Multi-Generational Workforce! How To Lead?

Original: February 29, 2019; Updated: Aug 09, 2019;

In a changing social landscape, Millenials and Gen Z are upending all services and "rituals." At a time, when Millenials and Gen Z are grappling with a "web of circumstances like student debt, inflating living costs, and changing social norms. Technology is normalizing relationships in the human life cycle (relationship cycle according to Dr. Helen Fisher, an American anthropologist and human behavior expert).

Relationship Cycle: "Two-thirds of people in their 20s still live at home, not because they are lazy, but they are saving their money and get their career and finances in order before they marry," she reports. Experts say that millennials are "holding off" on relationships as "the concept of courtship has evolved over time." - initial casual meet-and-greet had changed into a "delayed and very deliberate" event in the relationship cycle. She adds that "millennials are very ambitious but also terrified of catching feelings and getting into relationships that they cannot financially or mentally manage. Courtship in the digital age is far changed. The digital age has given birth to "new pattern" from just friends to moving slowly into friends with benefits, then come out and tell friends about the partnership, and then you have your first date.

Concept might change over time with Gen Z appearing to redefining the concept of relationships. Just like Millennials born between 1981 and 1996, Generation Z is redefining the dating atmosphere for themselves. There's clearly a change in attitude toward certain customs (Brown, 2019).

Brown, Dalvin. (2019, July 31). Money: Millennials, Gen Z Say They Can't Afford Love. USA Today, p. 1B, 2B - In a changing social landscape, study shows debt, careers can delay dating.

Did you know? According to a recent Accenture study, forty percent of the U.S. companies have never formulated plans "to advance leadership" (Gelles, 2019). As such, their managers could, most likely, miss-allocate their budgeted- dollars into futile technology & incompetent human capital. The net results would be none other than consequences which would further compound the underpinning stressors unto America workplace. This is why corporations are more and more evaluating the ROI & Payback of their options within the risk parameters of both the technical & human investments.

Current American Workforce Profile: At stake is the 21st Century workforce which is being sandwiched between the two conflicting forces of technology and workforce dynamics. Technology and workforce dynamics are two key stressors that are upending our work environment as we know it.

For the former, it is whether workers have the skills to participate into the digital revolution. Though most Americans are avid consumers of technology, many of them lack the skills of our digital economy. According to World Economic Forum study, nearly 52% of office tasks could be automated by 2025, due to ML and Ai (Time, 2018a). For context, nearly 60 percent of jobs (within the next 10 years) may automate a third of their tasks by Ai, with many traditional industries already moving into the digital work (Khanna, 2019).

For the latter, first, Americans are living longer. Second, post-retired American workers are back to work because of their economic woes and shrinking pensions. Third, most Americans have no economic platform to support their longer life expectancy. As a result, these three momentous forces all together are at the intersect of both the active presence and the different values of the 21st Century multi-generational workforce (Khanna, 2019).

Over time, it seems that the safety net of Gen X, Y, & Z is further marginalized in the form of unstable income, unaffordable insurance coverage, and unsecured retirement, among others. Driven markedly by these factors, each "succeeding" generation is tilting more progressive than the ones before, according to a Pew Research Center report. And, contrary to conventional wisdom, "differences across age groups" are shaped more by their unique historical events in which they come of age. Needless to say, generations over time do embody the complexities of their time, e.g., political, social, and economic factors (Levin, 2019).

Multi-Generational Workforce: The Traditionalists aside, there are now four active generations working side by side in most industries. These are the Baby Boomers, the X Generation, the Y Generation, and now the Z Generation. Therefore, we have employees who are equally approaching the same problem or opportunity, but from different perspectives.

Five Generations:

Traditionalists: Individuals born between 1928-1944 who value authority and governance within the "top-down" management style. Known for being loyal with strong work ethics, they are more comfortable with stability, but conflict less.

Baby Boomers: Born between 1945 and 1964, they are workaholics and prefer face-to-face communication. They view their identity directly from their work status and professional achievements. Their success is defined through hard work and sacrifice. And, they view themselves as the right generation to "change the world."

• For Professional Development, they would rather be subject experts first. Some of them value the intrinsic value of "doing good." They are highly-focused on completing assignments (therefore optimal task completion) than their next generations. Education defines them. Not the most techno-savvy, they have acquired technical skills on a "need-to-know" basis. Technology is not part of their DNA (DuPre, 2019).

