The Juxtaposition of Generations: Old Dogs, New Tricks
Brooke Strong, Cassidy Schmidt, Glen Hughes, Joshua Abrahamson, Jim Lacher (Attributed Equally)
Management styles play a very important role in the workplace by making the employees motivated to work, collaborate, and feel involved in the company. The current business sphere, on a global scale, is made of many different management styles from four different generations of managers. How do these styles stand the test of time? Field studies have shown that generational differences create varied outlooks on what management styles are most effective in the workplace. These favored styles imply that older generations of managers have different values and a different definition of a successful workplace than newer generations.
You are probably familiar with the generational differences in managers, even if you are not aware of it. Beth, an accountant, is sick on a day she is supposed to be at work. She calls into her office manager, Pete, who tells her to take it easy and get better, hoping she’ll be able to come back in a couple of days. Mid-day, Bruce, the regional manager, drops into the office on his bi-weekly rounds. He notices Beth’s absence and asks to see the project she has been working on. When Pete tells him that Beth is out for the day, Bruce sneers and says “We didn’t used to get to just skip work whenever we felt like it. Work didn’t stop just because you were sick, so you didn’t get to stop either.”
What generation do you think Pete is from? What about Bruce? If Bruce seems like a Baby Boomer to you, you’re probably right. The general consensus seems to be that boomers tend to value time spent in the office, when Gen X and Millennials such as Pete are more oriented towards the satisfaction of employees.
Generational Differences in the Workplace
There are numerous management styles in the professional world, but they all stem from the ways in which the individual was raised and taught to lead. We think that it is very important for you, the reader, to understand what the main different generations of individuals in the workforce are, what their values are, and how they value those at a lower status than them in the workforce before we dive too deep into the topic. Working-age individuals fall into four different generational groups commonly known as The Traditional generation, The Baby Boomer generation, Generation X, and Generation Y.
The traditional generation is the oldest generation in the workplace. These individuals are described as being conservative and disciplined and feel like they have an obligation to perform a certain way. Individuals that fit into this category are also known to function by the top-down chain of command when it comes to decision making and are reluctant to change within the workplace. The traditional generation is also described as loyal workers and they have high dedication to the work that they are faced with. The Baby Boomer generation was raised to respect authority figures, have equated work with self-worth and that hard work and sacrifice are the price to pay for success, and they often have a sense of self-entitlement. Boomers have also been known to fight for a cause they believe in even though they do not like problems (Tolbize, 2008, p. 2).
Those that fall into generation X grew up in a time of financial and societal insecurity. They strive to achieve a balance between work and life, are self-reliant, and they are not overly loyal to their employers. Generation X are ones that want to focus on learning and skill development and like to receive feedback as well as being naturally drawn to question people in positions of authority. Generation Y individuals share many of the characteristics of generation X. They value teamwork, embrace diversity, are adaptable to change, and are always welcoming change into their lives (Tolbize, 2008, p. 3-4).
Characteristics & Challenges Created by the Generational Divide
Challenges in the world of Baby Boomers (1944-1964)
- Baby Boomers are often more resistant to change, or set in their ways. They tend to respect authority figures much more than newer generations. Often times boomers will prioritize personal growth at a higher level than younger generations. Another characteristic of some Baby Boomers is a general sense of entitlement (Po-ju Chen & Youngsoo Choi, 2008).
- They can come off as offensive with a lot of the younger generations. This can be due to their tendency to be a little more straight forward than other generations, along with being more set in routine unlike newer generations.
- These characteristics of Boomers can sometimes make it harder to pitch ideas to them as effectively as you would have liked to.
- Individuals in this generation might be insulted by continuous feedback (Tolbize, 2008, p. 8).
Challenges of Generation X (1965-1979)
- Grew up in a time of financial & societal uncertainties, they are not overly loyal to their employers, they tend to question authority figures much like Gen Z does, and a lot of them welcome change into their lives much more openly than older generations.
- Those that fall into Gen X generally tend to get along with individuals of Gen Z, since a lot of them in these generations were raised with the idea that it is good to be open to change.
- They often challenge the thinking of others in the office and take a straightforward route of leadership (Salahuddin, 2010, p. 4).
Challenges of Generation Y (Millennials, 1980-1994)
- Generation Me (sometimes called Gen Y or Millennials) tend to live with higher self‐esteem, narcissism, anxiety, and depression. They tend to have a lower need for social validations, and women that fall into this generation showcase more agentic (dominant) traits (Twenge & Cambell, 2008).
- Conflicting personalities of Gen Y can often lead to conflict due to pride in the workplace
- Due to the immense amount of student debt, this generation often delays major life purchases (Kasasa, 2019).
Challenges of Generation Z (1995-2015)
- They tend to be much more open to change than past generations and are more responsible financially (so far) due to their fear of being in debt (as a whole the generation tries to stay out of it). Gen Z’ers also tend to open savings accounts earlier, and are hyper-connected due to the advancements of cellphones and technology (Kasasa, 2019).
- A lot of business characteristics have yet to be discovered, due to Gen Z only being 25 years old, but you can assume that they will be a lot like Gen X, due to the open-mindedness and welcomeness to change. We may begin to see that this generation is more conservative about spending and such due to being children during one of the largest recessions in American history (Kasasa, 2019).
Possible Solutions
Most companies nowadays seek to create a diverse workforce, combining workers from all generations – and the benefits are readily apparent. The effects of good diversity management are immediately evident in employee engagement (Stoffers & Gunawan, 2019), which in turn improves performance across the workplace. The differences between workers of different generations offset the weaknesses of each other, creating a stronger environment overall. But what does “good diversity management” actually mean? Often, all that’s required is an effort by the company to raise awareness of generational differences rather than trying to ‘brute force’ demographic equalization through extra allowances and compensations to its workers (Stoffers & Gunawan, 2019). An investment in understanding will give a company a competitive advantage and allow it to retain high-quality young talents within an organization without resorting to the typical methods, which can foster resentment on behalf of older workers feeling threatened or snubbed by the favored younger generation.
References
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Po-ju Chen, Youngsoo Choi. “Generational Differences in Work Values: a Study of Hospitality
Management.” International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 2008,
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Tolbize, Anick. (2008). Generational Differences in the Workplace. Research and Training
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Kasasa. (2019, July 29). Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y, and Gen Z Explained. Retrieved February 11, 2020, from http://www.kasasa.com/articles/generations/gen-x-gen-y-gen-7