Generations in the Workplace: Welcome to the Jungle

It is your phone book, your wallet, your newspaper and your mail box all in one. It can also mean 24/7 connection to work and a new way of finding the answers to questions. How do the 1996 “players” in your environment communicate with and understand the present day “players”? How do we best utilize the strengths of each generation in the workforce?

Today, as you likely have noticed and read about, there are five generations in the workplace.

The common labels for those groups include Traditionalists/Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials and Generation Z.

What is a generation? It is a group of people, born around the same time, who have similar frames of reference based on events and life experiences that shape their values and belief systems.

While there is some disagreement over exactly what year each generation ends and the next begins, the stereotypes are familiar. Traditionalists are conservative, rule followers. Boomers are selfish and technology-challenged. Generation Xers are cynical and skeptical of authority.

Millennials are entitled, needy employees who work just to support their adventures/vacations.

They are also technologically savvy, passionate about making a difference, require constant positive feedback, don’t want to pay their dues, and will leave in a year.

Regardless of whether you buy in to the stereotypes, Millennials are growing in numbers and are about to become the largest generation in America. According to the Pew Research Center and U.S. Census Bureau, Millennials in America are projected to number 73 million in 2019, when Boomers will only number 72 million. Additionally, since 2015, Millennials have been the largest generation in the American workforce.

If you look back at media and pop culture past, the Traditionalists were not so certain about putting the future in the hands of the Baby Boomers, or as they called them “Hippies,” coming of age in the Me Generation.

In the May 20, 2013 issue, Time Magazine called millennials the Me Me Generation.

So, is the difference truly the generations themselves as defined by birth year, or is it actually the stage of life or career development in which someone new to the workforce finds themselves? Is it facing change in the form of handing leadership to the next generation?

Millennials are often defined as having a birth date of between 1977 and 1995. Given that span of years, even within that generation are people in very different stages of life. Michael is a millennial born in 1978, is married with two children, ages 7 and 3, and has been working as a public servant for 15 years. He owns his own home, has a Master’s degree, and has seniority at work.

He is not the millennial people envision when they are describing the stereotype. In fact, Michael is just as happy when people don’t think he is a millennial and don’t have preconceived ideas about his age or his work.

Areina is a millennial in a different stage of life than Michael. She is single and has two roommates.

Areina has a Bachelor’s degree and has worked in the public sector for three years. Areina works a full time and a part-time job, fears she won’t own a home until she is 40, and is not certain where her career will take her.

Areina says “Millennials’ informal communication style can be seen as a sign of disrespect.” She adds that she wants to “understand her colleagues on a personal level, but not all hierarchies allow that” and not everyone is that open. She adds that millennials are not afraid to speak what’s on their minds and ask questions.

Kayla is a bi-vocational Latina millennial who began working at 16 and has two years of experience in the public sector. Kayla typically works 60 hours per week between her two positions and is planning to go back to school in the fall.

Kayla says, “There is more student debt in our generation than any other, and I believe that is actually producing harder working human beings instead of lazier ones.”

She notes millennials want to leave a legacy, “one that impacts the planet, the people around us, our futures or own families. That is a common quality I find in my peers.”

Each is a millennial. Yet at different ages within the generation’s date span, their work needs are quite different.

Thus, as is often true with stereotypes, they often don’t play out as we expect them to. Still skeptical?

Let’s consider five  millennial stereotypes where the supervisor’s leadership response can apply to employees of any generation.

1. Technology savvy

Someone can be technology savvy and not have used the systems found in your organization.

Let’s be honest, some local government computer systems have been in use for a while and some may even use F keys rather than drop down menus. Or maybe the system is a complex Excel spreadsheet rather than an integrated enterprise system.

If a young employee has experience using Google Docs, they might not have as much familiarity with attaching a document to an email or sending a secure attachment. The reminder for supervisors: don’t assume.

Ask interview questions that demonstrate computer experience, transferable computer skills, familiarly and comfort. Then, ensure each new employee, regardless of age, is given training and instructions for each system and task.

Additionally, be open to questions about why the system is set up the way it is and what you are really trying to accomplish. Millennials like to understand why and make things better. Mature workers bring good perspective about processes they have used in the past.

2. Asking for help

 A young professional needing assistance now has tools of great assistance at their disposal, such as Youtube and Google. Today, instead of asking someone how to use a multiline phone or operate a shredder, they can Google their problem.

