Assumption Audit
Jan Rutherford
Executive Coach | Speaker | Author | Expedition Leader | Co-host, The Leadership Podcast
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Assumption Audit
Megan W. Gerhardt, Josephine Nachemson-Ekwall, and Brandon Fogel just published a great article in HBR on “Harnessing the Power of Age Diversity: Generational identity should be a source of learning, not division.”
It’s a great read about ending what some call the last “acceptable” form of discrimination: Ageist Workplaces.
We’ve known for some time the power that can be derived from diverse thinking, yet think about the challenges we’re facing:
Our biggest problem amidst the opportunity that comes from all these challenges?
We are forgetting what a privilege it is to work – to serve others. The perspective?for older workers might actually inspire others, and they’re also the ones who know that everything is a cycle. Employers will be in the driver’s seat again. There will be a more recessions. Amidst all this, leaders are failing to help people find purpose and meaning in their work so they can answer, for themselves two fundamental questions:
A big part of our confusion is not understanding what we value – that is, what we hold dear – and in what order those priorities exist as decision-making criteria.
The other thing we’re doing that contributes to our team dysfunction and individual unhappiness is the many assumptions we make about “others.” As an example, the authors cite “the lack of trust between older and younger workers often yields a culture of competition and resentment that leads to real productivity losses.”
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To help us all regain a sense of decency (and productivity in our work), the authors suggest an “Assumption Audit” whereby team members “spend a week on high alert for age-based assumptions in their daily work.” ?A well-facilitated discussion after a week is likely to produce insights to improve the environment by making thoughtful changes that improves team communication, creativity, and decision-making.
It's all about leaders having the humility to accept that their own values, assumptions, beliefs and expectations bias them from seeing the challenge of a multigenerational workforce as an opportunity to gain a distinct competitive advantage.
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Don Yeager is an award-winning Keynote Speaker, Business Leadership Coach, eleven-time New York Times best-selling author, and longtime Associate Editor for @Sports Illustrated. He is one of America’s most provocative thought leaders. From first-hand experiences, Don shares lessons on achieving greatness based on working with some of the greatest sports legends in the world. Listen in for some fascinating stories from many of your heroes on how they are intentional, curious, and hate to lose!
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Jan Rutherford is an executive coach, keynote speaker, and LinkedIn Learning Instructor. An author, former Green Beret, and founder of?Self-Reliant Leadership??- he also leads Crucible? wilderness expeditions with executives and veterans.
Professor & Generational Strategist | Founder/Author of Gentelligence: A Revolutionary Approach to Leading an Intergenerational Workforce
2 年Thanks so much, Jan! I'm happy our piece was valuable to you.
Executive Coach | Speaker | Author | Expedition Leader | Co-host, The Leadership Podcast
2 年Mentioned in this article: Don Yaeger, Savannah Gallagher, Megan Gerhardt, Ph.D., Josephine Nachemson-Ekwall, Brandon Fogel #LITrendingTopics?#IntergenerationalCollaboration #TrendingNow LinkedIn News