Generational Issues And Initiatives Used For Maintaining Organizational Success

Every generation is influenced by its period 's economic, political and social events. From the Great Depression to the civil rights and women 's movements to the advent of television and advanced computer technologies. Thus generational background/situation may also affect the way they work. The key is to be able to effectively address and take advantage of the differences in values and expectations of each generation in the workplace. The current work place consists of four different generations; The Baby Boomers (1946-1964) who are slowly retiring and existing the workforce, The Generation X (1965-1976), The Generation Y or millennia (1977-1997), and the Generation Z who are about to or are just entering the work force. Although these different generations tend to want similar things in a workplace their environment/background has shaped their character, values, and expectations (Hahn 2011).

A generation can be defined as the period, cohort or age of a group of people. Age is seen as the age that the persons were when particular transitions or events in life take place. Period can be defined as the overall experience of a person’s lifetime. Lastly, cohort can be seen as the overall grouping of people who have shared events during their formative years that more than likely contribute to like-minded behavior throughout the duration of their lives. There are currently four generations in United States society: Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Generation X and The Millennials. The silent generation was born between the years of 1930 and 1945. Significant events during this time period include but are not limited to World War II and the Great Depression. The baby boomer generation was born between the years of 1946 and 1964. Significant events for this generation include the substantial growth of the middle class as well as economic prosperity. Generation X is born in the time period of 1965-1979, this generation was brought together by the big energy issue as well as the Vietnam War. Lastly the final generation that is currently in the workforce are the Millennials. This generation was born between the years 1980 and 2001, this group is brought together by the 9/11 terrorist attacks as well as the internet

Arlie Russel Hochschild adheres to a variety of assertions in his article, “Gen Fill in the Blank” concerning what he thinks a generation means. It was proposed that generations are solely branded by the pivotal impact they undergo as a cohort during historical events; hence, sharing a common response to those events. Hochschild furthers this idea by introducing generational identity and how that’s defined by the conceptions that society invokes upon a generation. Furthermore, he includes that an important factor making up modern day’s generation is the external burden of American Individualism; this universal pressure has robbed us of our ability to care and resulted in a profound deficiency of “cultural expression”.

Different groups in America are classified by the eras that they were born into. The active generations who had the great impact on society today are the Baby Boomers and the Millennials (Debevec, 2013). In between the baby boomers and the millennials are the Eco Boomers and the Gen Xers (Kennedy, 2000). According to population projections released by the U.S. Census Bureau, Baby Boomers are the generation defined by the boom in U.S. births following World War II. They were born in the years between 1946 and 1964 (Brownstein, 2012). On the other hand millennials are the generation born in the years between 1981 and 1997 (Brownstein, 2012). There are 77 million boomers and 82 million millennials (Fallon, 2015). Both generations overlap in time, and are linked in that most of the Millennials are generally the children of the Boomers, but they are actually completely different in economics, education, politics, and lifestyles (Fallon, 2015).

Seniors born entre January 1, 1933 and December 31, 1945 are described as Post-War Cohort and have a current Population of 55 million, but their population is declining. According to extension.missouri.edu, they are retirees in majority and formed the largest voting population. Seniors or veterans also called Silent Generation inherited the consequences of the Great Depression of 1929 and World War II. They feel gratified by the effort or work, they are struggling to work and usually stay for long in the same company. They are obedient and respectful to authority, they are cautious and have a sense of duty but modern technologies such as information, communication and social networks are not obvious to them and may even be refractory. They earned less than today, but in their time, the quality of work was an art. Seniors born entre January 1, 1933 and December 31, 1945 value security, comfort, and familiar, known activities and environments. Like the baby boomers, the silent generation is committed in marriage even though some divorced. This cohort is a target composed mainly of women and men widowers who live alone for half of them, especially women. This cohort had significant opportunities in education as a post-war economic boom struck America.

Currently, there are five main generations. Traditionalists are the oldest generation, being born between 1900 and 1945. They only constitute 5% of the current workforce, as most have retired (Wiedmer 2015, 51). The baby boomers are the oldest and largest generation currently in the workforce (Wong et al. 2008, 878). This generation was born following World War II between 1945 and 1964, with approximately 76 million individuals (Wiedmer 2015, 52). Generation X was born from 1965 to 1981 and is also known as the baby busters because their birth rates are vastly lower than the baby boomers (Wiedmer 2015, 53). Generation Y, or the millennials, was born between 1982 and 1995 and grew up in a very different time compared to their predecessors, with

