Spanning the Generation Gap in the Workplace - Review

In this article, Wood (2005) states that in many organisations, multiple generations are arguing together besides working together that resulted in a level of generational conflict. Multiple generations were polluting all levels of the corporate, which was a slow process. No longer were the “Old timers” in charge. The young “Upstarts” were also part of the management team. Generational diversity became the “New Diversity”. When trainees list difference in the workplace, rarely is generational diversity mentioned.

The technical, Social and economic changes of the twentieth century gave birth to five generations: the GI Generation (1901-22), Silent Generation (1923-42), Baby Boomers (1943-64), Generation X (1965-81) and Generation Y (1982-2003). GI stands for “Government Issue”, who respect for structure, rules and regulations also belief in teamwork. The Silent Generation is stoic, who are kind, gentle and their social consciousness framed the Civil Rights and Women’s movements. Baby Boomers, the Silent’s children were spoiled by their parents and developed a “me consciousness”. Their intent is to make the world a better place. Generation X was the first generation in which the members raised themselves. They are called “latchkey kids” since they were left home alone also called Hip Hop Generation, Slackers and Endangered Generation. They are characterized as self-centered, authority-adverse and motivated by personal gain, poor listeners, disloyal to the organization and focused on having fun. Generation Y has followed in the footsteps of Generation X and have added gang violence, youth killing youth and parenteen to their generational profile. So, older the generation longer is the list of positive stereotypes and younger the generation longer is the list of negative stereotypes.

Stereotyping older generations as the “good generations” and younger ones as “bad” is the root cause of generational conflict at work. In workplace, generations are segmented into two generational camps, the “Generation Together” (GTs) and “Generation Alone” (GAs). These generational camps evolved because of two factors: (1) the number and intensity of technical, social and economic experiences also milestones they shared, (2) how closely they followed the accepted rights of passage during their developmental stages. These two factors created ”Cross-Generational Common Sense” (CGCS).

To eliminate generational conflict, these two camps need to determine the reason (cause) for their separation as the first step toward reconciliation (effect). There are four steps the generation at work must take to become the generations united: (1) each camp must identify the mistakes they have made to develop their wisdom and then share the wisdom with one another, (2) the elder generations must assume their roles as teachers and mentors as the upcoming generations, (3) the younger generations must accept their role as followers. They must be willing to show that they are trainable, flexible, self-motivated and able to express their needs without rancor and (4) all generations must acknowledge and respect each other’s differences as opportunities for self-growth. So Generational diversity provides a significant opportunity for organisations that are committed to a diversity-conscious and harassment-free workplace.