Sally Kane Baby Boomer Analysis

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).

Many people in the "baby boomer" generation are staying active as they age. By either jogging, swimming or becoming part of a sports team. They strive to remain youthful and mentally young and view retirement as an active period of their life. Theirinterest in health , fitness, looking young and attractive and longevity is quite phenomenal. They can expect to live longer due to medical advances however stress and burnout could impact on this expectation of longevity. They are well educated, thirsty for information interested in travel and will want to stay involved in the political processes. In addition they are optimistic, forward thinking and undoubtedly redefine old age. As the oldest of the nation's 75 million baby boomers approach the age of 60, a Pew Research Center survey finds many are looking ahead to their own retirement while balancing a full plate of family responsibilities either raising children or providing financial and other

Most baby boomers grew up watching their traditionalist parents work very hard to make ends meet and take care of the family unit. As a result of their upbringing many boomers have adopted their parent’s strong work ethics; working hard, long hours trying to climb the corporate ladder. Baby boomers still enjoy personal face to face interactions and building rapport with people

Economic factors will play a role in baby boomers working beyond the age of 50. Due

Shopping: Shopping for the Generation X started with the trip to the mall. If your local department store didn't have "the cool stuff", you'd have to take a trip to the mall where there are more options for the Gen X'er. Later the rise of E-commerce came into play, so now Generation X members are seasoned enough to know where to physically find the goods they need, but also know where to find a good deal on-line.

Baby Boomers constructed America in the 1960s, and soon the Millennials will get their chance. Baby boomers are currently the largest generation of active workers. Research has shown that boomers identify their strengths as organizational memory, optimism, and their willingness to work long hours. Many earned, many still earn high incomes. The millennial generation, born between 1980 and 2000, are starting to enter businesses in large numbers. However, they do not have the same views and values when working compared to the Boomers. This Boomers grew up in organizations with large corporate hierarchies, and Millennials grew up with management structures and teamwork based job roles. By 2025, millennials will make up the 75% of the workforce replacing the Boomer generation. But, are they ready for the workforce and is the workforce ready for them? I think they would be ready if businesses are able to change and adapt towards them.

Their values were shaped primarily by a rise in civil rights activism Vietnam and inflation. Baby Boomers were cherished by parents that had sacrificed and fought a war for the right to bear them raise them, indulge them. Baby boomers tend to be more optimistic and open to change and are also responsible for the “Me Generation” with its pursuit for personal gratification. Baby Boomers value face time in the office and my not welcome workplace flexibility or work/life balance trends. High levels of responsibility, perks, praise and challenges will motivate this Generation. Furthermore, when understanding Boomers, there’s the issue and added complexity of older Boomers and younger Boomers also known as the First half/Second Half. First halfers are those born in the 1940s. They are more idealistic, more likely to be workaholics and more likely to have put career first, family second. The first halfers’ world view was more affected by the 1950s. The late Bloomers or second halfers tend to feel different about work. They graduated from college and went to work during the Reagan era. They got the first taste of downsizing, large scale layoffs. This makes them more cynical and less gung ho about management than early Boomers. They feel that good work habits and positive mental attitude are not always rewarded and often are not enough to save a job regardless of how well it has been

Upon reflecting on the three main generations that comprise the workplace today, a few differences emerge. “Baby Boomers” grew up in a time when movements were prominent, the Vietnam War occurred, key figures were assassinated, the Watergate Scandal occurred, and television was introduced (Twenge et al., 2010; Schullery, 2013). Overall, “Baby Boomers” seem to exhibit a distrust of authority, value hard work, and want to enjoy their achievements (Robbins & Judge, 2015; Twenge et al., 2010). As such, they are results driven and give their utmost effort (Robbins & Judge, 2015). “Generation X” grew up in a time of computers, divorce, two career parents, MTV, and economic uncertainty (Twenge et al., 2010; Robbins & Judge, 2015). For the most part, they seem to exhibit the workplace behaviors of independence and a lack of commitment to employers (Twenge et al., 2010). They value a balance between work and life and place more focus on extrinsic rewards such as monetary compensation (Twenge et al., 2010). “Millennials” grew up in prosperous times with technology dominating the era and over-protective parents (Robbins & Judge, 2015; Schullery, 2013). Generally, they seem to place a greater value on employee benefits, leisure time, teamwork, and open communication (Society of Human Resource Management, 2004; Twenge, 2010; Myers & Sadaghiani, 2010). In addition, they have also been given the labels of “self-centered” and “entitled” (Myers & Sadaghiani, 2010).

A few of the most common occupations for baby boomers include, but are not limited to, office clerks and administrative support services, accounting and bookkeeping, sales management/business management/middle management, manual labor and construction workers, law enforcement, elementary school teachers and nurses (“Selected Post”, n.d.). Women were typically the ones found working clerical jobs because of the financial stability and convenient work schedule that these jobs provided (“Selected Post”, n.d.). Throughout the baby boomer generation, many of the college graduates pursued careers in bookkeeping and accounting, as well as in middle management, sales, and business (“Selected Post”, n.d.). For those who didn’t receive a college education, manual labor and construction jobs were popular due to the fact that workers could start without having an education and could easily learn the required skills while on the job (“Selected Post”, n.d.). Law enforcement was yet another common career path chosen by baby boomers because they wanted to make a difference in their

Whilst a large amount of information exists in terms of generational cohorts, not all findings are supported by empirical research to link the concept of work engagement to the different generational cohorts. The conventional belief that older people are less engaged and do not find meaning in their work has been proven to be a misconception, which highlights the danger of stereotypical beliefs. The findings suggest that older employees are still very valuable resources and can contribute significantly to the organisation’s success, but have different needs and values than other age groups. The results of this study indicated a significant difference between the Baby Boomer generation and the other two cohorts, but no significant difference

“The third generation in the work place is the generation X”. (Tanner, 2011) They were born somewhere between the 1960’s and the 1980’s. They are sometimes called “Post-Boomers, Twenty-something’s, Xers, and Slackers”. (Tanner, 2011) The Xers are known to be “independent, self-sufficient, and skeptical”. (Tanner, 2011) “They value diversity, work/life balance, technology, and informality”. (Tanner, 2011) They also “view all work as just a job”. (Tanner, 2011) To work well with them it is important to partner them with co-workers that they respect. Also, do not have high expectations. Remember they have a balanced between their life and their job. They will not give a 100% to their job. Another thing is that they do not like to have people watching over their shoulder all day, so give them some space.

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.

The world’s labor force primarily consists of three major generations: the “Baby Boomers,” “Generation X,” and “Generation Y.” The “Baby Boomers” were born during and after the 2nd World War (1940 to 1960). This generation has a legacy of expertise, “old-fashioned” autocratic management, and healthy productivity. “Boomers” are known to work hard, remain loyal to their employers, and receive promotions on the basis of hard work and high skill. Technology was rather limited (Hewitt and Ukpere, 2012).

They are good at multi tasking and can work on simultaneous projects as long as the company allows them to prioritize the projects (Gursoy et al.2008).