The Boomer Leader Legacy (BLL) process is for HR experts and leaders who are succession planning for leadership continuity - as the boomers exit the workforce.

1. Who is Developing Our
Future Leaders?
The Boomer Leader Legacy Plan
By Donna Stevenson
September 2011

2. As the boomer generation begins its exodus from the workplace, we wonder about their legacy for
subsequent generations of employees. Baby boomers are credited with launching the internet revolution
and the development and growth of mobile technology - significant contributions to business growth through
professional and personal access to information, education, and enhanced forms of communication. But
they are also blamed for the greed and excess which drove the economic collapse of the financial
institutions they led prior to 2008 and the subsequent 'Great Depression'. This resulted in the current
employment climate, the presumed dearth of full time jobs available to the current entrants to the workplace,
Generation Y.
It is time to take the boomer generation’s measure and focus their attention on re-establishing a solid
foundation for business growth for the next group of workers, managers, and leaders. In this article, we
make the case for the development and implementation of a boomer leader legacy, of boomer leader
accountability for developing the next generation of leaders. How will tomorrow's business writers and
commentators treat their leadership tenure? What will be their legacy?
_____________________________________________________________________
The case for change
Too much of our time, as managers and leaders, is spent focused on the here and now. And this is
never more evident than today. With the focus on the economic downturn, and with all indications that
it may be some time before it reverses, business leaders remain transfixed by the issues of the day
rather than where they should be taking their businesses tomorrow.
Business experts advise that less than 20% of business leaders have put their thoughts to strategically
planning for the boomer retirement boom, advancing quickly upon us. And this boom will be a world-
wide one, as the workforce in most countries, China, Japan, Europe, Australia, Canada and the United
States, is aging at the same rate, growing the skills and expertise gap, creating a business world with a
shortage of leadership experience and expertise.
With the pending retirement of the Baby Boomers, those born between 1947 and 1964, from the
workforce, a critical need is developing – ensuring the next generation of leaders is developed. The
Boomer generation dominated the workforce for the past thirty years and is still a dominant force today.
By the year 2020, a major shift in the composition of the workforce will take place, replacing the Boomer
generation with Generation Y. We submit the combination of this generational shift and the current
tendency of the boomer generation of leaders to not expend time and effort strategically planning for
this shift will create a workplace lacking leadership expertise. Business and HR leaders and experts
should start, now, today, to build the strategy and process required to address the expertise gap that
will surface within the next ten years.
The Human Capital Institute survey which explored leadership development initiatives found that senior
leaders lack the time, skills and information necessary to develop the next generation of leaders and
that organizations lack the appropriate infrastructure, access to information, and consistent leadership
philosophy to address the pending leadership talent crisis1. More than 50 percent of business and HR
executives expect severe to moderate shortages in executive leadership within the next three to five
1
Human Capital Institute, Leaders Developing Leaders: Capitalizing on the Demographic Gift to Revive Your Leadership
Development Program, pg. 2.
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3. years. And more than 60 percent of executives say leadership development and talent management are
their companies‘ most critical people issues.2
The Boomer Leader Legacy (BLL)
To address this pending leadership crisis, high performance organizations and their senior teams need
to build what I have named the Boomer Leader Legacy (BLL) plan. Organizations need to capture this
leadership expertise and work with their current leaders to develop the next generation of leaders.
The BLL plan, complete with a development process and learning program, will incorporate
generational influences, utilize sound leadership practices, and foster an environment of accountability
necessary for boomer leaders to grow the future generation of leaders. The BLL plan incorporates the
following five steps.
1. Build the leadership profile for the organization including competencies and capabilities required
to drive the strategy forward.
2. Review the leaders and managers in the organization to determine leadership gaps, current and
future.
3. Identify future leaders for the organization.
4. Assess current boomer leaders for their capability and capacity to mentor and coach future
leaders.
