This document discusses different generations in the workplace, including Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Millennials. It provides an overview of key influences and attitudes of each generation. It also outlines some considerations for working with different generations, such as tailoring communication styles and presenting information in a way that each generation can understand and relate to. Generational theory is discussed as well as strategies for collaboration across generations.
7. Survey: “What makes your
generation unique?”
Rank Millennial Gen X Boomer
1
Technology use
(24%)
Technology use
(12%)
Work ethic (17%)
2
Music/Pop culture
(11%)
Work ethic (11%) Respectful (14%)
3 Liberal/tolerant (7%)
Conservative/
Traditional (7%)
Values/Morals (8%)
Pew Research Group
7
8. Top photo: GM, from https://usat.ly/2PBrBWBUSAA, from https://bit.ly/2Q1T44D
Bottom photo: Getty Images
8
14. “Boomer” generation
• Born: 1946–1964 (2019: 55–73)
• Leader class
• Influences: TV, JFK
assassination, Vietnam War,
Woodstock, Watergate
• Attitudes: materialistic,
workaholic, individualistic, free-
spirited, suspicious of authority
• Information needs: text, simplicity
• Work style: face-to-face meetings
Jacob Lund, Shutterstock
14
15. “Gen X” generation
• Born: 1965–1980 (2019: 39–54)
• Manager class
• Influences: computers, video
games, Challenger disaster, end
of Cold War, Gulf War I
• Attitudes: self-reliant,
entrepreneurial; mistrustful of
government; anxious about jobs
• Information needs: text, visual
• Work style: hands off
CUInsight
15
16. “Millennial” generation
• Born: 1981–1996 (2019: 23–
38)
• Worker class
• Influences: smartphones,
Internet, diversity, Columbine
• Attitudes: busy, stressed;
collaborative, goal-driven
• Information needs: visual,
embedded
• Work style: hands on
Gino Santa Maria, Dreamstime
16
18. Boomer
• Life event: JFK assassination
• Car: Prius
• Goal: Fulfillment
• Ideal job: High paying
• Work style: Face to face
• Trusted source: Brittanica
• Success is: Putting in the time
• Stressors: Age discrimination
Thinkstock
18
19. Gen X
• Life event: Challenger disaster
• Car: Leased BMW
• Goal: Balancing work and life
• Ideal job: Project leader
• Work style: Self-reliant
• Trusted source: Google
• Success is: Done on time
• Stressors: Stuffing my 401(k)
Fotolia
19
20. Millennial
• Life event: Columbine shooting
• Car: Uber
• Goal: Saving the world
• Ideal job: Making an impact
• Work style: Group texts
• Trusted source: Wikipedia
• Success is: Positive feedback
• Stressors: Student loans
Depositphotos
20
22. Presenting information to this
younger generation
• They may be tech-immersed but not tech-savvy
• Don’t write, show (videos are a powerful draw)
• Discuss achievements and feedback
• Use augmented reality, virtual reality, gamification
• Training: video (TEDtalk style)
22
23. Presenting information to this
older generation
• Explain new tech in terms of old tech
• Show app steps you think are obvious, but aren’t to them
• Show how things look when they succeed, and give tips
for recovering from errors
23
26. Boomers in the workplace
are considered:
• Experienced with corporate
environment
• Self-directed
• Live to work
• Loyal, productive, hard-working
• Team players
• Competitive
• Interested in pay and respect
Ernst & Young generation survey, 2013,
http://www.ey.com/US/en/Issues/Talent-management/Talent-
Survey-The-generational-management-shift
26
28. Millennials in the workplace
are considered:
• Enthusiastic
• Tech-savvy
• Entrepreneurial
• Inexperienced with corporate
environment
• Used to constant, individual
feedback
• Interested in fulfillment more than
money
• Interested in social goals
“Mentoring Millennials,” Meister and Willyerd,
Harvard Business Review, May 2010
28
29. Working with (significantly)
older people
• Don’t discriminate by age
• Show your work
• Do not say, “I have parents your age” even if you do
• Never say “This is so easy!”
