Generational issues, while seemingly the obvious hindrance to a smooth flow of production, are, as Tulgan offers (198), "merely a reflection of the business issue at play - transition to the workplace of the future."
However, that said, the one pivotal / key sentence Tulgan offers, also on page 198, is very straight to the point, on the money, and a salient theme Charlie should launch in order to save his job, and the jobs of most people under his jurisdiction. "Charlie must get things back on track and restore harmony by getting people focused on mission instead of personality."
The 10 points Tulgan offers are all very cogent and wise; however, Charlie doesn't really have time to implement all those ideas. Gloria Regalbuto, with Bath & Body Works, offers some common sense solutions, as do Diedra Wager, Pat Crull, and others. But Judy Corson hits the nail on the head when she first notes that Charlie "should never have let this situation get to this stage," that "things have gotten out of hand," and that "everyone involved has to be in on the discussion" about how to right this ship of fools.
Charlie needs to install passion in the mission of the team's responsibilities," she writes (208)." That's a key here, and the way he can do that is several-fold. One, in advance of a mass meeting of all the teams, Charlie needs to bring each ten-member team's leadership (two or three per team) to a nice lunch outside the company on a Thursday, and lay it all on the line. He picks the brains of the leadership for ways in which to, first, have some fun together, and two, reach out one generation to another.
Then, two, Charlie next needs to bring the entire team (100 people?) into a warehouse or large conference room late the next day, Friday afternoon, with classy catered finger food and soft drinks and fun items for a party-atmosphere: like drawings for DVDs, for movie passes, and...
He needs to stand up using a good microphone and speak from his heart, telling everyone how much he cares about this company and that he, himself, is responsible for allowing the situation to deteriorate to the point where the jobs of all his team members are in jeopardy. No passing the buck; no excuses; no backing down, either, from the challenge.
Then, three, he needs to let the leadership from each group speak for 2 minutes, and have them list their suggestions (on the blackboard) for immediate improvement of morale. Then, all workers are given ballots with which to vote for their favorite immediate, dramatic solutions. While those votes are tallied, Charlie draws names from the hopper and hands out prizes, introduces an older worker who then plays a banjo, introduces a Gen-Xer who performs an original hip-hop song. After that, Charlie shows an inspiration video of one of the best workers in the building fighting back from an amputated leg.
When the ballots are counted, Charlie announces the top goals that all have voted on to pursue, and challenges the entire group to show up to work Monday morning expecting to rise above all the clatter and bluster, all the petty bickering and fighting; and he adds that anyone who feels they cannot get along with another of a different age or technological competency, or wishes to leave the company, please see him after the meeting.
Once these immediate "band-aids" are in place, Charlie needs to proceed to spend a half a day with each group, helping, giving encouragement, working with recalcitrant workers one-on-one, until his group has reached productive stages of change.
References
Zemke, Ron; & Raines, Claire; & Filipczak, Bob. Generations at Work: Managing the Clash of Veterans, Boomers, Xers, and Nexters in Your Workplace. New York:
Amacom, 2000.
