(In this article, Rick Inatome examines the risks of leading without understanding how generational differences impact the workplace.)
A recent AARP shows that 83% of global executives see a multigenerational work force as key to business success, yet fewer than half of the surveyed companies address age diversity in their policies.
Generation gaps are nothing new, but technology has exacerbated the divide. The good news is that recent research indicates actual differences among generations may not be as significant as some stereotypes would indicate. This finding would indicate that sensitivity to and responsiveness to generational differences can ensure an organizational culture that is a healthy sum of its cross-generational parts.
Leaders who view their employees in “one size fits all” generation terms do so at their own and their organization’s risk. Consider the situation of a Baby Boomer CEO who issued a post-Covid return to the office mandate to a workforce dominated by Millennials (Generation Y) and Zoomers (Generation Z), groups that have a strong preference for remote meetings anyway. Especially in the absence of any consultation, it should not be surprising that organizational culture took a beating, and the critical value of trust was compromised.
Baby Boomers today still dominate leadership positions in business, with Generation X close behind. For these groups, email tends to be a default communication preference. If failing to recognize and account for the communication utilizations of younger generations, a significant disconnect is inevitable as are the consequences for team and performance dynamics. The unspoken message of rigidness is but one way of indicating marginalization – a precursor for diminished engagement, decreased productivity, and cultural decline.
Technology has impacted nearly every aspect of life, but the impact is not the same across generations. Differentiated exposures to technology have had differentiated impacts on Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y (Millennials) and Gen Z with respect to their preferred sources of information and their career, social connectivity, and communication styles.
It is not always possible for effective communication to take place via a particular medium. In a business context, for instance, texting and instant messaging do not facilitate the flow of complex communications or documents with attachments. Choosing to communicate via a group’s preferred medium when possible, however, is an effective exemplification of respect and empathy that reinforces core cultural values.
Fifty years ago, the dominant business communication methodologies were ground and air mail and the telephone. For the youngest generations today, these modes seem antiquated or at least of limited utility. Boomers tend to favor voice calls, email, printed materials, and in person meetings. Millennials and Generation Z, coming of age with multiple digital platforms, lean toward texting, video calls, instant messaging, apps and social networking. Generation X, as a “bridge” generation, is inclined toward a mix of email and digital methodologies.
Against this backdrop, wise leadership establishes clear and effective communication strategies that reach their employees with the same awareness and sensitivity that characterize marketing to a diverse customer or client base. By recognizing and proactively accommodating differences, leaders communicate by their actions that a diverse and inclusive environment matters.
Age diversity is a significant organizational asset, insofar as it brings a spectrum of perspectives, experiences, and skills to key processes and decisions. Where inter-generational dysfunction exists (or to guard against its infiltration), leaders must lead.
Toward this end, it is important to recognize that the most critical factor in team functionality is trust. Age-based stereotypes are a primary enemy of trust, insofar as they breed misguided assumptions that deny rather than ratify commonality. It is up to leaders to counter these tendencies by fostering a culture of open and effective communication, empathy, and continuous learning.
In pursuit of these objectives, it is helpful to understand the potential for teams to be defined not just by the generational differences of its members but by what they have in common and thus can unite them. In this regard, a leader’s willingness to be vulnerable can be a powerful tool in overcoming generational differences that otherwise may undermine organizational culture and performance. Vulnerability and authenticity are qualities that resonate across generations in their capacity to foster trust, empathy, and understanding.
There are no magic formulas when it comes to building a culture of multigenerational synergy. With a foundation of vulnerability-based trust, however, an organization is well-positioned to capture the unique strengths and perspectives of each generation. By so doing, “strength in diversity” becomes more than a cliché in an employment policy manual.
About Rick Inatome
Rick Inatome is a transformative business leader and mentor, entrepreneur, and investor whose legacy includes being one of the architects of the digital age. Working with the founders of companies such as Apple and Microsoft in the computer industry’s early days, he established a disruptive technology distribution channel that introduced the personal computer first to the general public and then to corporate America. It grew into a NYSE Fortune 500 company.
