigenerational labor force (Parry & Urwin, 2011). 1 Despite William Strauss and Neil Howe theorizing on the concept of generational cohorts almost three decades ago (Strauss & Howe, 1991), it remains understudied in academia compared to the widespread attention it receives in the popular press. The issue of generational diversity and its implications in the workplace is extensively discussed in books such as Sticking Points: How To Get 4 Generations Working Together in the 12 Places They Come Apart (Shaw, 2013); Harvard Business Review articles such as How Gen Y & Boomers Will Reshape Your Agenda (Hewlett, Sherbin, & Sumberg, 2009); and business consultant publications such as PricewaterhouseCoopers’s Engaging and Empowering Millennials (PWC, 2014). On the basis of such publications, the media often depicts a strong generational divide, as expressed in titles such as Business Insider’s Why Generational Conflict Is Coming to Your Office (Giang, 2012), Forbes’s Generation Gap: How Technology has Changed How We Talk About Work (Savitz, 2012), or The Economist’s Winning the Generation Game (Economist, 2013). These seem to indicate that the idea of generational differences has been consolidated and accepted as common wisdom (See stereotypical characteristics of generations in Appendix 1). Notwithstanding significant interest and concern about generations in the practitioner realm, the empirical research evidence on how generations differ is unclear or contradictory. Some scholars suggest that the generational approach ‘may be more popular culture rather than social science’ (Giancola, 2006, p.33), as the accounts of generations inundating us via the popular press usually rely on personal observation, speculations, anecdotal evidence, or data not otherwise open to critical peer review. Moreover, the limited empirical studies based on rigorous research methodology published in academia that do exist, offer findings that, taken together, are somewhat inconsistent and on occasion contrary to the generational stereotypes commonly accepted in popular literature (see Macky et al., 2008; Parry & Urwin, 2011). Although one stream of research finds support for stereotypes concerning generational differences, another stream of empirical studies fails to find substantial and meaningful generational differences (e.g. Hart, 2006; Jurkiewicz, 2000; Wong et al., 2008). The inconsistencies found in these studies raise questions as to the extent to which generational differences actually exist in the workplace, if at all. 2 The mixed support for generational differences mentioned above might seem to indicate that organizational efforts intended to promote effective management of workers from different generations may be unnecessary, or that continuing to examine generational differences may no longer be a fruitful expedition. However, we argue that it is too premature to arrive at such conclusions given the nascent state of the research and debate, and that there is still much value to be gained from studying intergenerational differences in the workplace. Compared to the study of social diversity categories such as race and gender, the research on generational diversity is much less developed (Shore et al., 2009). Moreover, unlike other forms of diversity, belonging to a generation is an experience that most human beings will have, and this experience has a temporal element as humans move through various stages of their lifespan (Lyons & Kuron, 2014). Therefore, more and continuous generational research is needed to understand the nature, characteristics, and consequences of supposed generational differences (Costanza et al., 2012), thereby illuminating the implications of generations in organizational life. Our paper begins by outlining the background to our systematic review on generational diversity research. Second, we describe the theoretical development and conceptual approaches that underlie the study of generational differences. Third, we review the literature on the relevance of generational differences in the workplace. Fourth, we offer a brief discussion of the challenges associated with the conduct of research in this arena. Fifth, we describe the methods we employ for our systematic review of the empirical research in this field. Sixth, we present our findings, followed by a discussion of our systematic review on empirical studies exploring generational differences. We conclude by offering suggestions for future research; implications; and related recommendations for organizational leaders and practitioners based on the research to date. 3 1. Background to Our Systematic Review The main purposes of this paper are to: 1) Identify and examine the empirical research previously undertaken, either quantitatively or qualitatively (or both), on generational differences, to inform discussion on future generational research and theory; 2) Synthesize the known evidence of generational differences (or similarities) into various work-related characteristics for the benefit

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