Generational Divides Don’t Have to Exist – Some Gen Z Choose to Work with their Grandparents

This blog post was inspired by my mother (my mother!) who sent me an article about grandparents working with their grandchildren. And it’s on the HuffPost website, so you know it’s eye-catching as well as true.

Here’s the nugget that interested me the most: it’s a different perspective into employee motivation for Gen Z.

Why did these younger people want to work with their grandparents? And, more importantly, why does it bring them joy? Why did they choose this over another work situation?

In each instance, the grandchild has significantly enhanced the depth and breadth of the business because of their skills. In both cases, it was because of their digital capabilities, being able to offer goods online in addition to in a storefront, or enhancing a digital presence.

But it goes further than just the digital skills: it has to do with the dynamic of old learning from young, and vice-versa. It illustrates the mutual good that happens when two people of different generations respect one another for their differences in experience and knowledge.

And this mutual respect is part of what drives motivation for Gen Z. Motivation has been an enigma for decades, as the writer of the article says:

?“What inspires people to work harder and better has long been a topic of interest… In the past, researchers have focused mostly on intrinsic motivation (how much people enjoy their jobs), extrinsic motivation (how much people want power and status through their job) and prosocial motivation (how much people want to make a difference in the world).”

However, very little research has been done on the situation of family-based work. Breaking from this tradition is a 2016 study based on a coupon-processing facility (a fairly menial job, with low extrinsic or intrinsic motivation).

Researchers found, at the facility, that “supporting a family provides a powerful source of motivation that can boost performance in the workplace, offering meaningful implications for research on motivation and the dynamics of work and family engagement."

This makes sense when referring back on the article about Gen Z working with their grandparents. Their motivation comes from making a difference for their grandparents as workers and individuals, and seeing the bigger picture of the impact they make on their family’s financial well-being.

Stories like these show that there is a depth and complexity to workplace motivation that we’ve not explored as fully as we should. Here’s to the successful family businesses that have found the “skip generation” approach works well for them. I look forward to hearing of other organizational structures that bring out the best of everyone, including Gen Z.

Do you have a story to share about Gen Z motivation? Please reach out, I’d love to hear it!?

?