How to forward a call on a multiline phone has 1,400 answers on Google and how to unjam a shredder has 2,040.

But the technology also provides solutions to soft skill questions as well—how to call in sick has 10.9 million answers on Google and how to ask for a raise has 12.1 million answers.

The reminder for supervisors is to have regular conversations and frequent check-ins with new employees. Appreciate that seeking solutions shows initiative and recognize that initiative wherever possible.

Don’t forget to discuss basic items, like calling in sick. An individual new to their career may not know your expectations, while a seasoned employee may come from an organization with very different procedures.

Additionally, rather than viewing the use of technological advice as avoidance of a chain of command or lack of respect for supervision, see it as a new employee wanting to show self-sufficiency and wanting to make the best use of your time to ask questions regarding larger items.

Millennials enjoy having a mentor who wants to help them progress in their career, while mature workers often find great satisfaction in being a mentor and sharing their knowledge and experience.

3. Connected

Millennials want to have friends at work, like what they do and have fun at work. Sitting down with their supervisor once a year for a performance evaluation is not going to be anywhere near enough.

They crave dialogue and conversation, about work, professional goals and other successes.

Daily and weekly feedback are necessary, as are progressing responsibility, challenges and stretch goals. They also want to share successes, as well as receive compliments and praise.

In a world with tight budget constraints, compliments, praise and frequent feedback are an affordable and unlimited resource.

Supervisors may want to add peer compliments to regular staff meetings and team buildings and check in with staff by text or email.

For example, when a young staff member wanted to be certain everyone arrived home safely from work during a large snow storm, a group text when everyone was safe connected the group and brought a sense of family.

Supervisors may also create a forum for personal joys to be shared with the team, allowing a team member to share photos with everyone when they get a new puppy or their child graduates from kindergarten.

Due to their desire for creativity and innovation, many millennials have a second job or hobby that they invest time in and want to share those successes — coordinating a cancer fund raiser, publishing a blog, or selection on a non-profit board — with their work family.

Mature workers also have non-work interests as they have likely learned to balance work and life as they prepare to transition to retirement.

This passion for outside interests connects the two generations.

4.  Passionate about the work

Millennials want to make a difference in the world and see their efforts improve society. Their values are very important to them, and they want the mission of their employer to connect them to greater purpose.

They also need to see how their work contributes to the mission of the organization — why entering this data makes a difference in the lives of the citizens we serve.

If they feel they are no longer making a difference, they will take their talents to an organization where their contributions matter.

Reminder for supervisors: continue the dialogue about strategic plans, long term goals and the importance of public service work for all employees.

5. Teams

 Millennials love to work on teams, work in groups and work with diverse groups of people, which can only make the work stronger.

When creating teams, supervisors should remember to include generational diversity on the teams, thus creating informal mentoring opportunities and connections.

Generational diversity is also important on interview panels. Furthermore, it is important for staff morale that employees don’t perceive that all the exciting opportunities are only given to millennials to keep them around.

Mature workers want those stretch opportunities and trainings too.

What do millennials want you to know about working with them?

Areina: “I want to be you at one point. I want to know how you got there and I need your help to get there.”

Kayla: “Millennials are a passionate and fierce group of influencers that can be your biggest resources.”

Supervisors desire positive, confident employees who are up for challenges, desire leadership in the work environment and want to take on new opportunities and enjoy what they do. Be careful what you wish for, because that description fits the stereotype of a millennial.

The price for this exceptional employee—lots of feedback, additional communication, an atmosphere of understanding, connection to mission, innovation and new challenges.

But let’s take a moment here to consider a really important question: In what other context is it acceptable to stereotype an entire group of individuals or workers?

The generations in the workplace conversation hinges upon stereotypes of people based on age, which is a protected class.

It is not acceptable to judge a class of people on any other protected class. Therefore, today’s leaders must treat each individual as just that, an individual, understanding their motivations, strengths and professional goals.

Leaders need to create a culture of leadership with strategic thinking where employees are empowered to identify and address problems for the good of the customer.

Where diverse teams represent the diversity of the citizens served and are not afraid of innovation and change to meet the changing needs of the citizens.

We need to mentor staff based on their motivations, career goals and level of experience, regardless of what age they happen to be. We can’t be using the tools and communication of 1996 Jumanji because the citizens have present day needs.

But we can work together, understanding the strengths of each team member to win the game and go home at the end of the day to a better community that we helped to create.

Now that will make you want to yell “Jumanji!”