Gen X: Born between 1965 and 1979. they are considered independent thinkers and self-reliant though skeptical. They have high job expectations, though they seek flexible work for life balance. They are pragmatic, but lack organizational loyalty due to their mistrust in boomers' values. They aren't much into micro-management, as they are more into results with their motto of "working smarter not harder or longer."

• For Professional Development, they value learning as a path to "where they want to be (DuPre, 2019)." They've learned to create their own destiny, by "sideline" the rules & regulations set by the boomers. Technology is only a set of tools to fulfill their job or learning requirements. Thereby, they have incorporated technology well around their environment.

Gen Y: Known as "Millennials," they are born between 1979 and 1995. They were the first group of individuals "to make multitasking a religion (Tracy, 2019)." Their parents are the Gen X helicopter navigators who "ferried them among school, basketball practice, piano lessons, test-prep tutoring and group outings to movies (Tracy, 2019)." These Millennials were encouraged "to see no ceiling to their potential and no limits to their options (Tracy, 2019). They are highly tolerant and sociable (though social media platforms). They consider themselves as part of the global community. They value individuality, diversity, and civic duties, which all are easily afforded by their technology-dependent platforms. Their work ethic, achievement, and competitiveness are self-defined, yielding little or no organizational loyalty to the traditional hierarchical organizational models.

• For professional development, they value micro-learning formats, with immediate results provided. They prefer to learn in a collaborative & team approach using multimedia for entertainment & engagement. Motivated by learning, they seek learning experiences that provide impactful "relevant & transferable" skills. According to the author David Brooks, "it's the carrot, not the stick, that drives them on." He adds, it is the "Opportunity lures them (Tracy, 2019)

Gen Z: Born in 1995 on, they are "still defining (DuPre, 2019)" themselves. With more than 68 million Americans identifying themselves with Gen Z, this age cohort accounts for 22 % of the US population, according to 2017 US Census Bureau survey. As a group, they are the second largest one after the Baby Boomers, then followed by the Millennials. Gen Z consider themselves the most ethnically diverse & progressive age group ever (Levin, 2019). And, according to a Pew Research Center report, they are far more open to social changes than any other generations.

Based on online surveys of 920 youths age 13 to 17, and 11,000 adults 18 or older, the findings show that only 30% of Generation Z voted conservative (farther to the right on issues like immigration, gun control, and climate change. In comparison, more than half of those respondents voted liberals (farther to the left like racial and ethnic equality). Audaciously, the data shows that 70% of those respondents seek a participatory role from the US government in solving the nation's problems. For those who identify themselves as republicans, the findings illustrate a sharp divide among Republicans. More than half of those respondents reported that racial and ethnic diversity are good for the American society (Levin, 2019).they are far more open to social changes than any other generations

Embracing similar attitudes of the Millennials before them, these two age cohorts could collectively account for a "powerful voting bloc" at odds with the Baby Boomers and the traditionalists. According to Elizabeth Bennion at Indiana University South Bend, this should more likely "mark a generational replacement," reshaping the nation's political and economic landscape (Levin, 2019).

For professional development, this generation is the most liberal age cohort ever. Fueled by their social and economic perspectives, this post-Millennial generation seems like an extension of the Millennial generation before. Many of their liberal values and societal diversity are singularly defined by their mobile technology, namely, smart phones. Due to their 24/7 real-time access to others, they are less likely to focus on tasks, resulting in little loyalty for brands & organizational hierarchies.

Multi-Generational Workforce Preparation: Corporations across industries struggle to find the right employees with the right skills. They all ask "why is it so difficult to attract and retain employees? First of all, let us remember the old adage of Perception is Reality! Somehow, Gen Y and Z have earned many unflattering veneered like "Entitled, Selfish, Untested, etc" to describe th. Some common words that have been used to describe Millennials in the workplace. A better set of words used to describe Millennials would be uneasy, pessimistic, and concerned. According to a Forbes survey 43% of Millennials plan to quit their job within two years, only 28% plan to stay in their current roles for more than 5 years. Why?

Millennials are aware, optimistic and exposed to current business practices; which many of them feel are unethical and unfair. While they may be right, there are two choices, step into the evolved economy or stay in the old model and watch your JOB disappear. I am very positive about Millennials and other age groups being empowered to flip the current business model on its ear and embrace the new and evolved economy.

Here are five things that Millennials say they want out of their work life balance; They want to work for companies fixated on value, not profits, they want to know how much the company will contribute to their personal development, they want companies to share the financial reward with their employees, They want to be part of a positive workplace culture, and they want an opportunity for continuous improvement. These are not out-of- line ideals to look for in a company that you may spend a good deal of your life working for.

