1. Bridging the generation gap

2. Welcome!
Sue Petrisin
International Trustee Kiwanis International Board

3. Session objectives The generations Our differences Our commonalities
Working together

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

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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

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

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

10. 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

11. 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

12. 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

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

14. 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

15. 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

16. Generation vs generation?
Overall Differences Between Generations

17. 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

18. 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, , overview & end results
Gen Y – texts, social networking, end results

19. 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

20. 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

21. 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.

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

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

24. 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

25. 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

26. Questions?
Sue Petrisin
Time for Questions…

27. 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

28. Thank you!
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