• Don’t roll your eyes—take them seriously, despite their
age
• Be willing to learn
• Look for a mentor
• Don’t make the boss look bad in public
• If you’re their boss, ask for feedback, and listen
• They’ve had to work hard since they were your age to
get where they are today
• Ignore the occasional insensitive comment—they’re
not woke
• Tune your messages
Scott Griessel, Getty Images
29
30. Working with (significantly)
younger people
• Don’t discriminate by age
• Be flexible
• Do not say, “I have kids your age!” (even if you
do)
• Things have changed since you were their age
• If you’re the boss, they may still be right
• Coach, don’t micromanage
• Mentor, don’t boss
• Don’t criticize them in front of others
• Coach them through the occasional social
awkwardness
• Tune your messages
30
33. For more information (1)
• Strauss and Howe: Generations (1991); The Fourth Turning (1997);
Millennials Rising (2000)
• Pew Research Center, Millennials: A Portrait of Generation Next,
February 2010
• Pew Research Group, “The Whys and Hows of Generations
Research,” 3 September 2015
• Richard Fry, “Millennials projected to overtake Baby Boomers as
America's largest generation,” Pew Research Center, 1 March 2018
• Victoria Deen McCrady, “Millennials: A New Breed of Novice.” STC
Intercom, September 2015
33
34. For more information (2)
• Tekla S. Perry, “Does Age Discrimination in Tech Start at
40?” IEEE Spectrum, 20 October 2017
• Matthew Hennessey, “Generation X needs to save
America from millennials.” N.Y. Post, 5 August 2017.
• Ernst & Young, Global Generations: A global study on
work-life challenges across generations, 2015
• Jessica Kriegel, Unfairly Labeled: How Your Workplace
Can Benefit from Ditching Generational Stereotypes,
Wiley, 2016
34
Notas do Editor
I'm Steve Jong, President of the New England Chapter, Fellow, former Board member, and chair of the first Certification Commission
For the last five years I've been studying the effects of demographics on three groups we really care about: audiences, workgroups, and organizations
I'm excited to share some of my findings with you
I have posted these slides at slideshare.net
Most presentations and workshops you’ve seen concern themselves only with the current and future impact of technology
Technology is an important subject to us—it comprises our subjects and our tools
But it comes and goes quickly and sometimes unpredictably
Forecasts about technology are subject to huge errors
Our job is to communicate with people, and to do it we work with and for people, and we’re interested in improving these experiences
The most influential factor affecting these experiences is actually quantifiable and predictable with mathematical precision: the makeup of the people we work with and write for
First: What are demographics?
Demographics have a big impact:
“Demography is destiny”
Demographers can confidently predict populations (even 100 years into the future)
Demographics can forecast economic growth (or decline)
Demographics can influence government policies (Social Security, Medicare rates)
Demographics can even predict war and civil unrest (by looking at the number of military-age men)
For our purposes, demographics can predict the size and composition of our audiences and coworkers, now and into the future
Note: Demographics can speak to all elements of diversity, but I will ignore everything but age differences
A useful way to visualize demographic data is the population pyramid
Sides are male|female, # or % (this shows millions), 5-year slices by age called cohorts starting at the bottom
For example, this is India 1991
~59 million males 0–4, ~57 million females
More men than women overall
Cohort numbers decline as people age
Capped at 80 here because no appreciable number lived longer in that country at that time
Undisturbed, smooth progression (no wars or epidemics)
The gray area gives a visual sense of the odds of reaching a given age
Concave sides show accelerating population growth
Fundamental formula to predict the size of the next cohort:
# of fertile women x birth rate - mortality rate = projected cohort size
And here’s the United States at about the same time (1990)
Scale larger than Russia, smaller than India
No appreciable population in 85+ cohorts
Notice the baby boom, the smaller cohorts before and after (key point)
You begin to see how demographics affect society; for example:
This is why you still hear 1960s music in commercials today
(Total fertility rate is currently 1.9/1000, mortality 2.1)
Demographers work with 5-year cohorts, but sociologists speak of ~20-year groups called generations
Generation boundaries are flexible: set by consensus from demographers or sociologists, or by shared formative historical events
The living generations are:
Silent: born between 1928–1945 (the name comes from sociologists)
Boomer: born between 1946–1964 (post-war babies; the name comes from the demographics)
Gen X: born between 1965–1980 (they named themselves by consensus from Douglas Coupland’s novel)
Millennial: born between 1981–1996 (they came of age in the new millennium)
“Homeland” (not shown here, also “Gen Z”—no consensus name yet): born 1997– (not considered here)
Those are the names of generations. What about their attitudes?