Most likely, corporations have long viewed their employee's learning engagement from the traditional lenses of institutional training. Commonly, the HR department provides hybrid training sessions at specific times and days. Accordingly, these employees will sign up to attend their training. No accountability! No Relevancy!(Parker, Nikki, & Igielnik, 2019). However, now, corporations are viewing learning (training) in terms of relevancy and ROI (for both employees and employers).

To be effective, learning ought to be modularized according to employees' responsibilities within the context of their employer's needs. At the basic level, all should "demonstrate curiosity, ethical judgement, integrity, cultural sensitivity, and capacity." From there, employees should illustrate scalability through their contributions (tangible & intangible) for "critical thinking, clear communication, & solving complex problems," among many other drivers (Parker, Nikki, & Igielnik, 2019). The new normal is continuous. As they continue to be challenged, they could keep learning rather than be complacent (Taylor, 2019).

Multi-Generational Workforce Framework: Corporations could use learning as a mode "to attract, engage, and retain qualified employees." Accounting for a large share of its capital investment, its human capital should be leveraged for higher returns. Accordingly, management could ask itself, first, the following: Where is the organization going? How would the organization get there?

From there, management could define its future human capital investment, in terms of Who are they? Next, it could inquire, in terms of What do they want? Admittedly, this is "a far more complex issue to resolve." Here, management might not find the right employees with the right skills. Depending on the generation, management could meet its future employees, at the intersect between where they are and where they ought to be. This in turn should spotlight the innovation needed in bridging the skills expected with the type/content of learning available/budgeted. (Parker, Nikki, & Igielnik, 2019).

Multi-Generational Workforce Challenges: The many different generational traits/needs present unique challenges to corporations. The resultant diverse workforce would most likely require different styles of engagement, complicated by three intertwined elements of leadership, management, and communication.

So, how do we display different leadership and management styles via different communication tools? Along the three-pronged (leadership, management, and communication) approach, strategies could be implemented - broadly across a group of staff, and singularly within each sub-group (Parker, Nikki, & Igielnik, 2019). Traditionalists are most likely to prefer face-to-face communication. Whereas the millennial generation is more inclined to integrate messaging-based technology onto their work or personal life for instant gratification.

Another challenge is the conflict resolution driven by the perceived differences in work ethics between generations as well as the use of technology. For example, Generation X and Y are more about work-life balance. Such drift would cause frustration between the baby boomers and the younger generations in accepting protocols & governance and resistance to technological integration.(Parker, Nikki, & Igielnik, 2019)

Ideas to improve the three-pronged approach are:

1. Conduct a work and communications assessment to understand each person on the team;
2. Create an inclusion communication tool to share relevant articles and news;
3. Start an employee resource group for open discussion, learning and support;
4. Offer training in unconscious bias to help employees recognize their own blind spots;
5. Schedule team building activities and sponsoring events;
6. Look for ways to weave inclusion discussions into regular employee meetings & gathering;
7. Change the culture one person at a time (Taylor, 2019).

Multi-Generational Workforce Resolutions: Central to abating such generational conflict is the proper awareness about the different generational traits. Appreciating the added-value of coworkers & managers' contributions could lead to better understanding about the group dynamics. As both leaders capitalizing and managers leveraging each individual (tangible & intangible) talent within & across generations, they would create sustainable growth in shareholder value. With four different generations working side by side, a balanced work-life environment would empower them as one group (Parker, Nikki, & Igielnik, 2019).

With the need for further job satisfaction, Ai can be used to mass-customize staff motivation based on personal and generational factors. In bringing together these multi-generational behaviors, attitudes and values, managers, henceforth, could eliminate some of the challenges that are inflaming the multi-generational workforce.

Multi-Generational Workforce - to Manage & Lead: How would leaders and managers prepare for the future? First, they should understand and accept the continued disruption of the world around them. Rather than seek safety, they should ask their multi-generational workforce, Where do we or should we go next? As disruption affects all aspects of the organization, leaders, managers, and staff, along the corporation should all collectively "co-innovate" in "coming up with solutions" to best "deliver" since all "understand the enterprise and scale." From there, they can set goals, strategies, and then action plans. For proper execution, they should measure their progress, in order to maintain accountability.

According to Julie Sweet of Accenture, the most essential message to relay is "what I need to hear, not what I want to hear" (Gelles, 2019). Leadership is all about the power to offer "straight talk with the courage to deliver tough messages."

