Multigenerational Workforce Motivation Leadership Style Talent management and human resource management personnel have, been aware of the commercial value of creating and leveraging an all-encompassing, diverse workforce for several years. Recruitment and employee retention programs have focused on gender, ethnicity, race, recruitment and career development of veterans, disabled persons, etc. One can observe increased demands among corporate personnel, to include multigenerational diversity in their organizations. Talent and human resource managers have to take into account the impacts of multiple generations on the organization, while designing their inclusion and diversity programs. Multigenerational workplaces pose unique opportunities and challenges to organizations leveraging the fortes and talents of every generation for benefitting the bottom line of the company (Kordbacheh, Shultz & Olson, 2014). Modern-day business owners and managers face unique challenges by the presence of multi-generational workers. An inadequate understanding of generational disparities results in workplace conflicts, increases employee turnover, and decreases productivity. More experienced employees may experience frustration when faced with an apparently disinterested younger staff. Meanwhile, the relatively fresh faces (i.e., young employees) may be disenfranchised with established organizational hierarchies. Furthermore, individuals charged with leading such a broad workforce may experience frustration within each employee (Acar, 2014). The present-day workforce is unquestionably multigenerational, comprising of four generations, namely, the Traditionalists, the Baby Boomers, Gen X, and Millennials or Gen Y. These individuals' life experiences have permanently shaped their respective work preferences and values. This unprecedented, swift demographic move has left a number of business executives wondering how their firm will adjust to "4G" denominations.

Problem Statement

From late teens to the age of 70 years, the modern workforce comprises fresh graduates, parents and grandparents (Thompson, 2011). The U.S. reports having 53.4% unemployed youngsters - a post-- Second World War highpoint (Lieber, 2010). For enterprises, the general problem is: organizational leaders are hard-pressed to come up with a preferred style of effective leadership when dealing with all generations of its workforce. The specific problem for businesses is that there are some executives having little knowledge to employ effective tactics for motivating distinct generational cohorts.

Research question

What style of leadership do leaders leading a multigenerational staff adopt for employee motivation?

Workplace EI (Emotional Intelligence) training for the following generations: Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y

The generations

For appreciating individual generational differences, it is imperative that one understands every generation's formative events and the way those events influenced their workplace expectations.

i. The Traditionalists

Individuals born prior to 1946 are labeled as "Traditionalists," the "Greatest Generation" or the "WWII Generation." Modern-day workers were mostly too young to participate in the Second World War, but state that the war was the one most significant event of their childhood. These individuals grew up in strongly-bonded nuclear families; their parenting was linked to strictness and discipline. Traditionalists are strongly committed to their families, their nation, and their community. Their childhood was also marked by the 1930s' Great Depression, so they perceive work to be a privilege. Traditionalists possess strong work ethics, translating into experience and stability. Numerous organizations regard them as valued personnel. The other valuable assets of Traditionalists, which benefit their organization, include dedication, knowledge, perseverance, focus, and loyalty. Owing to their traditional principles and their outlook towards work (they consider it a privilege, as stated previously), they find workplace conflicts unpleasant and avoid voicing their disagreement with others readily (Susaeta, Pin, Idrovo, Espejo & Belizon, 2013).

People of this generation prefer working for directive individuals who provide specific instructions and logically tackle workplace challenges. Further, they prefer working for respectful managers, who are explicit in establishing long-term objectives and job expectations, and exhibit the qualities of consistency and fairness. Traditionalists had no exposure to technology in their growing years and thus, show preference for direct one-on-one communication. While they constitute a small share of the present-day workforce, working Traditionalists intend to continue working, for personal and monetary reasons. Conversely, organizations wish to ensure such people are retained, owing to their experience and extensive knowledge, which cannot be replaced easily. Traditionalists might wish to supplement earnings or may merely not be inclined to withdraw from working, completely. Nevertheless, they do seek flexibility in weekly work hours. Organizations must concentrate on face-to-face interviews and respect the experience and age of Traditionalists while recruiting them (Dowd-Higgins, 2013).

ii. Baby Boomers

Until quite recently, this generation dominated the workplace....

