Meagan Johnson - Generational Speaker

Solve Your Challenges and Bridge the Gap between Generations at Your Multigenerational Workforce

Generational Challenges

Generational Differences in the Workplace – How to Connect the Generations

How do we connect the generations in the workforce? In my interview with The Day Ahead, we discuss generational differences in the workplace and how to best connect the generations.

The type of workforce we have today is not something we have seen in our history. Millennials and baby boomers, young and old, all sharing the workplace. That means companies are having to adjust to fit the style of these different generations.

Generational Differences in the Workplace

Should companies recognize the differences in these generations? And how should they do that?

Each generation comes to the workforce with a different set of expectations. It’s not about stereotyping or putting people in boxes. It’s about evaluating experiences people had that shape their expectations of their employer.

Baby boomers are a phenomenal generation that has an incredible tribal knowledge about their companies. As the younger generations come on board, there needs to be a connection between the seasons of generations. That includes Gen Xers and Baby Boomers. The less seasoned generations, such as millennials and now gen Zs.

Understanding Generations in the Workplace

Millennials were connected with a phone in their hand starting from junior high, and now it is even earlier. We’re not educated equally in terms of technology.

Millennials are coming on board with a desire to mix things up. To change the workforce, to challenge the status quo. And that’s a good thing. Sometimes we have an emotional attachment to the way we’ve always done it.

When someone comes on board and says: ‘Let’s move it, change it, flip it, turn it...’ Our instinct is to say that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The problem is that when we do that, not only do we disconnect from the millennials, we possibly lose out on some really good ideas.

Ask yourself whatever they want to do, whatever they want to challenge, does it negatively impact cost, quality, safety, or service? If the answer is no, try it!

The worst-case scenario will be no change. The best-case scenario will be that you reinvent the way you’re doing business. Or… you will find an easier way to get things done.

Generational Differences in the Workplace

How to Connect the Generations in the Workplace

There’s no generation that is immune to lazy people. Just because a millennial has less experience than an older employee, that does not mean that they are not as passionate about what they’re doing. Recognizing the passion, excitement, and enthusiasm for the task at hand does not necessarily correlate to years of experience!

People can can develop better work habits. They become better at their job as they age, but if someone’s lazy – not sure that can be changed!

Establish that basic rapport that you need to get along with your colleagues. Introduce yourself, find something in common with them, get to know them. You learn how to work with people differently by actually doing it.

Overcome Generational Differences

In this podcast segment, I discuss how to overcome generational differences and how generations can get along.

We have our differences, but we also have much to learn from each other. Each generation is different, with strengths and weaknesses and if we work together, and fill in the gaps, everything just comes together.

The more diverse the team is – the better you are! But… Sometimes it seems too hard and we want to give up.

I discuss every generation, from Gen X to Millenials to Baby Boomer and everything in-between and how they can better work together.

I will help you understand how to overcome generational differences in the workplace and how being emotionally attached to the way things have been done can limit progress.

A special thank you to Healthcare Rap for this podcast interview:

Listen to the ‘Can’t All Generations Just Get Along?‘ Podcast episode Now.

Overcome Generational Differences

About Healthcare Rap:
Healthcare Rap is ushering in the future of healthcare and they check yesterday’s thinking at the door. They are challenging assumptions about marketing and technology, and the status quo no longer exists. Where truth drops as an atom bomb and knowledge flows like Niagara Falls!

Each week, they challenge assumptions that have been holding back healthcare marketing and ask how they can do better.

Generational Differences Reexamined

Talking about generations… and generational differences!

Each generation has been influenced by the major historical events, social trends and cultural phenomena of its time. Therefore, each generation has different values, standards of quality and attitudes toward customers and co-workers.

Generational Differences

Let’s uncover a few of these generational differences and how reaching tech-savvy Millennials is much different than reaching their parents.

(snippet of Meagan’s interview at the National Association of Realtors)

We’re going to talk about zapping the generational gap that exists between the different generations in the workplace and the marketplace in your own home today.

How do you zap that gap?

Every generation has more in common than they don’t and we tend to focus on the negative.
In my keynote sessions, we focus on the positive but I always say that I make fun of all the generations equally. I poke fun at all the generations.

We look at what makes a generation unique, what makes them special. We also look at how the generations expectations change based on their experiences and what you can do as a Realtor.

Generational Differences

What you can do to make that connection?

I think the key is allowing ourselves to let go of the way we’ve always done things and that’s hard. I talk about it and I still struggle with it, too. We are emotionally connected to the way we’ve always done things. When someone new comes along, especially someone that we perceive as having less experience than we do, we feel threatened. Maybe they are not quite as bright as we are, and they want to change things, they want to move things. We tend to say no.

In fact, we even have a phrase for it. We say: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” Right?

I always make a point – take Steve Jobs. When he was head of Apple when they came to him with this crazy idea about the iPhone. What if he would have said no way. People love flip phones. They’re not going to give those up!

We have to be willing to let go of the way we’ve done things in the past to allow room for the new generations. By doing that opens up the door, a gate to communicating between the generations. It’s not about alienating one generation for the other.

Baby boomers and Gen Xers have this incredible knowledge, this base of information.

How do we make sure that information gets passed on to the younger generation?

And the same time allows room for the younger generation to put the run mark on things as well.

Millennial Managers – Challenges Millennials Face in the Workplace

Millennial Managers face many challenges in the workplace today!

