H
How To Turn The Generational Divide Into A Winning Business Strategy
It may not be evident; it might be just beneath the
surface. You may have seen glimpses of it…throw in some baby boomers and
millennials in an enclosed space and you’re looking at a combustible mix of
personal and professional differences and (mis)perceptions.
Close to twenty-five percent of HR professionals
surveyed by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in 2011 reported some generational conflict in the workplace. The tensions seem all but
inevitable, as millennials (those born between 1981 and 2000) and boomers have
very different outlooks on work, life, and technology. Whether their
perceptions of each other are accurate or not (many are actually not),
forty-seven percent of younger workers complained that older managers were
resistant to change and tended to micromanage. Meanwhile, roughly thirty-three
percent of baby boomers polled complained that their millennial counterparts
were too informal, entitled, entirely too dependent on technology, and lacked
respect for authority.
Trends indicate that these conflicts will increase
— particularly as baby boomers delay retirement and stay in the workforce, and
millennials begin to take management positions where they manage significantly
older, arguably more experienced co-workers (by 2016, millennials will account
for nearly half of all employees worldwide). If not handled in a timely,
discrete, and professional fashion, tensions can escalate, affecting not just
the parties directly involved, but the entire workforce. This creates a
charged, divisive environment as battle lines are drawn. Chronic unresolved
conflicts — and the stress that results — is cited as a decisive factor in at least 50% percent of employee departures.
If not handled in a timely,
discrete, and professional fashion, tensions can escalate, affecting not just
the parties directly involved, but the entire workforce.
Mediating inter-company conflicts is always about moving
all involved parties to more harmonious ground — or moving from conflict to
cooperation. The tensions between millennials and baby boomers may seem
inevitable and tractable, but as any conflict resolution expert will tell you,
the first step is to bring grievances into the open, which begins to bring
differences and, perhaps most importantly, misconceptions to the forefront.
From there, it’s imperative that the organization — or an outside mediator —
establish a framework that encourages open and productive discussion; rather
than focus on conflict that arises from intergenerational differences, the
focus ought to be on the benefits of cultivating a multigenerational workforce.
As any Beatles fan would agree, the personality differences and artistic tensions
between the principle songwriters — Lennon and McCartney — propelled their
creativity and shaped their sound. In other words, conflict, if handled
properly, can create previously unforeseen opportunities.
Turning conflict into creative cooperation
Elfego Gomez, an organizational training consultant
in Colorado Springs conducts a workshop on generation gaps. He starts his
sessions by asking participants questions such as: Are you comfortable calling
superiors by their first names? Do you prefer chunky or smooth peanut butter?
“I’m trying to get people to see if age really is the defining thing, or are we
just different people,” Gomez, a 56-year-old baby boomer, said. “We have more
similarities than differences. And that’s not determined solely by generation.”
This is not to deny the differences and tensions
between and among different generations working together under the same roof.
Gomez’s exercise helps participants to see beyond categories and preconceived
notions, and, in effect, see each other in a new, often more revealing light.
While some, maybe even many generational attitudes and behaviors might still
apply, it becomes easier for people of different generations to begin seeing
some fundamental similarities — from principles to priorities to, at a very
basic level, their common likes and dislikes. This begins to break down largely
artificial barriers and start moving the conversation toward shared goals and
how the real and/or perceived work style and personality differences among the
participants can be integrated into a working framework where the whole is
greater — which is to say, more productive — than the sum of its parts.
There’s a fine line between
creative tension and genuine conflict and not all organizations have the
capability, capacity, or objectivity to discern the difference.
Making intergenerational differences work for the
organization
As Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel once memorably said,
“never let a crisis go to waste.” While there may be tensions and conflicts
arising from intergenerational conflict, the differences can actually give rise
to a more diverse, more representative, and better-prepared workforce. In other
words, a multigenerational workforce, if tensions are handled in a timely and
effective manner, can be a significant organizational strength. Consider the
following:
·
Recruitment
and retention: A
multigenerational workforce improves your ability to attract and retain
talented people of all ages.
·
More flexible
teams: Teams made up of different
generations have a broader array of tools to offer, from new technologies to
solutions based on years of industry experience. Think of it as blending
traditional, proven business methodologies with new technologies for everything
from micro-targeted communications to analytics — offering customers a far
broader range of service options and solutions.
·
It makes
(business) sense: Multigenerational
teams can maintain and expand market share because its members reflect a
multigenerational market.
·
Better
decisions: Decisions are
stronger because they’re broad-based with multiple perspectives.
·
The team is
more innovative and creative: “creative
tensions” forge solutions that are stronger for having undergone intense,
rigorous internal debate.
·
Increased
diversity: The multigenerational
team can meet the needs of a diverse public as they can relate more
effectively.