These individuals were born from 1946-1964 (i.e. post-WWII), in large numbers. This generation's formative events include the American civil rights movement, moon landing, Vietnam War, John F. Kennedy's assassination, the American feminist movement, and Woodstock. Similar to Traditionalists, this generation possesses a powerful work ethic. However, unlike traditionalists (who consider work a privilege), Baby Boomers' work ethic is attributed to their interest in acquiring wealth, prestige, and rank. Baby Boomers are competitive, goal- and service- oriented, highly loyal employees. Furthermore, they work well in teams (Dowd-Higgins, 2013). They dislike conflicts and are typically not budget-minded. They are disinclined to oppose their peers, usually give precedence to process over results, and prefer working for those who seek their consensus (thus, treating them not as subordinates, but as equals). Baby Boomers prefer managers with a democratic leadership approach, who are warm and caring and work with teams for defining their missions. Though the oldest of this generation are close to their retirement age, several of them are entirely foregoing retirement or, at least, delaying it, for personal and financial reasons. Some are even taking completely new career paths (Susaeta et al., 2013). In the context of Baby Boomer recruitment and retention, HR personnel must provide phased retirement schemes and flexible work arrangements to encourage this generation to continue providing their valuable services a while longer. With a majority of these individuals at the verge of exiting the workforce, leaving companies bereft of valuable experience and knowledge, companies must devise sound retention strategies. Knowledge transfer programs must be designed as well for helping this generation impart their expertise and knowledge to next-generation leaders, thus, avoiding the imminent "brain drain." "
iii. Generation X

Born during 1965-1979 years, this generation receives less importance compared to the highly populated and much discussed Baby Boomers and Millennials. Gen X witnessed the following events: energy crisis, Chernobyl disaster, Watergate, AIDS, Three Mile Island incident, and the Berlin Wall's fall. This generation was largely exposed to chaos and uncertainty. It also witnessed throngs of mommies joining the workforce, as well as divorce. The rate of divorce shot up, reaching an all-time highpoint of 40 divorcees for every 1,000 married females during the seventies, as compared to the fifties' figure of 15 divorcees for every 1,000 women (Dowd-Higgins, 2013; Brady, 2013). Consequently, a number of Gen X individuals experienced early independence and were trained to survive, and succeed, when faced with change. Their attributes include adaptability, independence, resilience, and flexibility (Dowd-Higgins, 2013).

This generation has considerable technical proficiency, having witnessed the Internet's advent. They are suspicious and uncertain when it comes to accepting authority. They like honest, open and laidback leaders, and desire continuous training and opportunities for development (including lateral opportunities). Owing to the fact that their entry into the workforce took place during economic recession, a Generation X worker is typically results-oriented and prefers flexibility in work techniques (Brady, 2013). For recruiting and retaining these individuals, talent and HR managers must allow autonomous work, express explicit, measurable goals, and provide flexibility. A study conducted in 2013 revealed that members of the preceding and succeeding generations consider Gen X members the ideal individuals when it comes to team building and revenue generation (Brady, 2013). Additionally, Gen X people are perceived as least prone to being cynical, patronizing, or hard to work alongside. The research further discovered that this generation is inclined to depict greater flexibility, more inclusiveness, and better vision and communication skills, as compared to the Millenials or Gen Y (Brady, 2013).

Moreover, Generation X prefers a balance in their professional and personal lives and does not mind working less to attain this balance, causing some to label members of this generation as "slackers." Further, Gen X workers are accused of cynicism and distrustfulness (Alsop, 2013). Talent and HR management personnel desiring to hire and retain Gen X workers must take into consideration its preference for job-related flexibility. Gen X values new learning and yearns to acquire novel experience and skills. This yearning may be satisfied by offering them horizontal and vertical challenges and opportunities within the company. This generation has an entrepreneurial and independent nature, hence, for keeping Gen X workers engaged, organizations must provide them with a fair amount of vertical mobility and freedom.

iv. Millennials/Generation Y

Roughly, 80 million individuals have been born from 1980 to 2000; by the year 2020, this generation will make up 46% of the workforce of America (Kratz, 2013). Millenials witnessed the Oklahoma bombing, Enron, Columbine shootings, Hurricane Katrina, and the 9/11 attacks, all of which influenced it. While these disasters indelibly affected this generation, nothing was more influential in defining Gen Y than the World Wide Web and the Internet, which offered to the world an entirely new universe of opportunities. Millenials are considered…