Key point: Surveys are another important source of information about generations, revealing how they view themselves (and others)
Statistically valid
Generations self-identify and self-report
The leading source of survey information is the Pew Research Group
This table is a small example of the data they’ve collected
Respondents were asked this question, and their responses were recorded
Notice that some answers (“smarter”) don’t change from generation to generation, while others (“work ethic” and “technology use”) do
These attitudes affect today’s audiences and workers
This may not seem like much to go on, but it’s more solid than what we typically use when constructing personas
Survey data presents broad strokes that sound like astrology or at best pop psychology
Humans being individualistic, there are many exceptions (such as us, tech-savvy) and border cases (“I’m an old soul”)
Right about now a good skeptic would be thinking: Does anybody believe this stuff? (I include a skeptical reference)
Key point: Yes, they do, and some take it very seriously
Businesses and organizations have invested money studying generational effects on their customers, employees, and members, and are acting strategically on their findings:
What products are made, how designed (app as game, shown at left), and marketed (selling Buicks to Millennials, shown top right, is considered existential to GM)
Why CEOs today take activist stances (cf. Apple, Google)
How workgroups are recruited, organized, and retained (for example, working at home, bottom right)
Which benefits are offered to employees or organization members (for example, tuition reimbursement, support for organized social activism, free membership for new practitioners)
Surveys tell us with confidence what living people think about themselves and their contemporaries
Is the data all random? Doesn’t it change over time? How can we make sense of it?
Generational theory ties it all together
The fundamental questions are:
Are attitudes fixed or changing? Do all people think alike at the same age? Somewhat—circle of life, ages of humanity (life cycle effects)
But have 22-, 42-, 62-, or 82-year-olds always thought alike? Surveys reveal: no, there are significant historical differences
Period effects: “People in a particular age group tend to share a distinct set of beliefs, attitudes, values and behaviors because they all grow up and come of age during a particular period in history” [Wikipedia]
Cohort effects: Each generation shares a different experience of key historical events, and recognizes it (common perceived membership)
“I’ll never forget where I was when I heard about _______”
Surveys have found that each generation has some distinct and unchanging characteristics, not just a difference in age
These values tend to be “baked in” and remain, unchanged, over time
Key point: Once a generation assumes a character, it maintains it throughout its life. For example:
The Depression, a key historical event, made people thrifty (unemployment was 25%), and to the ends of their lives they remained so
Those who came of age in the Sixties learned to question authority, and have never stopped
Those who came of age in the Eighties (the “latchkey” era) became self-reliant and pragmatic, and (one predicts) will remain so
So, three factors contribute to the character of each generation:
Life cycle effects: Predictable
Period effects: Repeating cycles
Cohort effects: Random elements
The major work in generational theory is Generations, by Strauss and Howe, a magisterial 1991 work examining 400 years of American generations
They define a set of four generations (based on the four ages of a lifetime) as a saeculum
Key point: According to their theory, saeculums (the character of generations) repeat in cycles
Dominant, recessive, dominant, recessive
Generations keep a distinctive sense of self as they age, and react to the older and younger generations in repeating and predictable cycles (here I use their archetype terms Artist, Prophet, Nomad, and Hero)
Each generation is influenced by the generations before it and by external events
Natural antipathies (generational conflicts) between generation N and N+2 (for example, between Silent and Gen X)
To me the most impressive aspect of Strauss and Howe’s work is that they predicted the character of the next full saeculum (4 generations, nearly 100 years into the future)
