Clash of the Generations: Managing the New Workplace Reality

by Valerie M. Grubb

Overview

Case studies and strategies for more effective multi-generational management

Clash of the Generations explores this new and increasingly common workplace phenomenon, and provides strategies to help managers navigate this ever more complex maze. Traditionally, older workers would retire and make room for the next generation; instead, Baby Boomers are now prolonging their time in the workplace, yet the successive generations are still coming in. Senior leaders are now left to manage a blended workplace comprised of up to four generations—each with their own ideas of work ethic, work/life balance, long-term career goals, and much more. Management is challenging at the best of times, but the new prevalence of generation gaps—sometimes even layered—add an entirely new dimension to an already complex responsibility. This book presents case studies and interviews with representatives of companies with age-diverse workforces, detailing innovative strategies for smoothing out the bumps and helping everyone work together.

Managers have long wished that their positions came with an instruction manual, and this book delivers with a host of effective inter-generational management strategies illustrated by real-world companies.

• Manage the multi-generation workplace more effectively
• Navigate the generational culture clash
• Adopt proven strategies for helping everyone get along
• Promote a more positive culture amidst clashing expectations

Every generation in the workplace has value, each has their own strengths, their own weaknesses, and their own unique talents. Each is indispensable, and when they come together as a synergistic force, they can be unstoppable. Effective management means bringing out the best in your workforce, and the strategies presented in Clash of the Generations help you streamline your varied workforce into a team more valuable than the sum of its parts.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781119212348
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	10/31/2016
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

VALERIE M. GRUBB is founder of the consulting firm Val Grubb & Associates Ltd. She is an innovative, visionary operations leader with an exceptional ability to zero in on the systems, processes, and human capital issues hampering a company’s success. During her career, she served as vice president of strategic operations and initiatives at NBC Universal and played a key role in creating both Oxygen Media and IAC. She is the author of Planes, Canes, and Automobiles: Connecting with Your Aging Parents through Travel.

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Table of Contents

Preface xiii

Acknowledgments xv

Chapter 1 The New Workplace Reality 1

The Changing Nature of Leadership 4

The Changing Role of the Manager 5

The Changing Role of HR 8

The Changing Role of the Employee 10

Building on These Changes 11

Notes 12

Chapter 2 Defining the Generations 13

What the Experts Say 15

The Big Three—and a Newcomer 16

Generational Characteristics 21

The More Things Change 21

Notes 23

Chapter 3 Fostering a Culture of Inclusion 25

The Business Case for Diversity 28

The Role of Company Culture 29

Overcoming a Negative Culture 32

Creating an Age-Diverse Culture 33

Notes 37

Chapter 4 Setting the Stage for Great Performance 39

Goal Setting 42

Evaluating Employee Performance 46

You Get What You Reward 52

Senior Leadership versus Peer-to-Peer Recognition 53

The Basics of Recognition 55

Intrinsic Motivators 56

Career and Development Recognition 57

Notes 60

Chapter 5 Being an Inclusive Manager 61

The Benefits of Inclusion 63

Breaking Bad Habits 64

False Thinking of New Managers 65

Lead by Example 65

Don’t Emulate Bad Managers 66

Promoting Respect 66

Innovation at Both Ends of the Spectrum 68

Managing Workers Older Than You 69

The Consequences of Not Being Inclusive 70

Notes 71

Chapter 6 Promoting Growth Opportunities 73

The Power of Effective Delegation 76

Empower Your Employees 79

Accommodating Different Learning Styles 80

Experiential Training 82

Establish a Mentoring Program 84

Notes 84

Chapter 7 Managing Differences in Work Ethic 87

Defining Work Ethic 90

The Importance of Mission to Millennials 92

Connecting Company Mission to Social Goals 93

What Managers Can Do 94

What Companies Can Do 96

Notes 97

Chapter 8 Managing Different Work-Life Balance Expectations 99

The Birth of Work-Life Balance 101

Work-Life Blending versus Balancing 102

Performance versus Face Time 103

Managing Flexibility 105

Managing Virtual Teams 107

Notes 109

Chapter 9 Managing Differences in Career Development Planning 111

Expectations of Career Development by Generation 113

Using Career Development for Succession Planning at All Levels 116

Five Easy Steps to Creating a Career Plan 117

Creating a Company-Wide Development Program Specific to Leadership 119

Creating Your Own Career Development Plan 122

Notes 124

Chapter 10 Generational Give and Take 125

Communication Is Key 127

The How and When of Communication 128

Appreciating the Contributions of Youth 131

Valuing the Wisdom of Age 132

Promoting Positive Interactions 133

The Challenge of the Young Leading the Wise 135

Notes 136

Chapter 11 You as the Motivating Force 137

Expectations of Today’s Manager 139

Focusing on You 141

Finding a Mentor 143

Moving from Tactical Doer to Strategic Thinker 145

Notes 147

Appendix A Case Study - Chegg 149

Background 149

Benefits 150

Company Culture 150

Physical Work Environment 151

Recruiting 152

Summary 153

Appendix B Case Study - Consultants: Leadership Development Services LLC and RGP 155

Interviewees 155

Leadership 156

Flexibility 158

Work Ethic and Style 158

Benefits 159

Appendix c Case Study - Electronic Arts 161

Background 161

Company Culture 162

Career Development 163

Recruiting 165

Summary 165

Appendix d Case Study - Hy-Ko Products 167

Background 167

Benefits and Recruitment 168

Career Development 169

Summary 170

Appendix E Case Study - TECT Corporation 171

Background 171

Recruitment 172

Company Culture 172

Career Development 173

Summary 175

Appendix F Case Study - The Andersons 177

Background 177

Company Culture 178

Physical Work Environment 179

Career Development 180

Benefits 181

Summary 181

About the Author 183

Index 185

Editorial Reviews

2016-12-14
A useful playbook for managing an intergenerational workforce. Corporate consultant Grubb (Planes, Canes, and Automobiles, 2015) draws on her management experience at numerous firms to focus on the challenge of employing people from different generations in the same company. She aptly points out, for example, that managers must respect each person as an individual rather than assigning him or her to a generational stereotype. She also mentions the phenomenon of baby boomers "prolonging their time in the workplace," which can result in a "generational culture clash" with younger staff. Grubb delves deeply into distinct generational characteristics to provide managers with clear understandings of various age groups; the book's chart of "Generational Influences and Attributes" offers a tidy overview of how baby boomers, Generation Xers, millennials, and Generation Zers think, feel, and act in a workplace. For instance, boomers are said to be "team oriented," "optimistic," and "informal," while Generation Xers are "self-reliant," "cynical," and "informal." This kind of valuable insight from an executive who's managed multigenerational teams brings a practical, hands-on perspective to the book as a whole. In addition to making a strong case for "creating an age-diverse culture," Grubb offers specific advice for managing and motivating employees. Readers will find a portion of this material, including discussions of goal-setting, evaluating employee performance, and managing employee expectations and career development, to be familiar from more general management books, but the author does a solid job of slanting the content to address generational divides. Some of the more engaging sections address "managing workers older than you," recognizing different styles of learning and communicating, and highlighting the difference between "work-life blending" and work-life balancing. Six case studies at the end of the book depict how specific companies have addressed issues surrounding company culture, recruitment, career development, and benefits as they relate to employees of all ages. A well-organized, nimbly written, and insightful book that should be a key resource for corporate leaders.

Kirkus Reviews