© 2014 Robert Half Technology. An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V. All rights reserved. This material is theconfidential property of Robert Half Technology. Copying or reproducing this material is strictly prohibited. © 2016 Robert Half International Inc. An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/Disability/Veterans.
Managing a MultigenerationalWorkforce
Tomm AldridgeSr. Vice President
Robert Half Management Resources
Today’s Agenda
� How the generations work and what they value
� How to harmonize multigenerational teams
2
BABY BOOMERS1946 – 1964
GEN Y1978 – 1989
GEN Z1990 – 1999
Generations in the Workforce
3
GREATEST GENERATION
1901 – 1924
SILENT GENERATION(TRADITIONALISTS)
1925 – 1945
MILLENNIALS
GENERATION X1965 – 1977
MILLENNIALS
Four Generations in the Workplace
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BABY BOOMERS1946 – 1964
GEN X1965 – 1977
GEN Y1978 – 1989
GEN Z1990 – 1999
Avoiding Stereotypes
•Not wise to try to stereotype an entire
generation.
•Our discussion today based on surveys
Robert Half and others have done.
•Gen Z information, for example, based on
input from real Gen Zers who were polled for
a report from Robert Half and Enactus, Get
Ready for Generation Z.
Culture and History Influence Who We Are
Baby Boomer Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
Also
Known
As
• Boomers • MTV Generation • Echo Boomers
• Gen Next
• Millennials
• iGeneration
• Post-millennials
• Millennials
• Centennials
Definin
g
Events
• Vietnam War
• Civil rights
• JFK/MLK/RFK
assassinations
• Moon landing
• Counterculture
• Watergate
• Disco
• Tape decks
• VCRs
• “The Graduate”
• Fall of Berlin Wall
• Iran-Contra Affair
• Gulf War
• Cable TV
• Satellites
• PCs, CDs
• First generation on
internet
• “The Breakfast
Club”
• 9/11
• Wars in Afghanistan
and Iraq
• Columbine shooting
• iPods
• YouTube, Facebook
and Twitter
• European Union
• Environmental
concerns/global
warming
• “Mean Girls”
• Paris terrorist attacks
• Instability in Syria/refugee
crisis
• Smartphones/texting/apps/I
nstagram and Snapchat
• Heavy student debt
• Digital and global
generation
• “Hunger Games”
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Four Generations at Work:Generations at a Glance
7
Sources: The Changing Workforce: Urgent Challenges and Strategies, 2007, Joe Kristy, associate partner, Human Capital Management Practice, IBM; Bruce Tulgan, founder, RainmakerThinking
Baby Boomers Gen Xers Gen Yers Gen Zers
Behavior Challenge the rules Change the rules Create the rules Customize the rules
Training Preferred in moderation Required to keep meContinuous and
expectedOngoing and
essential
Learning style Facilitated IndependentCollaborative and
networkedTechnology-based
Communication style
Guarded Hub and spoke Collaborative Face-to-face
Problem-solving Horizontal Independent Collaborative Entrepreneurial
Decision-making Team informed Team included Team decided Team persuaded
Leadership style Unilateral Coach Partner Teaching
FeedbackOnce per year, during
the annual reviewWeekly/daily On demand
Consistent and frequent
Change management
Change = caution Change = opportunityChange =
improvementChange = expected
Education
44.9%
Graduated College?
Postgraduate Studies?
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Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
18% 31% 37% 41%
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
19% 19% 27% 34%
Survey of 1176 individuals conducted by SSRS for Robert Half.
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
77% 69% 75% 83%
Insights into Attitudes: Good Boss/Bad Boss
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YES!
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
21% 31% 23% 20%
How would you rate your boss’s leadership skills?
Do you think you could do a better job than your boss?
STRONG!
Survey of 1176 individuals conducted by SSRS for Robert Half.
Insights into Attitudes: Rewards and Recognition
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How effective do you think your company is at recognizing employees for good performance?
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
80% 70% 66% 83%
EFFECTIVE!
Survey of 1176 individuals conducted by SSRS for Robert Half.
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
42% 59% 64% 69%
MORE TIME!
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
29% 29% 37% 49%
THE SAME TIME!
Vacation Expectations
11
If your company instituted a policy of unlimited vacation, do you think you would take more time off, less time off, the same amount of time off, etc.?
Survey of 1176 individuals conducted by SSRS for Robert Half.
Effect of Vacations on Productivity
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If such a policy existed, what impact would it have on productivity?
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
44% 42% 24% 25%
INCREASE!
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
23% 34% 40% 50%
DECREASE!
Boomers Gen X Gen Y Gen Z
31% 22% 28% 24%
NO CHANGE!