But for our purposes today I will focus on the present, using generational theory only for convenience of structure and to suggest why things are as they are
Ignoring older and younger generations, three generations make up today’s audience and workforce: Boomers, Gen X, Millennials
Very broadly speaking, in their journeys through life, today Millennials occupy the worker role, Gen Xers the management role, and Boomers the leadership role
Let’s look at these three generations of Americans making their journeys through life, and see what they say about themselves that pertains to their behavior as our audience, our coworkers, and our professional colleagues
First, let’s combine demographic and sociological data
Right now, there are roughly equal numbers of Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials in the US population and workforce
But not for long
Audience: The US population is at a tipping point: in 2019 the plurality (that is, more than any other generation) is Millennials
Workforce: Every day in the US, 10,000 Boomers retire and 10,000 Millennials start their first jobs
Boston is the most “millennial” (40%) of the 25 largest US cities [Boston Globe]
[Doing my research, I saw a presentation titled “The Millennial Generation: A Blessing or Curse for the Workforce?” The correct title is “The Millennial Generation: The Workforce”]
(Remember the population pyramid? Because of the relatively small size of the Gen X generation, I am de-emphasizing them)
Using demographics, it’s easy to project the US population and begin to understand the generational forces around us
Let’s look at 2024 (with the Strauss and Howe generations added as vertical bars)
US population: 354M (>50% Millennial, 30% 55+, decelerating growth)
I’ve added vertical bars to represent the two groups we’re interested in, our audience and our coworkers
Not critical, but I assume “audience” is 15–89 and “workforce” is 25–64 (40 years)
Notice that “Audience” is bigger than “Workforce”
Boomers are in audience but mostly out of the workforce
[But Census Bureau defines “labor force” (today) as age 16-54 and “prime-age workforce” as 25-54 (30 years)]
Any way you slice it, Gen Xers and Millennials—mostly Millennials—will soon make up the bulk of the workforce
(Homelanders are an audience but not yet in workforce
Assuming Homelanders are a 20-year generation, another as-yet unnamed generation is in the 0–4 cohort)
Let me throw some survey results at you
Then we’ll look at how they influence the thinking of today’s generations
(Includes me)
Demographically the largest generation in US history
Retiring @ 10k/day in US
Audience:
Boomers dominate(d) our audience (because of sheer numbers)
Grew up in an analog world (records, film, printed books)
Today, Boomers complain about, and are increasingly overwhelmed by, technology (misoneism)
Attitudes:
Drilldown: why suspicious of authority? Because Vietnam War, Watergate (conflict with elders)
[cf. George Will’s book review, “An unsparing look at the Vietnam War's mountain of lies,” Washington Post, 18 October 2018]
(Boomers are notoriously difficult for associations to deal with; demand a “value proposition”)
Information needs:
Learning style: study, memorize; seminars
Drilldown: why low-tech? Because they grew up with low-tech schooling (I know—I ran the film projector in school)
Workplace:
Boomers dominate(d) the workforce [still outsized: 20% of 65-year-olds still work (white-collar workers don’t wear out)]
In leadership (C-level) positions
Hold lots of face-to-face meetings
Comfortable with communicating by email (Silents: well-crafted memo)
(I felt badly researching this generation)
Demographically this is a much smaller generation than the preceding and following generations, so they are less influential
These are the “latchkey kids” who were given space by their self-absorbed parents
These are the school kids who watched the space shuttle Challenger, with a teacher aboard, blow up on live TV in their classrooms
This is the first US generation to have less material wealth than their parents did
As an audience:
Computer literate
Bridge between analog and digital
Learning style: seminars, computer-aided instruction (CAI)
In the workplace:
In middle management
Stuck with job hopping (McJobs), “failure to launch”; hit their peak earning years during Great Recession