5. Build a customized program to match current with future leaders to close future leadership gaps.
Foundation for the BLL Plan
Organizations need to hold their boomer leaders accountable for developing future leaders for the
organization. Leaders have accountability for the growth of their organization and for their organization
to grow, their employees need to grow. Building a leadership sustainability culture ensures current and
future leaders understand, appreciate, and practice the skills required to continuously move the
organization forward.
In Warren Bennis‘ book, On Becoming A Leader, he identifies three basic reasons why leaders are
important.
“First they are responsible for the effectiveness of organizations. The success
or failure of all organizations…rests on the perceived quality at the top….
Second, the change and upheaval of the past years has left us with no place
to hide. We need anchors in our lives,a guiding purpose. Leaders fill that need.
Third, there is a pervasive, national concern about the integrity of our institutions. ..”3.
Bennis wrote this book in 1994, yet the sentiments remain the same. Leaders are important but they
need to be our anchors, assuming accountability for their purpose and working diligently to move the
organization toward its strategic direction by developing its future leaders. They must be held
accountable for their own development as well as development of others.
We should not assume all good managers naturally make good leaders or that all leaders naturally
make good mentors and coaches for potential leaders. The key is to clearly identify those leaders
2
Deloitte, ―Talent Edge 2020: Blueprints for the new normal‖ (December 2010), pg.
3
Bennis, W., On Becoming a Leader, pg. 15.
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4. whom have both the capability and capacity to develop others. Selection of these leaders needs to be
supported with leadership development processes and programs that will deliver measurable results.
And, leaders are no different from other employees when it comes to motivation for performance. The
organization must include, in its‘ process, plans to reward boomer leaders for performing the mentor
and coaching role, effectively. High performance deserves high praise and it needs to come from those
the high performer respects. With senior leaders, this reward and recognition activity should include
both financial and nonfinancial rewards, those appreciated by this results-, benefits- and pension-
oriented generation.
Developing the BLL Plan
1. Build the leadership profile for the organization including competencies and capabilities required
to drive the strategy forward.
The workplace, today, is composed of Traditionalists, Boomers, Generation X and Generation Y (see
Tables 1, 2 and 3 for characteristics about these different generations). Boomers and Generation Y
members dominate the workplace at 40% and 30%, respectively. By 2020, this will shift to 20% and
50%, respectively.4 But the issue is not the increase in the number of open positions. The issue is
ensuring you have the right people in the right jobs in the right locations. It is the loss of expertise that
we will mourn.
This is the first time in the history of the job, the modern workplace, that we have experienced this
number of generations in the workplace at the same time. Given that the modern workplace is only two
centuries old, we do not have very much experience, as business leaders and Human Resource
experts, dealing with this phenomenon. As well, each generation's working and communication styles
and working preferences have been formulated by different societal events. This means each
generation views the workplace and their work life from a slightly different perspective (see Table 1).
They each see their world through different prisms. Add to the mix the significant technological
changes that have occurred since 1960 and the increasing reliance on social media by the younger
generations and the workplace has, and will continue to, change in large measure.
The leadership profile developed for the organization must take these generational influences,
differences, and similarities into consideration. Without fully understanding the working style and
preferences of each generation, the profile will not clearly reflect the current state, what expertise is
resident in the organization, and what needs to be the focus to effectively transfer leadership knowledge
and expertise from the boomers to succeeding generations (see Table 2). As well, the leadership
profile for the organization should be customized to reflect the leadership competencies and capabilities
most important for realizing the strategic direction.
The Ken Blanchard Companies‘ survey of 2011 corporate issues found a slight increase in focus by its
survey respondents, compared to 2010, on ‗developing leaders who excel at both strategic and tactical
roles‘, ‗developing leaders who inspire trust‘, ‗developing leaders who inspire innovation‘ and
‗developing leaders who take calculated risks‘.5 In the Human Capital Institute survey, ‗developing
4
Meister, J. and Willyerd, The 2020 Workplace: How Innovative Companies Attract, Develop and Keep Tomorrow‘s
Employees Today, pg. 16.