Multi-Generational Workforce Environment: The 24/7 on workforce might be driving a wedge between you and your - In the age of social media and smartphones, the boundaries between work and home life are long being dissolved - keeping ERs and EEs to remain tethered on an electronic leash. According to Liuba Belkin at Lehigh University, EEs spend an average of 8 hours or "one full extra day" per week monitor their work emails beyond their normal office hours; 65% of employees believe their employer expect them to monitor their work emails after hours; and 55% of employees have difficulty separating (detaching) from work after hours.

Regardless of the time spent actually responding to them, the mere expectation by their work to check their work email, the more anxious they felt and the less satisfaction they felt with their overall work and life relationships. In the past, strict physical boundaries existed between work and home life. But now such connectivity is further boosted employees' emotional exhaustion by requiring "cognitively taxing "micro-role transitions between work and non-work domains." Even if employees make "a conscious choice not to respond during family time," there is always a "chronic stressor" on. since you are "either checking messages or are thinking about checking them." In a follow-up study published in July, the findings show that the more their boss expected them to check their work emails after hours, the more anxiety and less relationship satisfaction they felt. - this is an "insidious downside" of electronic communication. The professor acknowledges that in the internet age, it is hard not to. However, there are steps to protect their times and relationships:

Ask your employer to establish a rotating on-call schedule. This includes designating certain days or times during which employees must monitor their work emails or messages.

Ask you employer to specify in emails whether immediate action is necessary or if a response can wait until work hours - not necessarily to respond immediately.

Establish strict, no-email times in which you turn off your phone. Research have shown that the mere presence of a smartphone in the room can reduce focus - in the vicinity (Marshall, 2019).

It is also important to recognize that stress is likely to turn into diabetes. When stressed, one's body make more hormones such as cortisol, growth hormone, glucagon, and adrenaline - causing one's blood sugar levels to spike, explains Nadia Ali, MD at Wayne, Pennsylvania. In turn, this can lead to insulin resistance, that can trigger diabetes. Stress also raises one's blood pressure, a known diabetes risk factor. It can also trigger anxiety, depression, and mental health problems - increasing complications - not eating well and exercise - visious cycle likely to develop diabetes. According to the study from the American Heart Association, both acute and chronic stress can spike your risk. Acute stress is when one suddenly find themselves in a traumatic or negative situation, like losing your job or have serious accident. Chronic stress happens over a long period of time, such as ongoing problems with work, finances, or relationships (Robinson, 2019).

So how doctors can help you understand your risk and recommend strategies to cope with stress. Dr. Nadia Ali suggests the following framework:

How does stress affect my body? Doctor may run tests to see how stress affects your insulin level, insulin resistance, and inflammation.

Do I have an underlying medical condition that needs to be monitored? Doctor can identify if there's something else at play and help you manage it.

What lifestyle choices do you recommend? When feeling stress, your doctor may suggest specific changes to your diet and exercise program.

Should I see a therapist? Your doctor can help you decide if it's best to get professional help and help you find it (Robinson, 2019).

With added stress comes a surge in depression - like feelings of helplessness, troubled sleep, faded interest in work and in liked activities, and a rise in irritability, anxiety, and anger, to name just a few.

Questions For Your Doctor: Am I depressed? The symptoms of depression vary but often center around loss: loss of energy, loss of hope, loss of self-esteem, loss of interest.

Do I need treatment? Self-care is essential, but your depression may require outside help, may include cognitive behavioral therapy - an effective type of talk therapy, and/or antidepressant medication (McMillen, 2019).

Exercise can ease mood swings, lower back pain, minimize weight gain and fatigue. "The feel-good and mood-boosting endorphins and serotonin also help ease depression, social withdrawal, and stress. After all, "listen to your body - take a day off - may be the best way to avoid physical and emotional drain (Robinson, 2019).

Final Note: Only rarely should individuals be "content with the status quo." First, they should define their personal & professional priority. Next, they should sincerely diagnose their arresting challenges. Lastly, they should set possible targets for desired outcomes. The multi-stakeholder model always will win in the long-term. This goes against the typical corporate approach that inculcates the aggressive cost-cutting over corporate responsibility, as it will heavily affect or even destroy a business.