Half say they’re stalled in their careers, squeezed between more-numerous older Boomers who won’t retire (worse in fields like aerospace and teaching) and a younger, more numerous generation
Used to 24/7 email contact
Over 40% are responsible for both a dependent child and an aged parent; originated “work-life balance” (unlike Boomers)
Want to be left alone; don’t like to be micromanaged
Drilldown: Why not micromanaged? Because they grew up as latchkey kids
(I have 3 Millennial sons)
Already a thoroughly studied and surveyed group
Demographically a much larger generation than Gen Xers, so their influence is already greater despite being younger
By generational theory, this generation resembles the GI generation
In 1991—during their childhood—Strauss and Howe predicted they would be another “heroic” generation, likely to be presented with, and deal with, a great secular crisis (they think it’s global warming)
Their Gen X parents wouldn’t make the mistakes their parents made, so they made new ones: “snowplow”
Audience: Learning style: Ask a friend; one on one
Workplace:
Prime labor force
Tattoos always chic and visible
Used to high-stakes testing (and high stress)
Goal-driven, but see no distinction between “work” and “non-work”
Expect to job-hop [average Millennial is on job #3]
Expect to become leaders immediately, want to make a difference
HR experts say losing access to social media, inflexible working arrangements, or inferior company equipment is increasingly an employment dealbreaker for them
[Remember Buick?] Only 25% get driver’s licenses at 16, down from 46% 30 years ago
Short attention span, but can multitask better
Comfortable with communicating by text (average 75 texts/day), not email [colleges report graduating seniors sometimes have never checked their email once]
Growing up, they were closely watched, overprogrammed, and told that their opinions matter, so they speak up and expect to be heard
Want to be closely managed (compare with Gen Xers)
Ford: 75% demand their employers not harm society
We can use the demographic data and survey results I’ve shared to construct pretty solid personas
Tell me if this sounds familiar:
(Typical quotes, about technology but also thrift:
“Why would I add numbers in my head when I have a calculator?”
“Why should I pay to download a song when I already have the record?”)
Life event: I’ll never forget where I was when I heard about the (JFK|RFK) assassination
Car: I drive everywhere
Goals: I am an individual
I always ask: What’s in it for me? (key Boomer differentiator)
Ideal job: I most want a high-paying job, but I’m willing to wait my turn
Work style: I used to do my work without computers, and that might have been better; today I’m uncomfortable with them (and a little mistrustful—check your spreadsheet formulas!)
I miss writing books
I can work from home, but I like to interact face to face
Trusted source: I remember when the encyclopedia was my most trusted source of information (anyone can edit a Wikipedia entry!); I can adapt to Google, but I don’t get going to YouTube for answers
I read (or my Internet portal is my computer)
Success: I am process-oriented, so success to me means putting in the time
Stressors: Computers today don’t work the way they should
Even though I know exactly what I’m doing, I’m under pressure at work because of age discrimination (“40 is the new old”)
I think about retirement all the time—but I’m never going to retire
“I have the CD, or I can download the music”
Life event: I’ll never forget where I was when I saw the Challenger disaster
Car: I drive everywhere
Goals: I always say: It’s important to balance work and life [Gil Y.]
Life is too short not to enjoy what you’re doing (key Gen X differentiator)
Ideal job: I did my work without smartphones, and I remember how to do it by hand, but this way is better
I miss writing Help systems
Work style: I don’t trust the people in charge—I want to be left alone to do my job
I’m self-reliant and self-sufficient, and I like to interact by email, but sometimes it’s best to just pick up the phone
Trusted source: Google is my most trusted source of information; I can adapt to Wikipedia, but I don’t get going to Instagram for answers
My Internet portal is my laptop
Success: I am project-oriented, so success to me means getting done on time (and getting home on time)
Stressors: My boss won’t retire
I have to stuff my 401(k)—I’ll never be able to retire at the rate I’m going
“Why would I use a calculator when I can ask my phone?”
