Different generations at work

Today’s workforce

Today’s workforce include workers from three, sometimes four, different generations: the Silent Veterans, Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y. It’s not surprising that managers find it challenging to manage their intergenerational teams and their many differences. To succeed they need to know both the unique characteristics, strengths and weaknesses of each group while at the same time concentrating on each individual employee and his or her potential and value to the organisation.

Unique characteristics

Personal and lifestyle characteristics of the Silent Veterans (born 1922/3 to 1945)

• • Core values: Disciplined conformers

• • Family: Traditional father-mother-children units

• • Education: A dream, not a given

• • Work ethics and style: Hard working individuals who adhere to the rules, respect authority and believe work comes before play. They want to be respected for their work experience

• • Communication media: One-on-one, handwritten or typed notes or by phone.

Personal and lifestyle characteristics of the Baby Boomers (born 1946 to 1964)

• • Core values: Optimists who believe you can achieve whatever you set your mind to. Boomers, now in their 50s, 60s and 70s have to this day remained unrestrained idealists

• • Family: Age of disintegrating marriages and divorce

• • Education: A given and everybody’s birth right

• • Work ethics and style: Very individualistic, strong and efficient workaholics who seek personal fulfilment in their work and want to know they are valued and needed. They question authority and don’t much like feedback but are good team players

• • Communication media: Meetings, memos and over the phone.

Personal and lifestyle characteristics of Generation X (born 1965 to 1980)

• • Core values: Sceptical and independent but also fun-loving, informal individuals

• • Family: Latch-key-kids who fended for themselves because both parents were working

• • Education: The way to achieve and get where they want to go

• • Work ethics and style: Self-reliant individuals who do not put their trust in employers and organisations. Xers, don’t expect to stay with one employer for a long time. Although they appreciate structure and direction they want to be left alone to do the work their way. They are, however, not shy to ask for feedback and insist on work-life balance

• • Communication media: Start of the Information Age; cell phones, social media and any new electronics.

Personal and lifestyle characteristics of Generation Y or Millennials (born 1980 or 81 to 2000)

• • Core values: Social, confident and realistic, fun-seeking individuals most of whom (but not all) have realised that they are on their own and not to count on employers or the government to take care of them. For them respect has to be earned and is not authority or age-based

• • Family: Merged families

• • Education: An incredible expense that leaves them in debt for years

• • Work ethics and style: Entrepreneurial, goal orientated multi-taskers who seek passion and purpose in their work as well as adequate compensation! They enjoy working with other bright, creative people and insist on work-life balance. They seek constant skills building and personal development opportunities to stay on top. They expect frequent, even immediate feedback

• • Communication media: The first generation to be born into a digitally connected world – Generation Y wants to communicate electronically; for them, technology is like air, they can’t imagine living without it.

Surprisingly, the different generations do have some similar expectations. They all look for and want meaningful but flexible work, learning and skills development opportunities, competitive compensation, to be treated fairly and work-life balance.

South African workplace

In South Africa the workplace is being defined by technology and the Generation X and Y workers that are using it. They are the highly productive, new “super taskers” who are able to complete several tasks efficiently and simultaneously. Many believe that “super tasking” will be the most coveted skill in an organisation by 2020.

“Each new generation is progressively more Internet- and technology-focused so it makes sense to understand the mind-set of the younger generations to put into motion a win-win transformation that will take … businesses to the next level in terms of business success and employee satisfaction”, suggests Kian Ellens of Cisco Systems.

 

Sources

Bressan, p. 2016. Engaging the five generations in your workplace. Retrieved from: http://www.expresspros.co.za/engaging-the-five-generations-in-your-workplace/
Ellens, K. 2015. The world of work is changing in South Africa, just ask Generation Y. Retrieved from: http://memeburn.com/2015/03/the-world-of-work-is-changing-in-south-africa-just-ask-generation-y/
Hammill, G. Mixing and managing four generations of employees. Retrieved from: http://www.fdu.edu/newspubs/magazine/05ws/generations.htm
Schweyer, A. 2015. Generations in the workforce and marketplace: preferences in rewards, recognition and incentives. Retrieved from: http://theirf.org/research/generations-in-the-workforce-marketplacepreferences-in-rewards-recognition-incentives/1427/