Generational Diversity In The Workplace

First off, retention for all generations starts on day one of employment (Martin, 2006, pg. 118). Beginning in orientation, it is a good idea to ask workers what their ideal career path would be and what can be offered throughout each stage of their career.

Diversity in the workplace is not a new idea or concept. From the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s the majority of people living in the United States were immigrants from other countries including Italy, Russia, and Ireland. Each of the members from these countries spoke different languages, came from different cultures, and had different customs and work ethics. Acceptance to them was fought for in the workplace in industries such as coal, steel, automobile manufacturing, and other labor forces. This type of struggle still continues today in the workplace from cultural differences, and language differences to racial and gender differences. This paper will examine the obstacles managers face when overcoming generational differences

The workforce is seeing up to five generations working together for the first time in history. People are choosing to work longer and delay retirement. Ultimately, the workforce could experience up to six generations working together. It’s the role of business leaders to embrace diversity and guide their teams to cohesion. Generational gaps can pose challenges in the workplace, but understanding each generation 's unique characteristics and skills sets will assist in effectively managing diversity to keep a peaceful coexistence.

The workplace of today involves interactions among people from four different generations often causing much conflict for leaders and organizations. Each generation represented has its own set of different values and beliefs. These differences can easily lead to conflicting barriers within the workplace. This can pose a significant problem for those in leadership. In order to combat this issue, leaders and organizations can effectively deal with these issues by offering different programs such as executive mentoring, town hall meetings, and leadership seminars for those in leadership.

Ageism influences the presence of diversity because those who are affected by ageism within their career may lose their

There are currently six living generations in the United States, each with different characteristics, beliefs, and values. The things that define each generation’s culture are derived from their history, upbringing, and the lifestyle of their time. Our generation was born between 1980 and 2000. We are called Millennials. More specifically, we grew up in the South, which typically lends itself to being more conservative and religious. These characteristics, along with our instant gratification attitude, define who we are, what we believe, and how we view other generations. For example, we might have differing views with the Silent Generation. Some Millennials may feel the Silent Generation’s social, religious, and economic conservatism is outdated.

Over 70 years has passed since the end of World War II, and since that time our society has seen 4 generations transition into the next on a bridge scarcely understood by those preceding or following them. These cohorts are known in their chronological order as The Baby Boomers (born 1946 – 1965), Generation X (born 1965 – 1981), The Millennials (1981 – 1994), and now The Centennials (born 1994 – early 2000s), or Generation Z, a group whose exact demographics are still largely undefined. The disparity between the Millennials and their postwar predecessors, The Baby Boomers, can be noted by studying characteristics of each generation, and how the socioeconomic factors surrounding war and technology have shaped them. While their basic needs and core similarities are innately human, objectively speaking, their views, biases and outlooks have most certainly been impacted by the events and advancements of their time.

Growing up, most Millennials butt heads with their parents like every generation before us. Although a vast majority of Millennials have generation X parents. Growing up as a Millennial, technology became more advanced which seems to be the root of the disliking for us from every generation before us. Our parents are “America 's neglected middle child” and we the Millennials are the future of today. We excel with technology, but struggle with our income, causing us to push back commitments other generations would have already done. Millennials want access not ownership. A growing percent of us are putting off buying houses, marriage, children, and buying cars. Being so technologically advanced we look for convenience over hard work, even in our purchases, “57% of Millennials who compare prices in stores. (AIMIA Inc. “Born this Way: US Millennial Loyalty Survey” ©2012)” Online purchases are happening more than ever, with taking in the factor of good quality and prices. “Millennials have come of age during a time of technological change, globalization and economic disruption. That’s given them a different set of behaviors and experiences than their parents (© 2016 Goldman Sachs).” As I explore the differences and similarities of our two generations I will be discussing power distance, uncertainty avoidance, in group collectivism, institutional collectivism, gender egalitarianism, assertiveness, performance orientation, future orientation, and humane orientation.

This is a small sample, survey and by interviews asking four Baby Boomers and three Generation Xers. This will help establish a demographic, by ethnicity, age, gender and educational attainment. Each person interviewee was asked to state a belief, value, norm, and a tradition. The results are in; here are the similarities and differences between the generations and cultures.

Welcome to yet another discussion in our Diversity month series. This afternoon we will be addressing the generational diversity in our workplace. With the different needs, values and backgrounds in the Firm it is very important for us to create a conducive environment for everyone. We are fortunate to have in our midst today two people who are championing the course of their respective generations.

Diversity in workforce “include, but are not limited to: age, ethnicity, ancestry, gender, physical abilities/qualities, race, sexual orientation, educational background, geographic location, income, marital status, military experience, religious beliefs, parental status, and work experience”(Thomas 1992). Diversity in the workforce is initially perceived as a response toward the increasing diversity of the consumers in the market (Agocs & Burr, 1996). From there, it has been observed that capitalizing on existing differences among the employees provide benefits to the organization. Diversity in workforce fosters and encourages

This paper is aimed at providing a framework for discussion of diversity and how it pairs with demographic characteristics. It is divided into four parts. Part I represents diversity in the workforce, which reflects the rational of organizations and how they handle diversity in the occupations of their workers. Parts II characterize diversity and age, as it responds to the fact that older people have the skill set to keep them working well past retirement age. Part III denotes religion, where as more employers are beginning to recognize the need to allow employees to take time to pray. Part IV symbolizes the personality traits in diversity and how “different” is not always viewed as wrong but can be an incentive to other

Diversity is what makes people different, not just culturally but in human differences. Having a multitude of differences in the workforce gives an organization the ability to use many ideas to reach a common goal. A person could say that a diverse group of people together in one room can accomplish greater achievements than a room filled with the same types of individuals. Managers understand the concept of diversity, and how important diversity is to the success of a company’s ability to implement programs that continue to develop a harmonious and diverse workplace. The recognition that diversity is a reality in the workforce has generated an enormous amount of activity over the years among leaders in business, government, and civil

“Generation X” (“Gen-Xers”), born from about 1960 – 1980, maintained some attributes typical of the “Baby Boomer” generation, but feel that their upbringing was too strict. They added an emphasis on work/life

Every work environment is teeming with people from various generations. Though, the majority of people wish for a healthy work environment this is not the easiest to come by. People from these different generations have different ways of looking at the world. They were raised differently and though theoretically want the same things they want to reach these goals in different ways. Rising to leadership, the understanding of technology, adapting in the workplace, and communication are the four criteria you need to know to understand how the people of Generation X and Millennials function together in the workplace.