Generational Gap in the Workplace: Four Generations Compared

Introduction

Contemporary working-age Americans are categorized into four distinct generations whose personalities and values were allegedly shaped by the socio-political, economic, and historical events of their respective eras. These four generations are commonly known as Traditionals, Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y.

There are at least two views regarding generational differences in the workplace. The first suggests that, while individuals are distinct, shared generational values, events, beliefs, behaviors, and experiences indelibly affected members of a particular generation and continue to impact intergenerational communication (Zemke et al., 2000). The second holds that, although certain generational events do occur and influence people's behavior and beliefs, employees are ultimately consistent and generic in what they seek from their jobs, and trying to categorize and predict their performance according to generational category is misguided (Yang & Guy, 2006). This essay focuses on and discusses the former view.

Four Generations in the Workplace

This is the generation that most people believe is long retired, although some members continue to populate the workplace, particularly if they own their businesses. Individuals of this generation — also known as the Veterans, the Silents, the Silent Generation, the Greatest Generation, or the Matures — are those born before 1945, with some sources dating them as far back as 1922. Having experienced World War II and the Great Depression, they are ordinarily characterized as representing restraint, frugality, and commitment to their jobs, as well as being conservative and self-disciplined (Niemiec, 2000).

Traditionals like formality, work best in a hierarchical, top-down command structure, and make decisions based on precedent. Zemke et al. (2000) describe members of this generation as private, reliable, responsible, and morally committed to family, friends, jobs, and their word, as well as obedient to authority, conformist, and thrifty. Others see them as loyal, dedicated team players who are averse to risk (Jenkins, 2007). In leadership roles, they prefer the command-and-control, rank-and-file pattern of military operations and are stable, loyal, and detail-oriented, although they dislike change and ambiguity and tend to keep their disagreements to themselves (Zemke et al., 2000).

While most sources refer to Baby Boomers as those born between 1943 and 1965, the U.S. Census Bureau identifies them as individuals born between 1946 and 1964. Baby Boomers have also been somewhat unfavorably referred to as "pigs in the python" (Callon & Greenhouse, 2008). Named the Baby Boomers because of the dramatic rise in births following the end of World War II, they have had a great impact on American society both because of their size — approximately 78 million — and because of the turbulence of their times, which included the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, the Kennedy assassination, civil unrest, and Watergate. Many of these individuals now occupy workplace leadership positions, and leadership may best epitomize their character.

Baby Boomers learned to embrace and value change and are generally seen as tempestuous individualists who famously distrusted "anyone over 30" (Karp et al., 2002). It was Baby Boomers who arguably started the workaholism trend in America (NOAAOD, 2006), equating success with industriousness. They believe in gradual promotion according to ability, promote collaboration and teamwork, value loyalty toward employers and coworkers, and are fiercely competitive (Niemiec, 2000).

Baby Boomers may dislike constant feedback, as they tend to be independent and self-efficacious. Characterized as goal-oriented, some have described them as more process- than results-oriented (Zemke et al., 2000), while simultaneously being liberal and fun-loving as well as optimistic. They are conflict-avoidant, and many prize diversity (NOAAOD, 2006). They value self-improvement, health, and job security, and possess a sense of hedonism (Zemke et al., 2000).

In a further mix of descriptions, Baby Boomers have been characterized as skilled communicators who avoid crossing others, while also thriving on change, demanding accountability, and — paradoxically — fighting for a cause even though they dislike conflict (NOAAOD, 2006). They value command while articulating commitment to individuality.

The Census Bureau categorizes Generation X as those born between 1968 and 1979, though some place the range as low as 1963 and as high as 1982 (Karp et al., 2002). Generation X has also been called the "baby bust" generation because of its smaller size relative to the preceding Baby Boom cohort.

Xers have been described as a disillusioned generation: born into an affluent and financially secure era but maturing through economic downturns, low social morale, devastating global disease, and troubling political events. They witnessed their parents' economic decline as well as what many perceived as the deterioration of America as a nation. They experienced corporate greed, a stagnant job market, limited wage mobility, job instability, and corporate downsizing. Their childhoods were also marked by difficult conditions, including two-income households, divorce, family dysfunction, and being "latchkey kids" who were forced to fend for themselves (Karp et al., 2002). The impact of AIDS, MTV, corporate corruption, and the transformative influence of computers and the Internet further shaped this generation.

Most social commentators see Xers as more inclined than previous generations to integrate family with work (Jenkins, 2007). They are perceived as more self-reliant, innovative, and independent than earlier generations and, although loyal to friends and family, are not necessarily so to their workplace or employer (Karp et al., 2002). They value skills development and learning, possess strong technical skills, and are results- rather than process-oriented, as well as skeptical of authority figures. According to the NOAAOD (2006), Xers value feedback, are flexible, and seek work that is both meaningful and enjoyable. They are also pragmatic, entrepreneurial, and creative, and — although individualistic — still value collaboration.

The boundaries of Generation Y (Gen Y) are contested. Some define the cohort as those born between 1978 and 2002, while others place the range as low as 1989 and as high as 1999 (Crampton & Hodge, 2006), or between 1978 and 1995 (NOAAOD, 2006), or 1980 and 2002 (Kersten, 2002). Their labels vary widely, including the Millennials, Nexters, Generation www, the Digital Generation, the Net Generation, Generation N, Generation E, and the Echo Boomers. They have also called themselves the Non-Nuclear Family Generation, the Wannabees, the Cyberkids, the Feel-Good Generation, the Searching-for-an-Identity Generation, and the Do-or-Die Generation — labels that offer considerable insight into their characteristics. Most significantly, Gen Y has been profoundly shaped by the cyber age and the Internet.

Parental excess, technological advancement, and globalization have all influenced this generation (Niemiec, 2000). Aside from their absorption — if not obsession — with technology, Generation Y is otherwise thought to be more similar to Generation X than to earlier generations in the marketplace. They enjoy teamwork and collaboration, prize diversity, are optimistic, resilient in the face of change, and flexible with shifting conditions. The NOAAOD (2006) also describes them as independent, innovative, multi-taskers who seek a balanced life and are highly educated, although they may possess more breadth than depth of knowledge, and much of what they know may be trivia or superficial information. Others characterize them as demanding and overconfident (Glass, 2007). They are also said to be more results-oriented and entrepreneurial, consistent with Generation X (Crampton & Hodge, 2006).