Life event: I’ll never forget where I was when I heard about the Columbine HS shooting
Car: I live in the city, and I don’t want a car, it’s better to call an Uber anyway [post-peak car; remember Buick?]
I don’t see the point of going to an office anyway [70%] because I work whenever and wherever an idea strikes me [work-life integration]
Goals: I expect us to save the world [66%] (Jim D). I most want to do things that make an impact
I expect my employer to take a stand on social issues [75%; Elton]
Ideal job: I like to work in groups, and as a group, we can accomplish anything
We like to interact by text or chat [gaming again], but I wouldn’t presume to interrupt people with calls
Trusted source: Wikipedia is my most trusted source of information, because it’s always up to date; I can adapt to WikiHow, but I don’t get going to TikTok for answers
My internet portal is my smartphone, I love it, and [90% say] I’m never without it
Success: I am output-oriented, so success to me means positive feedback
I expect to be rewarded for what I do and promoted quickly, or I’ll get another job
Stressors: I can’t pay off my student loans [Class of ’15 avg. $30K]
Social Security won’t exist when I’m old, so I’m never going to retire
Our first maxim is: Know your audience! A better understanding helps you (the personas I presented are solid)
Based on demographics, surveys, and generational theory, what can we say about presenting information to audiences of different generations?
We know they’re significantly different, as this image suggests
Because Boomer and Gen X audiences are not much different, I’ll take a binary view here
You probably can’t write just for one audience, so keeping these differences in mind, focus on the most likely one (guess which…)
How do people interact with technology? Age-based
How do they consume information? In print? Desktop computers? No, mobile first (the top browsing platform worldwide)
What is your audience familiar with? What analogies can you use? Mailboxes? Telephones? Books? Fortnite?
What vocabulary do you use? Pressing? Clicking? Tapping? Touching? Saying?
The younger the audience, the less you have to explain technology—to them it’s just the way things are
OTOH, they may be tech-immersed, but they’re not tech-savvy—they know that things work but not how they work
Millennials don’t need or want explanations of how to use technology, just how to accomplish their tasks quickly
In a webpage world, all-text help systems are doomed, so don’t write, show (using visuals, video, augmented reality, virtual reality)
Present information as opportunities to learn (think game, not chore)
Minimalism: Millennials, raised on games, are willing to explore for themselves and not have everything spelled out for them
(Corollary: don’t document the tasks that put you to sleep writing them)
Discuss achievements and feedback (in IBM task terms, results are more important)
Training: video (TEDtalk)
They’ve grown up with the Web, and rely on social media, so while the authoritative source may be the technical documentation, customers may go first (or only) to an online support forum (which you should therefore try to get control of)
We’re mostly used to this audience already; here are some relevant tips
The older the audience, the more you need to explain new technology, simply and metaphorically, in terms of older technology
“Intuitive” is a misleading term: in apps, show steps you think are obvious, but aren’t to them [Russian camera lady]
Millennials like to explore, but Boomers like to be told (show where things are, especially on complex screens)
Show what it looks like when they succeed (yes, this means screenshots)
Boomers are likely to get frustrated quickly when things don’t work as they expect (because they have learned expectations)
Troubleshooting tips are a good idea—for all audiences, but especially for Boomers
I wrote a paper for the STC Annual Conference in 1984 with this title, but I wasn’t thinking of this computer at all
How do you document this interface (AUI): by example only? Yes, I think so
For an older audience: how it works is of interest, especially to a generation suspicious of authority (“is it recording me?”)
For a younger audience: it works just like talking to a friend
Now that we’ve met the generations and discussed how to write for them, let’s talk about how they work together
(In this stock photo, is this a civil conversation? Maybe not)
Nobody wants conflict. How can we avoid it?