·
Knowledge
transfer: baby boomers have valuable
experience, millennials are highly educated and have valuable skills. Promoting
knowledge transfer is key to bridging the “divide,” though it’s hard to promote
sharing when there’s lingering suspicion and unease between and among the
generations. In order to lower the divide, organizations can promote both
mentor programs where older employees can take younger colleagues under their
wind and programs led by younger employees that demystify the technologies and
tools they and their cohort use on an everyday basis. There’s a lot of
practical, experiential “stuff” the generations can learn from each other, so
long as the organization implements a framework that promotes these kinds of
regular interactions.
While there may be tensions and conflicts arising
from intergenerational conflict, the differences can actually give rise to a
more diverse, more representative, and better-prepared workforce.
There’s a fine line between creative tension and
genuine conflict and not all organizations have the capability, capacity, or
objectivity to discern the difference. Serious personality and even legitimate
professional differences can place your organization under tremendous strain,
draining critical resources and energy. Stress can lead to conflict, conflict
can lead to stress, creating a feedback loop that escalates tensions and
day-to-day organizational dysfunction. If not caught early, conflict can spread
and turn the workplace toxic. Outside mediation, when brought in at the right
time, can lower the stress, move all parties toward more harmonious ground, and
limit “collateral damage” — from an unfocused workforce to the loss of top
leadership talent.
This year, the millennial generation is projected
to surpass the outsized baby boomer generation as the nation’s largest living
generation, according to the population projections released by the U.S. Census
Bureau last month. Millennials are projected to number 75.3 million, surpassing the projected 74.9 million baby
boomers (ages 51 to 69). The Gen X population (ages 35 to 50 in 2015) is
projected to outnumber the baby boomers by 2028. Business leaders need to think
more about how to exploit each generation’s natural characteristics, i.e., the
millennial generation’s natural talent for social connectedness, technology,
ambition, and creativity, as tomorrow’s most successful organizations will be
those that are able to build harmonious cultures on the strength of their
differences.
Did you like
today’s post? If so you’ll love our frequent newsletter! Sign up here and receive
The Switch and Shift Change Playbook, by Shawn Murphy, as our thanks to you!
Recommended
For You
Pesquisa, Divulgação: Miguel Moyses Neto Se gostou
desta matéria , divulgue para seus amigos.
Visite nosso linkedin http://br.linkedin.com/pub/miguel-moyses-neto/28/971/9aa---Twitter: @mikenetIT onde VC poderá ver as principais
agencias de noticias e os links das empresas & nomes mais famosos do mundo!
ou simplesmente visite nosso blog :
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ow To Turn The Generational Divide Into A Winning Business Strategy
It may not be evident; it might be just beneath the
surface. You may have seen glimpses of it…throw in some baby boomers and
millennials in an enclosed space and you’re looking at a combustible mix of
personal and professional differences and (mis)perceptions.
Close to twenty-five percent of HR professionals
surveyed by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in 2011 reported some generational conflict in the workplace. The tensions seem all but
inevitable, as millennials (those born between 1981 and 2000) and boomers have
very different outlooks on work, life, and technology. Whether their
perceptions of each other are accurate or not (many are actually not),
forty-seven percent of younger workers complained that older managers were
resistant to change and tended to micromanage. Meanwhile, roughly thirty-three
percent of baby boomers polled complained that their millennial counterparts
were too informal, entitled, entirely too dependent on technology, and lacked
respect for authority.
Trends indicate that these conflicts will increase
— particularly as baby boomers delay retirement and stay in the workforce, and
millennials begin to take management positions where they manage significantly
older, arguably more experienced co-workers (by 2016, millennials will account
for nearly half of all employees worldwide). If not handled in a timely,
discrete, and professional fashion, tensions can escalate, affecting not just
the parties directly involved, but the entire workforce. This creates a
charged, divisive environment as battle lines are drawn. Chronic unresolved
conflicts — and the stress that results — is cited as a decisive factor in at least 50% percent of employee departures.
If not handled in a timely,
discrete, and professional fashion, tensions can escalate, affecting not just
the parties directly involved, but the entire workforce.
Mediating inter-company conflicts is always about moving
all involved parties to more harmonious ground — or moving from conflict to
cooperation. The tensions between millennials and baby boomers may seem
inevitable and tractable, but as any conflict resolution expert will tell you,
the first step is to bring grievances into the open, which begins to bring
differences and, perhaps most importantly, misconceptions to the forefront.
From there, it’s imperative that the organization — or an outside mediator —
establish a framework that encourages open and productive discussion; rather
than focus on conflict that arises from intergenerational differences, the
focus ought to be on the benefits of cultivating a multigenerational workforce.
As any Beatles fan would agree, the personality differences and artistic tensions
between the principle songwriters — Lennon and McCartney — propelled their
creativity and shaped their sound. In other words, conflict, if handled
properly, can create previously unforeseen opportunities.
Turning conflict into creative cooperation
Elfego Gomez, an organizational training consultant
in Colorado Springs conducts a workshop on generation gaps. He starts his
sessions by asking participants questions such as: Are you comfortable calling
superiors by their first names? Do you prefer chunky or smooth peanut butter?
