MULTI-GENERATIONAL CONFLICT: FACT OF FICTION
According to a new book out by Jennifer Deal, Retiring the Generation Gap: How Employees Young and Old Can Find Common Ground, after seven years of research the idea that there is an on-going conflict between generations at work – boomers, Xers, Yers – is poppycock.
Apparently what it comes down to is that we all want the same basic things, but each generation defines those things differently. For instance one unifying commonality includes a desire to feel respected; however, how respect is defined differs. For older generations it means giving weight to their opinions, while for younger folks it means paying attention to what they say.
Other commonalities between generations include the desire to trust supervisors and receive feedback as well as a dislike for change. A fifth area has to do with the number of hours someone puts in at work, which is based more on someone’s level within an organization than on actual age, though typically the expectation is that as we gain in experience we will naturally rise through the chain of command to take on a higher role within the organization.
So what does all this new information mean for organizations?
Well, hopefully, it means that what we find in common will bring us together to work better as a team and improve the ability of those who manage. It means that all this talk about how difficult it is for people in different generations to work together has been just a bunch of hype that we too easily bought in to. And it means that by stereotyping a group of people – whether by age, color, gender, whatever – you do them and yourself a disservice.
No surprise. What is old is new again. Maybe this time we will learn not to jump on the bandwagon so quickly and maybe the concept of a multi-generational conflict can be laid to rest.
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All people - age, race, sex, etc are different. We can’t focus on these difference or, what’s worse, use them as excuses. You make a good point here. We should focus on that which makes us similar - our common need to feel respected, get rewarded, and succeed. Older generations can remember a time when they felt like “the young guy in the office” and use that to help out their younger team members. As for listening to the same music - that we can argue outside the office
Just because we say it, doesn’t make it so. I guess Ms. Deal’s book is evidence of that. Whatever you choose to believe about the “generation gap”, it is really up to each of us to consider each person based on their merits – who they are as an individual — not their age bracket.
Maybe it’s the industry you work in. Where I work the old and the young don’t seem to have a gap in communication so much as just in position. The executives are all in their late 40’s and 50s and the assistants, receptionists and coordinators are in their 20s. That’s just about experience and pay. I think the respect is still there.