Intergenerational conflicts in today’s workplace are particularly nasty because three equal-sized generations are jostling for position, but the most powerful one is ebbing
HR groups tell us that over the next 5–10 years the biggest workplace conflicts will be between Boomers hanging on to their jobs and Gen Xers fighting to get them
But demographers already predict who will win
[You can see the signs of change in the workplace:
After a reactionary phase when companies tried to ban Internet use, now they have Slack groups
No more assigned offices
Landscapers, traffic cops with smartphones—they’re universal]
The first step to avoiding conflict is to take the time to get to know people
Let’s review the surveys again and do that now
I’ll offer ten tips for each direction
In 2013, Ernst & Young surveyed 1,200 people, equally split between Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials, to get their perceptions of the strengths and weaknesses of each generation
One common workplace survey question is, “What is the most important thing about your job?” (2:1 ratio of “pay” versus “meaningful work”). It may not be true for individuals, but it’s true at the generation level
By now you’re familiar with the results
By that survey
Gen Xers have it tough today, but their day as leaders is coming, because demographics
Drilldown: why are Millennials used to constant feedback? Because helicopter/snowplow parents, gaming, and social media
(Why do companies create products with social-media components? Because Millennials [demographics])
Today HR groups tell us Millennials will turn down jobs at companies that don’t have a social goal:
(“We’d like to make you an offer. Do you have any questions for us?”
“Yes, how are you making the world a better place?”
“I don’t understand. We earn value for shareholders.”
“Then I’m not interested.”)
Another high priority is professional development [Wright, Great Leadership blog]
Hard (tech skills) they have
Soft skills they haven’t been exposed to
Here are 12 tips (I lied) for working with older people:
1. Don’t discriminate by age
2. Show your work: an instant answer is unsettling to Boomers if they don’t know what went into it
3. Do not say, “I have parents your age,” even if you do
4. Never say “This is so easy!”
5. Don’t roll your eyes—take them seriously, despite their age [Brookings Institute: “Older workers possess deep work experience and expertise as well as extensive institutional knowledge and professional networks.”]
6. Be willing to learn from them (fake it if necessary)
7. Look for a mentor
8. Don’t make the boss look bad in public
9. If you’re their boss, ask for their feedback, and listen
10. They’ve had to work hard since they were your age to get where they are today—don’t expect instant success
11. Ignore the occasional insensitive comment—they’re not woke
12. Tuned messages: "You are valuable, worthy," or "Your contribution is unique and important to our success" (to Boomers); "Let's explore some options outside of the box" or "Your technical expertise is a big asset" (Gen Xers)
(This stock photo suggests to me a real conflict
I imagine the older man is about to say, “Are you even listening to us?” or “Fetch!”
The younger man is about to announce a solution based on a Slack conversation with 100 colleagues worldwide)
Here are 10 tips:
1. Don’t discriminate by age
2. Be flexible—there’s more than one right answer
3. Do not say, “I have kids your age,” even if you do
4. If you’re the boss, they may still be right—take them seriously
5. They may work much faster than you expect
6. Coach, don’t micromanage; give feedback, and frequently
7. Mentor, don’t just boss
8. Don’t criticize them in front of others
9. Coach them through the occasional social awkwardness—they’re not corporate
10. Tuned messages: "You will be collaborating with other bright, creative people," or "You have really rescued this situation with your commitment”
Don’t use generation labels pejoratively
Two common themes of communicating and working with people of all ages:
Understanding where people are coming from, but also getting to know people as individuals, is never wrong
Communicate—listen
In the workplace, the best decisions are made by diverse groups sharing their viewpoints (this isn’t just my opinion)
Closing thoughts:
Don’t laugh at Boomers who aren’t adjusting to technology—eventually, you too will become misoneistic
Most books about dealing with Millennials are written from the perspective that Millennials are somehow “them,” and that Boomers are the “us” who will never leave the scene
This is, of course, wrong, because the population pyramid never stops
A last word for Millennials: It doesn’t end with you
Since 1997, every day, 10,000 Homelanders are born
The oldest graduate college this year