“I’m trying to get people to see if age really is the defining thing, or are we
just different people,” Gomez, a 56-year-old baby boomer, said. “We have more
similarities than differences. And that’s not determined solely by generation.”
This is not to deny the differences and tensions
between and among different generations working together under the same roof.
Gomez’s exercise helps participants to see beyond categories and preconceived
notions, and, in effect, see each other in a new, often more revealing light.
While some, maybe even many generational attitudes and behaviors might still
apply, it becomes easier for people of different generations to begin seeing
some fundamental similarities — from principles to priorities to, at a very
basic level, their common likes and dislikes. This begins to break down largely
artificial barriers and start moving the conversation toward shared goals and
how the real and/or perceived work style and personality differences among the
participants can be integrated into a working framework where the whole is
greater — which is to say, more productive — than the sum of its parts.
There’s a fine line between
creative tension and genuine conflict and not all organizations have the
capability, capacity, or objectivity to discern the difference.
Making intergenerational differences work for the
organization
As Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel once memorably said,
“never let a crisis go to waste.” While there may be tensions and conflicts
arising from intergenerational conflict, the differences can actually give rise
to a more diverse, more representative, and better-prepared workforce. In other
words, a multigenerational workforce, if tensions are handled in a timely and
effective manner, can be a significant organizational strength. Consider the
following:
·
Recruitment
and retention: A
multigenerational workforce improves your ability to attract and retain
talented people of all ages.
·
More flexible
teams: Teams made up of different
generations have a broader array of tools to offer, from new technologies to
solutions based on years of industry experience. Think of it as blending
traditional, proven business methodologies with new technologies for everything
from micro-targeted communications to analytics — offering customers a far
broader range of service options and solutions.
·
It makes
(business) sense: Multigenerational
teams can maintain and expand market share because its members reflect a
multigenerational market.
·
Better
decisions: Decisions are
stronger because they’re broad-based with multiple perspectives.
·
The team is
more innovative and creative: “creative
tensions” forge solutions that are stronger for having undergone intense,
rigorous internal debate.
·
Increased
diversity: The multigenerational
team can meet the needs of a diverse public as they can relate more
effectively.
·
Knowledge
transfer: baby boomers have valuable
experience, millennials are highly educated and have valuable skills. Promoting
knowledge transfer is key to bridging the “divide,” though it’s hard to promote
sharing when there’s lingering suspicion and unease between and among the
generations. In order to lower the divide, organizations can promote both
mentor programs where older employees can take younger colleagues under their
wind and programs led by younger employees that demystify the technologies and
tools they and their cohort use on an everyday basis. There’s a lot of
practical, experiential “stuff” the generations can learn from each other, so
long as the organization implements a framework that promotes these kinds of
regular interactions.
While there may be tensions and conflicts arising
from intergenerational conflict, the differences can actually give rise to a
more diverse, more representative, and better-prepared workforce.
There’s a fine line between creative tension and
genuine conflict and not all organizations have the capability, capacity, or
objectivity to discern the difference. Serious personality and even legitimate
professional differences can place your organization under tremendous strain,
draining critical resources and energy. Stress can lead to conflict, conflict
can lead to stress, creating a feedback loop that escalates tensions and
day-to-day organizational dysfunction. If not caught early, conflict can spread
and turn the workplace toxic. Outside mediation, when brought in at the right
time, can lower the stress, move all parties toward more harmonious ground, and
limit “collateral damage” — from an unfocused workforce to the loss of top
leadership talent.
This year, the millennial generation is projected
to surpass the outsized baby boomer generation as the nation’s largest living
generation, according to the population projections released by the U.S. Census
Bureau last month. Millennials are projected to number 75.3 million, surpassing the projected 74.9 million baby
boomers (ages 51 to 69). The Gen X population (ages 35 to 50 in 2015) is
projected to outnumber the baby boomers by 2028. Business leaders need to think
more about how to exploit each generation’s natural characteristics, i.e., the
millennial generation’s natural talent for social connectedness, technology,
ambition, and creativity, as tomorrow’s most successful organizations will be
those that are able to build harmonious cultures on the strength of their
differences.
Did you like
today’s post? If so you’ll love our frequent newsletter! Sign up here and receive
The Switch and Shift Change Playbook, by Shawn Murphy, as our thanks to you!
Recommended
For You
Pesquisa, Divulgação: Miguel Moyses Neto Se gostou
desta matéria , divulgue para seus amigos.
Visite nosso linkedin http://br.linkedin.com/pub/miguel-moyses-neto/28/971/9aa---Twitter: @mikenetIT onde VC poderá ver as principais
agencias de noticias e os links das empresas & nomes mais famosos do mundo!
ou simplesmente visite nosso blog :
|
Bremense
Participacoes Ltda
| |||
|
|
|
|
Desde 1940
|
|
| |||
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