The Current Generational Issues Of The Workplace

Millennials have a different point of view on what they expect on their work experience. Most

Currently the Millennial generation comprises between an estimated 10-17% of the Controller’s Office, when defining a millennial as someone between the ages of 18 to 34 (Pynes, 2004, p. 28). In the chart below (Figure 1), you can see the breakdown of the office’s age groups. As the 60-65 year olds leave the workforce it will be important to recruit individuals within the younger generations to develop a visionary workplace

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.

Many employers are challenged with handling the millennial due to the lack of proper understanding of this generation since there is plenty of myths, propagated through anecdotes and assumptions. However the separation of the myths and the facts is important for an organization so as

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).

America has about five generations that function in our society today, and they are Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y, and the Millennial. It is interesting the way that an age gap influences the thinking of millions of people in different generations. Different times and situations require that different strategies be put in place for the following generation. Solutions that worked for one generation may be less useful for the next, so sometimes, because of the age gap, these solutions cause disagreements. These various ideologies all have one goal, and that is to be successful. We will discuss the path of the Baby Boomers and Generation X in the workplace environment.

“The vast majority of 18- to 29-year-olds polled — 84 percent — said adult children have a responsibility to provide financial assistance to an elderly parent if he or she needs it (Winerip).” This data just shows that the Millennials do realize that they owe the older generations for their success and that they aren’t against them. From the research done and the articles read, it can be shown that these two generations can work together if they both put their stubbornness aside to help the rising generation.

The so called millennial generation, also referred to as Generation Y and commonly called the Net generation, due to the effect of the internet, are made up of citizens in the United States born between the years 1978 and 1999. This generation has become very familiar with technology because they have grown up with it. They were raised with this new technology such as e-mail’s, instant messaging, and even cell phones. Not all of these new devices have been helpful. In the workforce specifically things have changed especially with communication. Many business had to change their ways of “running the firm” to adapt to the new generation. Business are struggling to adapt to their technological ways, and the effects

Over the past 100 years, many analysts can see evident a rise and decline of the United States population. Looking further into the demographics there are currently 73 million millennials aging from 18 to 34 that will soon account for one in three adults by 2020 (Catalyst, 2012). However, despite the increase of millennials, the overall U.S population continues to grow older. Retirement is a subject of the past in this decade and many over the age of 65 are living and working longer thanks to better health and stability in jobs. In fact, the population of older Americans is expected to more than double by 2060 (Catalyst, 2012). Looking at these statistics overall, we are seeing an increase in both generations meaning they are most likely going to have meet face to face within the workplace. This in result, has made it possible to have five generations in the workplace simultaneously. This is truly remarkable and can have a great effect on a business. Looking in the past at how much has changed in the few years, there was only 10.8% of the 65 year old crowd still working in 1985. Presently, thanks to the U.S Bureau Labor Statistics predicts for the year 2020 will comprise of 22.6% of 65 year olds still working (Ganett Company, 2014).

There are many challenges facing managers and leaders in current workforce. The variety of cultures, races and generations in today’s environment is making work harder. “Managing will also get even more difficult because of globalization, multi-generational workforce, dependency on technology, unethical behaviors and practices.” (Kaifi,2013,pg.217). In this paper I will talk about the three generations that we have had over the past sixty years – the Baby Boomer Generation, Generation X and the current Generation Y, known as Millennials. This rich mix of generations in the workforce can be attributed primarily to labor shortages experienced in many industries and the rising average age of retirement.

As the globalization of work continues and the generational age groups change, the focus on understanding and “leveraging” the skill differences between the groups is becoming more and more critical to the success of a business. Organizations must continue to motivate and engage this multi-generational workforce for the best performances.

In a work environment everybody wants to climb the totem pole. For Millennials, they want to rise to leadership without working too hard for it. They are trying to reach the leadership positions as fast as they can and at times they are unprepared for the position they enter because they have not experienced enough along the way. Where Millennials are too fast to rise to leadership, people considered to be Generation X, who are known for their hard work ethic and experience are often complacent in the workplace. Though they gained their experience (unlike Millennials) by working their way up the chain of command and gradually paying their dues and though they also do not expect to be handed a higher position, like Millennials who feel entitled to higher positions in the workplace, they are also not as motivated as Millennials. (Bresman)

Millennials tend to be technologically advanced and eager to learn. They also value social responsibility and team-work. They are often seen as impatient and quick to express opinions without having all of the data. Millennials are quick to jump-ship if they do not feel if they are progressing fast enough, often at speeds that might be seen as unreasonable. Dayan (2005) says that about 5.6 million Millennials are about to enter the employment market. Millennials are said to be the most challenging generation for employers.

Many changes are happening in the workforce today. Our labor environment consists of multiple generations, which creates fundamentally differing approaches to everything from work ethics, business management, and co-worker cooperation. The most recent generation, commonly known as “Generation Y” or the “Millennial” generation, is slowly taking over the workforce. Because they bring with them a radically new mindset and opinion of labor, the global business infrastructure should be modified to not only accommodate “Millennials,” but also to remain sympathetic to the business practices characteristic of previous generations. Doing so will provide more harmony and productivity among co-workers of different generational backgrounds.

When it comes to Millennials, there is nothing that screams “business as usual.” Consequently, savvy leaders who want to remain successful in the global business arena, must concede their current method of attracting, engaging, developing and retaining Millennials as future global leaders is ineffective. Therefore, today’s leaders must develop a more compelling strategy to entice Millennials into leadership. Failure to use strategic foresight to recognize trends regarding future organizational trends and take timely actions to change their tried and true, old school philosophy regarding developing and retaining talented employees will result in losing the competitive edge, which is driven by technology-laden Millennial’s who are poised to innovation.