Bridging the generation gap

Welcome! Sue Petrisin International Trustee Kiwanis International Board

Session objectives The generations Our differences Our commonalities Working together

Who are you? Which Generation are you? Matures Baby Boomers Gen-X Gen-Y Don’t know

Matures Who are the Matures? Combination of Greatest Generation & Silent Generation Influences – great depression, women working in factories, wide release of movies, beginning of rock ’n roll, patriotism, pulling together for the common good Defining Event - WWII

Baby Boomers Who are the Baby Boomers? Influences – Civil Rights Movement, tv, rock ‘n roll, drugs, prosperity, cold war Defining Events – Shooting of their heroes: JFK, Bobby Kennedy, MLK and landing on the moon

Gen-X Who are the Gen Xers? Influences – disillusionment of institutions – marriage, employers, government, aids, recession, latch-key children, TV Defining Event – fall of the Berlin Wall, end of Cold War

Gen-Y Who are the Gen Yers? Influences – technology, prosperity, working parents, over scheduled, indulgence Defining Event – 9-11

Who is cooler? Which Generation are you? Matures Baby Boomers Gen-X Gen-Y Don’t know

Now what? That’s great to know, but now what do we do with this information? Ask any questions you want to know about the different generations

Matures Born before 1945 Influenced by the Military 35 million people today Strengths – loyalty, Where they are now – mostly retired, spoiling their grandkids & great-grandkids

Baby Boomers 1945-1964 Most influential people today 80 million people Strengths – team-players Where they are now – some retiring, some ‘un-retiring’, second careers

Gen-X 1964-1980 Prove it to me 45 million people Strengths - realists Where they are now – middle of the work-force, raising families

Gen-Y Born after 1980 Instant Gratification 75 million people Strengths – multiple connection points, multi-tasking Where they are now – At the beginning of their work and family life

Differences Overview of area of differences The Mature generations rebuilt the country so that they could prosper The Baby Boomers lived in prosperity, so they could challenge the wrongs of society The Gen X’ers saw the ‘promises’ unfulfilled and expanded technology – dot.com & promises still crashing down The Gen Y’ers were indulged, protected and scheduled – defining a new world

Generation vs generation? Overall Differences Between Generations

Role models Who are their roles models? Mature – military, authority figures Baby Boomers – change agents: JFK, MLK, Bobby Kennedy, rock stars Gen X – none Gen Y – police officers, fireman, grandparents

Communications How do we like to communicate Mature – face to face, all the facts and instructions Baby Boomers – face to face, telephone, orderly to do list Gen X – face to face, telephone, email, overview & end results Gen Y – texts, social networking, end results

Coaching/managing Allow the Kiwanian to set the “rules of engagement” Ask what has worked for them in the past and fit your approach to that experience Let them define quality and fit your approach to that definition Use testimonials from the nation’s institutions (government, business, or people) Emphasize that you’ve seen a particular approach work in the past, don’t highlight uniqueness

Coaching/managing Sue Show them how you can help them use time wisely Assess their comfort level with technology in advance Demonstrate how important a strong team is Customize your style to their unique needs Emphasize that working with you will be a good experience for them Emphasize that their decision is a good one and a “victory” for them—they’re competitive and want to win Follow up and check in and ask how the individual is doing on a regular basis

Coaching/managing Put all the options on the table Be prepared to answer “why” Present yourself as an information provider Use their peers as testimonials when possible Appear to enjoy your Follow up and meet your commitments. They’re eager to improve and expect you to follow through.

Coaching/managing Offer customization—a plan specific to them Offer peer-level examples Spend time providing information and guidance Be impressed with their decisions

Common ground Just as Maslow stated – we are all on the path to self-actualization, that we all have in common

Strength of working together Every generation brings their own strengths: Matures – patient, respect authority, understand sacrifice Boomers – team players, hard workers Gen X – realistic, flexible Gen Y – connected, collaborators

Generational context is not about age, but common experiences Acknowledge your team’s expectations, not just your own Different is neither right nor wrong, just different Age-ism is the death of any coaching strategy Generational understanding does not take the place of concern for the individual Different generations care about different approaches to the same problem – highlight points accordingly Technology is not universal – assess your team members’ affinity level before making communication assumptions

Questions? Sue Petrisin sue@suepetrisin.com Time for Questions…

Four generations together 1st time with 4 generations in workplace More multi-generational households than ever before We all have dreams, the desire to connect and feelings – keep them in perspective

Thank you! Please visit our website for information: www.KiwanisOne.org