There is a growing gap in the current workforce communication skills, both written and spoken. As they enter the workforce, their deficits in communication skills will continue to be the most requested ability missing in workers today. With the "widespread use" of social media, the Gen Y and Z have lost their ability to communicate with others, as they adopt the language of texting of the form of "abbreviations and acronyms." Far from writing and conversing in professional setting, this new texting mode of communication "leads to" poor grammar, spelling, and punctuation." Some communication specialists argue that many of the Gen Y and Z cannot use nor understand formal business language." Those experts are alarmed on how poor communication skills does undermine professionals' ability "to make presentations, manage, represent business ideas, execute business transactions, direct projects, and lead teams - all key parameters for business skills." These are foundation skills of "good writing and public speaking," that are nearly impossible to learn if not early on with kindergarten curriculum. Those Gen professionals clearly have an advantage with their technological skills. However, employers are looking for employees "who can do today's jobs as well as grow into the yet-to-exist tomorrow's jobs. Employees with poor communication skills clearly are at disadvantage once they are labeled as "unprofessional or ineffective." An added missing skill is the ability to listen. Because of technology and social media and its associated "so much" chatter, what's often missing is the ability to listen. Luckily, active listening skills can be easily acquired, in contrast to many other soft skills (considered difficult for educators to teach and employers to screen for." Active listening is a valued "soft skill," along with problem-solving, interpersonal skills, critical thinking, and dealing with complexity and ambiguity." Short of these skills, "internal conflicts, customer service issues, and higher employee turnover" are more likely to happen. So what are the solutions? As a start, it is prudent to appreciate the value of collaboration between educators and employers. So it is important to note however that both parties play equally critical roles in the development of HR workforce. To help address skills shortages, the education system should be designed to prepare the workforce for work and career. In addressing skills lapses, employers must complement the education systems with investments in internships, apprenticeships, and other learning opportunities (Taylor, 2019).

Opposing Signals for Human Connections:

Over time, consumers suffer from "buyer fatigue," as seen with social media subscribers "detoxing" from their internet connection. Users expectations of online "customer fulfillment" have led to "option paralysis." After millions of the one-click fulfillment feature, subscribers are "deactivating" with Facebook. Fewer subscribers also are reported to joining Twitter and Instagram. After years of interacting with avatars rather than human beings, there are some signs indicating a resurgence of "Offline" presence. Rather than total disconnect, the younger generation is turning to "human-based" compensated services.

It is too early to determine whether the pendulum is swinging back to human connection. But one couldn't help but wonder if human connection, after going out of style, is it poised for a comeback (Maum, 2019).

References:

DuPre, Michelle P. (2019, January). The End of Cookie-Cutter Education. Columbia Business Monthly. Vol. 30, No. 01, p. 11

Brooks, David. (2019, Jan. 6). The virtues of self-absorption. The State, p. 1C

For the Record (2018, Oct. 1). Time, Vol. 192, No. 13 p. 4

Gelles, David. (2019, Jan. 6). Corner Office: Living as an Example of 'Leading by Example." NY Times, p. BU Y 6

Levin, Dan. (2019, Jan. 24). Young Voters, Even Republicans, Are Drifting to the Left on Social Issues, NY Times, p. Y A17

Marshall, Lisa. (2019, May). Work Wise: Marriage Killer? - New Research Suggests Monitoring Work Emails After Hours Can Harm Partners' Health And Relationship Satisfaction. WebMD, p. 20

McMillen, Matt. (2019, May). Living: Baby Blues - New Fathers Develop Depression at Twice the Rate of Other Men. WebMD, p. 22

Parker, Kim, Graf, Nikki, & Igielnik, Ruth. (2019, Jan. 17). Social & Demographic Trends: Generation Z Looks a Lot Like Millenials on Key Social and Political Issues. Pew Research Center, www.pewsocialtrends.org

Khanna, Ro. (2019, Jan. 7). Spread the digital wealth, The State, p. 7A

Robinson, Kara Mayer. (2019, May). Living: Reason to Relax - A New Study Suggests Stress Puts Women at Risk of Developing Diabetes. WebMD, p. 21

Robinson, Kara Mayer. (2019, May). Living: Business as Usual. WebMD, p. 24

Taylor, Johnny C. Jr. (2019, Feb. 19). Ask Human Resources: Build inclusivity by exploring commonalities. USA Today, p. 3B - A sense of belongings will help empower employees.

Taylor, Johnny C. Jr. (2019, May 14). Communication skills essential for tech generation. Feb. 19). Ask Human Resources: Communication skills essential for tech generation. USA Today, p. 4B - A sense of belongings will help empower employees.

Tracy, Marc. (2019, Jan. 15). Sports: Two Sports, In 2019? A Millennial Might Do It. NY Times, p. Y B8

Supplement Readings:

How to Break Your Phone Habit at WebMD.com