A generation is termed as a group of people born at a similar time, shaped by identical events, and affected by similar social, economic, technical, and political circumstances. Three Factors are vital to classifying such segments a feeling of membership, common beliefs and behaviours, and common historical experiences.
Since each generation has its own peculiar characteristics and expectations, organizations in today’s context have to understand how to best manage the unique characteristics of the generation shaped by their experiences and how best to engage them by playing to their unique motivators.
The latest Generation rapidly entering the workforce is Gen Z also called Digital natives. These are people born after 1995 making up almost one-third of the world’s population and in the coming decade expected to integrate into and influence many organizations, bringing with it a new spirit and style that are likely to lead to many organizational changes, particularly in light of the intergenerational gap between managers and employees.
Since this generation is going to dominate the workplace for the foreseeable future, it becomes important to understand how organizations can capitalize on their peculiar behaviors and work preferences, particularly in relation to other generations.
While generations have changed over time, organizations have maintained standard policies, processes, and work formats for all generations of employees. For e.g, the promotion policy which is standard for all employees doesn’t take into account the variation that a 28 yr Gen Z employee like possibly expecting a faster & shorter elevation time than a 43-year-old Gen Y employee.
These distinctions with respect to age & experience need to be studied in detail to find out the true engagement drivers of each group in the same work context. The biggest mistake that supervisors can do is to treat Gen Z the same way they have been treating Millennials (Gen Y) & Gen X considering their upbringing & conditioning is very different.
So, what can organizations do to address and manage different generations at work? Starting point is to acknowledge and recognize that they are very different from each other. Managers will play a significant role in managing different generation teams. They will have to customize their supervisory style to each generation’s unique preferences. Organizations will also have to revisit their systems & processes to cater to the distinctness of multiple segments.
Communication Mode
New Generations prefer technology-led engagement. They prefer instant communication through digital platforms over physical meetings and hence prefer communicating virtually through messengers, WhatsApp, telegram, etc Hence communication mode with them can be engaged through Technology and digital communication.
Reward & Career Framework aligned to values & preferences
Gen Z is high on achievement orientation & is more self-confident & self-directed. Their high entrepreneurial and aspirational mindset is evident compared to previous generations. They want to make a quick impact and grow quickly in the company’s hierarchy without getting constrained by the organization’s promotion policy.
Comparatively, Gen X places a higher value on stability and loyalty. Hence, it looks for a reward & growth system which rewards consistency and loyalty.
Work Format
Gen Z prefers more diversified learning and craves different challenging assignments. They prefer exposure to diverse work aspects than going deep into one particular work aspect. They are known for multitasking. Hence project work based on short to medium assignments works best with them. Organizations will have to evolve their work formats accordingly.
Performance Management System
With a strong preference for continuous feedback in emerging generations, organizations are gradually moving away from annual/ bi-annual feedback systems. The new generation PMS will need to espouse online & e-learning avenues along with in-person Mentorship programs.
Organization Structure
Gen Z tends to be more independent & does not value top-down authority or hierarchy. They do not like rules & believe in exclusivity & differentiation. Earlier generations are known to be more compliant and aligned with top-down management. Organizations will have to design structures keeping in mind these aspects
In short, organizations will need to move away from standardized tools and processes and rather customize them to emerging preferences. Continuous feedback from different generations will help improve some of the organization’s levers to engage multiple generations at the same time.
Managers will play a critical role in this and hence their training in understanding the characteristics of various generations and their motivators will be critical to managing and engaging them.