A generation is all of the people who were born about a certain time and living about a certain time, collectively experiencing the same time period. Since each generation is born in different times it can cause issues on the features of the american life such as Social Security. As the United States government set up the Social Security program in 1937, it has been very aged since then. At that time, the Social Security system was able to pay its retirees a five hundred yield on the money they contributed. The Social Security program now, in todays time, is not able to say the same for itself. Because of generational conflicts, those who retire in the next few years will not be able to have the same benefits. Generational gaps can be shown

They deplore the fact that a post-secondary education is no longer an automatic ticket to the perks of a middle class lifestyle. They also demonstrate distaste for institutions and labels, and feel that freedom of expression and liberation of self is fundamental for positive change. On that token, one of the most controversial topics of comparison between the Baby Boomers and the Millennials is that of work ethic. Boomers are often thought of as being hard-working and industrious. They often tie much of their self-worth directly to their professional achievements. They are often competitive which drives them to take on a host of professional responsibilities. This keeps them motivated and self-assured. Millennials have a tendency to want to start at the top, side-stepping the entry level positions and the upper rings of corporate ladder that Boomers dedicated decades of their time to

This generation also helped to establish family values and their model of living has been cast against other cultures around the world in this researchers opinion. Moving forward to the next generation which is referred to as the Baby Boomers, this is the generation that was born between 1943 and 1960 as noted by Zemke et al.(2013). This generation has been characterized as the first generation that came about when child rearing was a hobby and pleasure as opposed to an economic necessity. I am sure this was intended to be a positive but it warrants further investigating.

A generation is formed when a defining moment occurs in one’s life and one is able to tell others about where they were at the time that the moment occurred. Generation X (Gen X) also known as the "sandwich generation" is the births between the periods (1965-1980). According to Keene & Handrich (2011) "what Xers recall from childhood are: long gas lines; sitting in their classrooms and watching the Challenger shuttle explode with a schoolteacher on board; Americans being held hostage; AIDS; the Persian Gulf War; the Rodney King trial verdict and the riots which followed; corporate downsizing which affected their parents; and the erosion of our public educational system” (p. 3).

Strauss-Howe’s generational theory explains in detail how the year in which you are born affects your development, attitudes and socialisation in society. William Strauss and Neil Howe designed the theory to be a recurring cycle in America. The generation you are born into can reflect your traits and be a reflection on what type of person you will grow up to be. Strauss-Howe examined the patterns in historical generations and used generational events to create a theory revolving around it. These generational events are known as turnings.

Kyles (2005) defines them as competitive, political, hardworking, and nonconformists. “Known for their workaholic ethic, Boomers will do whatever it takes to get the job done and get ahead, and they expect to be rewarded. They outnumber all generations and hold a majority of management-level positions. They are also approaching retirement and are heavily concerned with financial and job security” (Kyles, 2005, p. 54). This group is very hard working and also offers a lot of wisdom that can be beneficial to those of the younger generations.

“The number of employees over the age of 55 has increased by 30 percent; however, the number of 25- to 54-year-olds has only increased by 1 percent” (Claire, 2009). In 2008 the eldest of the 77 million baby-boomers turned 62. Estimates are that by the end of the decade about 40 percent of the work force will be eligible to retire. As people begin to reach the age of retirement there may be not be enough new employees to fill the gap (Clare, 2009). Companies need to find ways to attract Boomers and Millennials. Companies that want to attract Boomers and Millennials need to be creative in their culture, HR policies and work environments.

In the present diversified work force in terms of age ,gender,culture ,work style, the employee demographics consist of the four generations which are Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Generation X and Millenials

The most connected, classy and educated generation ever is known as Gen Z. Gen Z is part of a generation that is global, social, visual and technological. They are the teens, the tweens, the youth and the young adults of our society. A Generation is generally described through the years of birth. For example Generation Z is 1995 to 2009 and therefore if you are born within these times, you are considered a part of the Generation. Generation Z is about 2 billion of the world’s population and they don’t just characterize the future, they are creating it. Unfortunately Gen Z individuals have been brought into the world during the times of crisis, terrorism and the global downturn and climate change. However fortunately study has shown that Generation Z is assisting human resource managers in many areas such as employment, and the evolution of the work industry. Like the unfortunate era they’re living in, there is a positive turnaround where the students of today, employees and consumers of tomorrow, are experiencing the workforce for the first time and through this experience they have found and displayed new ways that human resourcing can be publically viewed. It has often been argued that Generation Z kids are irresponsible and lack discipline, however when it comes to employment, many managers have agreed that this Generation is the best.