5
The Ken Blanchard Companies, ―2011 Corporate Issues Survey‖, pg 6. The sample represents feedback from 1300
executives, line managers and training and HR leaders from a broad range of organizations, industries and countries.
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5. others‘, ‗communicating clearly‘ and ‗coaching and mentoring‘ were the competencies and capabilities
which received the greatest percentage of interest from respondents.6
7
Table 1: Formative Influences and Personal Styles - Four Generations
Traditionalists Boomer Gen X Gen Y
Defined by WWII Born into an abundant, Latchkey kids & kids of Empowerment years –
healthy economy divorce – shadow of everyone is rewarded
boomers
Loyal, dependable, work Egocentric Independence, resilience, Make own choices, question
toward a common goal Work defines self-worth & adaptability authority
others
Live to work Live to work Work to live Balance
Dependable, believe in Expect others to have the View world with some Everyone should get more
sacrificing for others same work ethic & work the cynicism and distrust from their employers
same hours
Table 2: Expectations of Work and Career – Four Generations of Employees
Traditionalists Boomer Gen X Gen Y
Loyal, respect authority Competitive Self-reliance Everyone is equal
Focused on common goals Optimistic, team-oriented Sceptical, career-oriented Self-importance, loyalty to
colleagues
Focused on performing Results focus Results focus with fun Hard work & career
aspirations
Compensated for doing job Reward for results Reward for outcomes Seek rapid success
For each organization, the right competencies and capabilities need to be determined and built into the
leadership profile. Creation of a cross functional team to build this profile will open up the process and
ensure all generational influences are considered, all working styles and preferences recognized, and
all parts of the organization represented. This team might include Finance, Information Technology,
Human Resources, Operations, Communications, Legal and any other discipline with a strong strategic
or operational presence. Leadership of this team should be the primary Human Resources or
Organization Development or Learning and Development expert in the organization or an external
resource with leadership development expertise and business credentials. The BLL plan is part of the
strategic development process, thereby; integral to the future success of the business. This team
needs to understand what is at stake for the organization if this process and program is not
6
Human Capital Institute, OpCit, pg. 15.
7
Tables 1, 2 and 3 are summaries of research conducted by the author.
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6. implemented so it should develop the business case, along with a business opportunity statement, that
will convince current decision makers (many of whom will be boomers) of its importance.
2. Review the leaders and managers in the organization to determine leadership gaps, current and
future.
With the leadership profile in hand, the cross functional team can begin to assess the current situation,
the current leadership line-up and their alignment with the profile. This assessment process is only part
of the analysis as the senior team needs to be able to look beyond the next month, quarter and year.
The best leadership profile is balanced, in the balanced scorecard fashion, targeting leadership
competencies and capabilities as they relate to the strategic direction as well as the anticipated needs
of investors, customers and employees.
Along with this profile, Human Resource and Organization Development experts in the organization
should be working with senior leaders on creating or reactivating career path initiatives; purchasing or
developing a leadership learning and development program, and building the templates for effective
mentoring activities and programs. All must be managed and be measurable.
Serious consideration should be given to the working style, communication styles and preferences of
Generation X and Y – the generations which will supply the future leaders (see Table 3). Offering
online coaching alternatives, social media based learning and, virtual training tools will work best to
attract the members of these generations to leadership development. Potential leaders are developed
from high performance candidates. High performance employees are creative and innovative and have
their focus on the future. The organization infrastructure, talent management philosophy, and
leadership development processes should support this orientation.
Table 3: Communication Preferences – Four Generations of Employees
Traditionalists Boomer Gen X Gen Y
Formal Semi-Formal Irreverent Fun, eye-catching
Significant changes in Not connected Networking, multi- Interactive, global-minded,
technology. Prefer to technologically, face to face processing connections, always connected
connect face to face (formal) reigns – local connections network of connections
3. Identify future leaders for your organization.
The ‗war for talent‘ involves securing the right people for the right roles in the right places. And this is
particularly challenging when seeking out potential leaders. Earlier this year, ManpowerGroup‘s annual
Talent Shortage Survey found most companies are not able to fill their critical positions. This has
increased over the past couple of years and will be even more critical as the dominant generation – the
boomers – leaves the workforce. The change in the‖ demographic landscape‖ will significantly affect
the ongoing misalignment between the unemployment rate and the positions that need to be filled.