Job Hopping
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Do you think job hopping can benefit your career?
https://www.roberthalf.com/accountemps/blog/is-job-hopping-losing-its-stigma
Age 18 – 38 (Gen Y & Gen Z)
Age 39 – 54 (Gen X)
Age 55+ (boomers)
NO 78%
NO62%
YES57%
Getting to Know All About the Generations
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Baby Boomers
Boomers Reinvent Themselves
� 44 million people in the US are now 65+
� Strong work ethic, challenge the rules, somewhat cautious about change
� Living longer
� Not ready or able to retire
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http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/06/baby-boomers-retirement/396950/A
http://www.cnbc.com/2015/04/13/retiring-well-not-most-baby-boomers.html
http://rh-us.mediaroom.com/2014-03-20-Many-Executives-Unconcerned-About-Near-Term-Baby-Boomer-Retirements
27% have enough retirement savings
36%hope to retire
at 70 or later
Boomers Reinvent Themselves
� CFOs value their leadership and legacy knowledge
� Not ready or able to retire
� Bold, not old. Looking for creative alternatives to retirement:
– Shorter hours,
telecommuting or other
flexible work arrangements
– Consulting or contracting
– Mentoring younger workers
– Embarking on new careers
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http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/06/baby-boomers-retirement/396950/Ahttp://www.cnbc.com/2015/04/13/retiring-well-not-most-baby-boomers.htmlhttp://rh-us.mediaroom.com/2014-03-20-Many-Executives-Unconcerned-About-Near-Term-Baby-Boomer-Retirements
� Some CFOs say, “Please don’t go!”
� Loss of leadership
� Loss of legacy knowledge
Generation X
Gen X: Advancement and Stability
19http://www.businessinsider.com/generation-x-least-prepared-for-retirement-charts-2013-5?op=1http://www.inc.com/magazine/201209/inc-staff/survey-of-inc-500-ceos-who-they-are.html
� Gen Xers are the new leaders
� More than 30% of Gen Xers say they could do a better job than their bosses
� 68% of the Inc. 500 CEOs are Gen Xers
Gen X: Advancement and Stability
� Want to build tenure
� Are eager to enhance skills
20http://www.businessinsider.com/generation-x-least-prepared-for-retirement-charts-2013-5?op=1http://www.inc.com/magazine/201209/inc-staff/survey-of-inc-500-ceos-who-they-are.html
13
Slide 20
13 Gen X and Baby Boomers are both represented by pictures of white men — update stock images to have more diversity?Grace Dobush, 11/23/2015
Millennials: Growing Sector of the Workforce
Gen Y: Ambitious, Motivated
� Experienced economic
uncertainty
� Expect to have a number of
employers over their career
22 https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/managing-tomorrows-people/future-of-work/assets/reshaping-the-workplace.pdf
Gen Y: The Restless Strivers
� Expect 6 employers over a career
� Advancement is the top priority
� Seek work/life balance
� Favor electronic communication
23 https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/managing-tomorrows-people/future-of-work/assets/reshaping-the-workplace.pdf
Gen Z: New Kids on the Block
� Born 1990-1999
� Makes up 25% of the U.S. population
� Gen Z workforce is expected to nearly double in the next five years
YearGen Z in
Workforce
2015 20 million*
2017 25 million*
2019 30 million*
*Bruce Tulgan and RainmakerThinking, Inc. “Meet Generation Z: The second generation within the giant "Millennial" cohort”24
Gen Z: High Hopes
High hopes and big dreams 5 years after graduation*
25
24%Working my way up the corporate ladder although not yet among the management ranks
32%Managing orsupervising
employees ina corporateenvironment
20%Starting my own business/being an entrepreneur
9%Pursuing higher education
6%Working for a nonprofit organization
*Top five answers shown
Gen Z: High Hopes
� Love learning
� Innovate and improvise
� At ease with technology
� Accustomed to providing input
� Need to strengthen basic skills
� Prefer traditional communication on the job
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Tap the Knowledge, Experience of Boomers
•Every generation brings a unique set of skills, communication styles, and experience
to the table.
•Boomers:
•Vast reservoir of institutional and historical knowledge
•May continue to offer support in a consulting or training role
Encourage Generational ‘Mingling’
•Communication key to nurturing newer workers and helping all generations work
productively together
•Encourage senior managers to give less tenured employees the benefits of their
experience.
Mentoring Opportunities for Millennials —And Everyone
� 86 percent of CFOs said having a mentor is somewhat or very important for career development, yet only 26 percent of workers have one. (Accountemps survey)
� Create mentoring opportunities across all generations.
� Milliennials benefit most from programs that take into account their individuality.
� Mentoring programs can also help feed succession plans.
Reverse Mentoring
� Mentoring highway a two-way road
� It can be just as constructive to have expertise and insights flowing up the hierarchical ladder:
– Technology expertise
– Business challenges and opportunities from a different point of view
� Strengthens trust and understanding on both sides
Communicating with a Multigenerational Team
� Avoid stereotyping or aone-size-fits-all approach
� Set up informal or formal cross-training sessions
� Build camaraderie through stimulating team events
� Develop project workflows and processes to enhance clarity
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Managing a Multigenerational Team
Benefits:
� Brings together people of varying experience levels
� Leads to increased productivity
� Allows for greater diversity of project teams
Challenges:
� Each generation may approach work andwork/life balance differently
� Conflicting communication styles
� Different points of view make it harder to reach consensus
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© 2014 Robert Half Technology. An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V. All rights reserved. This material is theconfidential property of Robert Half Technology. Copying or reproducing this material is strictly prohibited. © 2016 Robert Half International Inc. An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/Disability/Veterans.
Managing a Multigenerational Workforce
Q&A