How are these millennial managers and bosses shape the culture of a company? Is there a guide for successful management?

I was recently pulled over by a police officer because I was speeding.

It’s embarrassing enough getting a speeding ticket, but imagine my embarrassment when I rolled down the window. I took a look at the officer and blurted out: “You’re not old enough to have a driver’s license much less write me a ticket!”

As she wrote me the ticket it dawned on me that I was guilty of something that many of my baby boomer parent’s friends are guilty of. They have this frozen picture of me in their mind as a kid. The idea that I am an adult, live on my own and have a job – they struggle with that.

Many of us have similar thoughts about Millennials.

The oldest millennial was born in 1981. That makes them about 37 years old. When I was 37, I already had a divorce under my belt!

So this idea that they are still new to the workplace, they’re just out of school, that’s really outdated.

Challenges Millennials Face in the Workplace

Millennials are facing the challenge that many of us didn’t face at that age. Managing people that are considerably older than they are! The teams that these millennial managers are leading are all ages.

The older people distrust Millennials because they do not feel the Millennials have real-world experience. That lack of trust from older employees can be a roadblock to success and building strong work relationships.

Millennial Managers

Millennial Management Style

I interviewed a millennial manager and I asked him how he dealt with these issues. He said that when he joins a new team, he just treads really carefully at first. No need to go in with guns blazing talking about change.

He takes time to get to know the team members and he’s upfront with them. He states the obvious – that he’s younger than them, and that they most probably have more experience than he does. When issues arise, he asks them how they’d handle this problem.

Millennial Managers in the Workplace

You have to keep in mind if you are a Millennial that some of your older employees will look to you to demonstrate traits that they find are important in a good leader. And some of those traits may seem somewhat traditional to you, such as coming in early, staying late, working from the office etc.

Those are traits that baby boomers and Gen Xers associate with hard-working leaders.
According to a Deloitte survey, Millennials want to make a difference and they want to challenge the old ways of doing things.

As more millennials become leaders and managers, they will continue to challenge and change corporate culture. Not only the culture but rules and policies that older employees have always perceived as untouchable. Policies like dress code, time off, personal time, and working from home. And when that happens, I encourage older employees to not take it personally.

Millennial Leaders

As one millennial manager said to me: “When I make a change, I’m challenging the process, not the person!”

No matter what generation we belong to, we all benefit from strong leaders. Leaders who see opportunity. Leaders who encourage us to grow. Ones who support us even when our ideas are not successful.

It’s good leaders from every generation – that’s how we’re going to work and live successfully as one.

Millennials and Money

Let’s discuss Millennials and Money, as well as what help do millennials really wish for when it comes to working in your organizations.

Financial stress can cost organizations up to 250 billion. That’s billion with a B! I don’t think I ever learned to count that high. Two hundred and fifty billion dollars in lost wages, according to a Mercer report.

The number one generation worrying about their financial situation you think are baby boomers, right? Baby boomers – because they’re getting close to retirement. Or Gen Xers. We should have started saving sooner. No, none of the above.

Millennials and Money

It’s Millennials. Millennials worry more about their financial situation when compared to Gen Xers or baby boomers.

If you haven’t heard of Millennials, you’re living under a rock. They’re the 80 million people born after
1980. They’re the largest living generation in the United States. In four years, they’ll be 40% of the workforce and by the year 2020, it’d be the largest share of the workforce.

Millennials spend more time worrying about their financial situation when compared to any other generation. Sixty-seven percent of Millennials feel that financial stress interferes with productivity at work. What are Millennials worry about?

Understanding Millennials in the Workplace

We see organizations doing crazy things to get their attention, keep them on board, entertain and engage them.

Millennials graduated during the Great Recession. Therefore, stalling the beginning of their career or forcing them into lower paying jobs. The average millennial makes $10,000 less than their baby boomer parents did at the same age.

And the biggest difference is that Millennials have student debt! Millennials have more student debt than any generation previously. The average student loan is $37,000. They can expect to have that paid off by age 35.

40 percent of Millennials feel that worrying about their student loans interferes with their health.

So what can companies do?

The obvious answer is to help them with their student loans.

Millennials and Financial Health

90 percent of Millennials said that they would commit to a job for five years in exchange for assistance with their student loans.

Keep in mind, three years is the average job stay for a millennial. They are looking to their employers for help with their finances. Many Millennials feel that education did not prepare them to handle their finances once they graduated. They are turning to their employers.

What do they want to help with?

They want help with investing, how to do their taxes, saving for a home, and of course, student loan debt. What can a company do? They can offer a variety of financial wellness tools!

Some organizations have a financial professional on staff to assist Millennials in planning for their finances into the future and to provide education training tools. They are helping the Millennial understand their finances. Not only is this good for the organization but it also helps build a foundation that Millennial will stand on for the rest of their lives!

Helping Millennials with Money

A lot of people get close to retirement and the big thing they say is ‘Oh, I should have started saving sooner! ‘ So what can organizations do?

Show Millennials where they can save.

What’s interesting is that they tend to save for more short-term goals like a vacation. It’s the long-term goals that they really want to help with. Save for retirement.

The average American worker spends three thousand dollars a year on coffee and lunch breaks at work.
However, the run to see their barista to get their favorite cappuccino or double latte fizz is what costs companies twenty-four billion.

Twenty-four billion hours of lost productivity!

Here’s a win/win offer:

Offer in-house meals, healthy sacks and save the Millennial money. Save your organization productivity hours!