ManpowerGroup refers to this as a ―…employability crisis—an over-supply of available workers and an
undersupply of qualified talent.‖i This survey of 40,000 employers across 39 countries and territories
discovered that ―…89 percent of companies cited a lack of experience, technical skills deficiencies or
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7. poor soft skills among available candidates as a bar to employability. Workplace skills such as
collaboration, critical thinking and agility are critical to generate productivity and innovation. 8
The Deliotte 2010 Talent Edge survey found executives believe ‗developing leaders and succession
planning‘ is both a current concern and top priority. As the boomers retire, these same executives
expect this challenge to continue and to become ―…the number one talent priority three years from
now‖9. So the 'war for talent' will only get worse.
Attracting the right people will always be a challenge for business leaders and Human Resource
experts but it is becoming more difficult. Leaders need to become more creative in building an
organization where the ‗talent‘ seeks them out. The next generation of leaders will come to work
seeking opportunities for engagement, creativity and personal fulfillment10. Employees in high
performance organizations are extremely competent in performing their jobs - they are expert at team
collaboration to create innovative solutions. They regularly demonstrate commitment to the
organization‘s strategic priorities and understand how fully their performance contributes its success.
They are energized and highly motivated11.
The formative influences which have shaped each generation (see Table 1) are different and have
helped to define how each generation thinks about the workplace and their employers. Understanding
these differences is not only critical for effectively managing four different generations in the workforce
but important for capturing the leadership potential and capabilities resident within the organization. By
2020, there will actually be five generations in the workforce, another leadership challenge which needs
to be incorporated into the BLL plan.
4. Assess current boomer leaders for their capability and capacity to mentor and coach future
leader, select and develop.
Part of the leadership profile includes the selection criteria for those current leaders whom will be
selected to be the coaches and mentors for junior employees. This profile should provide clarification
about the type of attitudes and behaviours the mentor should demonstrate, the length of time they have
spent developing others, and proven performance levels. The profile may also include the leader‘s
creativity and interest in promoting innovation and idea generation. Whatever the profile includes, it
should support the strategic direction of the organization and incorporate the organization‘s leadership
philosophy.
But it is not just about mentoring and coaching others. High performance leaders constantly seek their
own development and learning opportunities. Selection of the mentor leaders and the application of the
process should provide the mentors and coaches with opportunities to grow and develop, along with the
leaders they are coaching. These leaders should be involved in the development of the BLL
leadership development program, a customized leadership development program. Human Resource
and Learning & Development experts have the accountability to build this program, providing the
mentors with the tools and information they need to develop others.
8
ManpowerGroup, ―Manufacturing‖ Talent for the Human Age, pg. 2.
9
Deliotte, Talent Edge 2020: Blueprints for the new normal, pg. 1.
10
We should not assume that current employees are the only source of leadership candidates. If you build the right process
for identifying the right employees, you may find responsibility for developing future leaders and passing on the leadership
expertise resident in your senior team may include conducting an external search. Developing future leaders is not just
passing on the current expertise to the current internal candidates but rather creating the future leadership expertise model,
then seeking out the candidates best suited to fit the model.
11
Fields, William, ―Developing High-Performance Organizations‖, 2011.
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8. Implementing the BLL plan will help to develop a company culture that removes barriers to participation
by those leaders selected. Most often these barriers materialize as lack of time, lack of resources, lack
of information and, lack of support for the entire process. Involvement of the senior team and, in some
cases, members of the Board of Directors, will facilitate the plan‘s implementation and the removal of
perceived barriers to success.
