Sustaining Engagement and Succession Planning Through Intergenerational Conversations

Currently the face of the United States workforce reflects a cross section of generations from the traditionalists or radio babies born before 1948 to the Gen Y, or millennials, born after 1981.

Traditionalists make up 8 percent of the workforce, boomers 44 percent, Gen Xers 34 percent, and millennials 19 percent and growing. It is critical to sustain engagement and retention of the senior generations while also preparing the younger generations to take on leadership roles. To do this, it's important to teach the generations about one another.

Many articles and books address the generation gap from the perspective of getting the generations to work together to improve effectiveness and productivity. At the ASTD International Conference and Exposition, we led a workshop aimed at bringing generations together to discuss actual and perceived differences.

Generation definitions

The traditionalists, born between 1930 and 1945, were raised by parents who lived through the Great Depression. Their values included getting a job and keeping it. They grew up with a radio in every home, and early TV was in black and white. They experienced World War II, the Korean Conflict, and the beginning of the Space Race.

Baby boomers had Vietnam and protests, rock and roll, and the first man on the moon. The boomers are the best-educated generation - they were raised believing they could accomplish anything with the right education and hard work.

Generation Xers, born between 1965 and 1976, were raised with the highest rates of divorce, dual-income families, and the latch-key experience teaching them to be independent at an early age. They witnessed the beginning of the technology boom from the growth of the Internet to laptops. Their frame of reference includes Watergate, Iran-Contra, the threat of nuclear warfare, and AIDS. Gen Xers saw their parents get laid off from jobs. They tend to be wary of everyone.

For Generation Y, young adults born between 1977 and 1991, computers, the Internet, and cable television have always existed. They are environmentally and socially conscious, committed to causes, diverse, and accepting of differences. Social networking is a lifestyle.

Workshop discussion

Our workshop was delivered in an interactive-experiential education mode. Participants formed groups according to their workplace generation. In their groups, people shared experiences with others who had similar backgrounds, understood them, and provided support as they began to talk with those from other generations. When the generational groups came together, a reporter from each table gave a brief summary of discussion outcomes. The first exercise was designed to address perceptions and realities.

Generational perceptions exercise: Who do you think I am?

The learning objective for this exercise was for participants to identify and articulate some of the differences that exist between generational myths and reality. We wanted people to begin to understand that everyone has misconceptions about the other generations and that in reality, what everyone brings to the table can complement and enhance working relationships and contribute to the task being completed efficiently and effectively.

Two topics were discussed:

• What do we think are the perceptions of us by the other generations?
• What do we want the other generations to know about our generation?

Comments showed that each generation had misconceptions about each other. Traditionalists felt other generations saw them as over-the-hill and ready to be turned out to pasture, while millennials believed others viewed them as having a lousy work ethic.

Each generation was quite clear about what they wanted the other generations to know about them. Boomers stated that they invented rock-and-roll and were still in search of the ultimate dream, while Gen Xers believed that having life balance is important.

Mentoring relationship exercise: What can I give? What do I need?

The learning objective for this exercise was for participants to be more aware that mentoring is a shared and collaborative relationship, whereby people provide for one another - learning, support, insights, recognition for accomplishments, and different organizational perspectives.

The two topics discussed were:

• What skills, knowledge, and experiences can I contribute to a mentoring relationship?
• What skills, knowledge, and experiences would I like to receive from a mentoring relationship?

People exchanged ideas and brainstormed what they could give to and receive from a mentoring partnership. Comments reflected that matches could be made for a rewarding mentoring partnership. The Gen Xers see themselves as being a bridge between the boomers and the millennials because they understand both, while millennials feel they can educate the other generations about today's technology and the environment. The younger generations heard that traditionalists still need to be creative and that boomers want to help others learn from their experiences. Generation Xers want to mentor those in Generation Y to provide the guidance they did not receive.

Application to organizations

The development and establishment of a mentoring program with the focus on a two-way communication approach provides a give-and-take relationship between the generations and leads to deeper understanding, acceptance, and respect among the different workers. This in turn enhances engagement and succession planning outcomes. The simple exercises described above can be used in a mentoring program orientation and as preparation for the matching process.