“Each generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it.”

– George Orwell

Two of the most common employer or supervisor complaints that I hear:

• “The young people these days – they don’t want to work, they don’t want to follow direction, they act all entitled.”
• “We can’t get her/him to adjust. You know she/he is from an older generation. She’s used to how she/he does things.”

It’s usually framed with these pronouns. Younger employees are referred to as a group: “They.” Older employees are usually referred to individually. But their behavior is explained in light of their age.

Poor Millennials. The generation everyone loves to hate.

Poor Boomers. Age happened. Everyone else noticed except them.

It is times like these where it is nice to be a member of Gen X. Nobody complains about us anymore.

It turned out we weren’t the slackers that everyone expected. But we can still, usually, figure out our smartphones.

Too much noise. Not enough sense.

There is a deluge of raw spillage of interviews, articles, workshops, and books delving into the mystery of, “How do I work with/manage those people who are aged differently than myself?”

People love this. It’s even better if there is a graphic that offers reductionistic generalizations of each generation.

Yes. It is true that there are some differences between the generations. It can be helpful to have generational insight or understanding. But, for the most part, that information is only practically useful as trivia.

It isn’t the magic sauce that will help you lead and manage a multi-generational team.

Here is how to lead a multi-generational team

1. Focus on alignment

Put your leadership energy into creating alignment around your organizational values and your vision.

Spend time thinking about how those values are expressed throughout your workplace – from customer service to recruiting and hiring, to strategic priorities.

Everything you do and how you do everything should be in alignment with those values and towards the purpose of your vision.

This helps create commonality between generations (and gender, and ethnicity and every other way of demographically slicing and dicing your workforce.)

Focus on aligning your workforce. Don’t focus on differences.

2. Focus on differing needs at differing levels of career development

Far more important than perceived needs or desires of any specific generation are the needs that people have given where they are at in their career.

Someone who is just beginning their career may be:

• Still gaining a sense of confidence and mastery.
• Sorting out the difference between what they learned in school and what works.
• Trying to decide if this (career) is what they want to do with their lives.

Someone who is in the middle of their career may be:

• More interested in stability and security.
• Could be interested in opportunities to stretch their skills or to learn something new.
• Wrestling with trying to translate technical/professional skills into management/supervisory skills.

Someone who is towards the end of their career may be:

• Wondering about legacy and completing passion projects.
• Concerned about being prepared for retirement or “the next chapter.”
• Thinking about “reinventing” themselves.

You could very easily have a Baby Boomer, in their mid-50’s, who has just started a new career. They are likely to share many similarities with an early career Millennial – even if they aren’t very active on Instagram.

On the other hand, a 35-year-old Millennial who has worked with you since high school may identify more with someone at the end of their career.

I have found that Baby Boomers prefer face to face meetings and phone calls whereas Millennials might prefer texting. But knowing a generational preference doesn’t mean I know the best way to connect to an individual.

The best way to figure that out is to just ask. Assumptions based on generational strata are rarely helpful.

You’ll find that where people are at in their career and life has a more significant impact on their needs and preferences than their age.

3. Cultivate “consultative leadership”

Related to the point above, develop a culture of listening to your employees (and customers.) Then incorporate that input as you make decisions.

I’m not suggesting that you should be directed by all your employees or customers. Or that every decision should be put to a vote.

You are still the leader. But by engaging the input of others (consultative leadership) you’ll have a better understanding of the needs or preferences of those you lead. A more accurate understanding of the people you hope to influence will help you make better leadership decisions.

It is ineffective for a leader to be rigid about their “style” and insisting that everyone adapt to his or her preferences. A leader dramatically increases his or her impact when their style is adapted to bring out the best of those they lead.

4. Cultivate a culture of appreciation

Learn to recognize and find ways to recognize the value that individuals and teams bring. Focus on the value people offer, as opposed to their differences.

Culture begins with the beliefs and behaviors of the most influential people in the organization: the leaders.

Make habits out of these simple practices and you will begin to shape your culture:

• Believe that your people have value and produce value.
• Be clear on expectations and desired results. It’s easier for people to perform well when they know what that is supposed to look like.
• Communicate appreciation regularly.
  • Try to make this a daily, informal habit of communicating simple acknowledgments or a thank-you.
  • Formally build appreciation into the rhythm of organization life, with awards or times of formal recognition.
• Recognize effort as well as results. Results are ultimately what you are after, but sometimes people put in a great effort and, for whatever reason, didn’t get the results. Protect them from discouragement. Recognize the effort.
• Individualize your recognition. Everyone receives appreciation in different ways. What is meaningful to one person may not be to another. Some prefer public recognition and awards. Others prefer a handwritten note. Some may prefer a gift card. Be curious and creative.

Effective multi-generational leadership is just good leadership

You might have noticed that I didn’t talk about generational differences or preferences. It’s not that they don’t exist. Or that they don’t matter.

But they aren’t the most valuable place for a leader to focus.

The basic tenants of good leadership are cross-generational. The best leaders shape the culture they are in. They help everyone who joins that culture to align together to get the job done.

Take good care,

Christian

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