5. Build a customized program to match current with future leaders to close future leadership gaps.
With the leadership profile in hand, a clear understanding of where the senior team needs the
organization to go over the next few years, a sound understanding of the demographic landscape of the
organization and its preferences and communication styles, the appropriate career path, mentoring
tools and information, and the selection of the boomer leaders, the cross functional team is now ready
to design a fully comprehensive project plan for matching the right leaders to the best talent available, in
house, to become the leaders of tomorrow. Where internal gaps exist, this plan will also guide the team
in its search for external candidates.
Development of a structured process to capture the leadership capability of current leaders, within each
discipline and function, and locate the future leaders to be ‗matched‘ with the appropriate boomer leader
will provide the plan necessary. This is not just a mentoring process but rather a structured coaching
approach with:
• SMART objectives and goals, specific career path steps;
• Project plans for implementation – complete with milestones, accountabilities, and check points;
• Regular cross functional team measurement of achievement to milestones; and,
• Contingency plans to accommodate leadership changes as they occur (through termination, exit,
promotion, or lateral moves).
This approach provides a measured approach to talent acquisition, leadership development, and
alignment of both. Although there may be differences, due to life experiences, between the work/life
attitudes, preferences, and characteristics of each of the generations, sound leadership practice
involves providing development opportunities for employees, no matter which generation. Building a
BLL plan, encompassing a leadership development program, as part of the broader human resource
strategy, is critical. Members of all generations seek opportunities to develop and move forward on
their career path. High performance boomer leaders are no different. This piece of the Human
Resource strategy will focus on supporting selected boomer leader mentors in both assignment and
their own personal development.
Finally, this approach should include a performance management component. Holding selected
leaders accountable for mentoring future leaders can be accommodated through performance reviews,
compensation and bonuses. As mentioned previously in this article, the boomer generation in
interested in health and pension benefits, additional bonuses or financial incentives and, strong
organizational support. These types of recognition and rewards should be built into the BLL plan to
ensure measurement takes place and accountability to the future is secured.
Conclusion
By the year 2020, there will be five generations in the workforce but the number of experienced leaders
will have declined considerably. Couple this with the ‗war on talent‘ raging around the world and
organizations in 2020 may find themselves without the expertise they need to remain innovative and
competitive.
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9. The BLL plan can be successful and help the organization with the expertise they will need to innovate,
compete and grow. Holding leaders accountable for developing the next generation of leaders,
providing them with the tools, programs and information to do this, and rewarding them for performance
will position the organization for the future.
Mapping out the process with a cross functional team or external resources is critical. Development
and implementation of the BLL plan without a comprehensive process in which to incorporate the
program will not be sufficient. BLL is not only a leadership development program but it is change
management at the senior level of the organization. The purpose is to change the current leadership
environment to produce the next generation of leaders – to hold on to the expertise resident in the
business.
This should be the boomer leader legacy.
About the Author
Donna Stevenson is owner of Boomer Match to Business (www.bm2b.ca) and The Capability Corps Inc. Her companies
specialize in providing just in time expertise to business owners and leaders requiring short term solutions to address their
business problems, challenges and opportunities. She and her team can be reached at match@bm2b.ca or 905.662.5130.
References
Bennis, W., On Becoming a Leader, Addison-Wesley, New York, 1994.
Deloitte, Talent Edge 2020: Blueprints for the new normal, December 2010.
Fields, William, ―Developing High-Performance Organizations‖, 2011
Human Capital Institute, Leaders Developing Leaders: Capitalizing on the Demographic Gift to Revive Your Leadership
Development Program, 2010.
ManpowerGroup, ―Manufacturing‖ Talent for the Human Age, 2011.
Meister, J. and Willyerd, The 2020 Workplace: How Innovative Companies Attract, Develop and Keep Tomorrow‘s Employees
Today, HarperCollins Publishers, 2010.
The Ken Blanchard Companies, ―2011 Corporate Issues Survey‖, California, 2011.
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