We hear generational stereotypes all the time. How many times have you heard:

Why do Boomers have to print every email? Don’t they know they’re killing trees?

Why does Gen Y have to be online all the time? Can’t they have a face-to-face conversation?

Why does Gen X have to find the flaw in every solution? They’re such party-poopers!

“So what?” as my father would say. So what if we have certain ideas about other people? The “so what” is that stereotypes hinder team effectiveness. If we enter every meeting stereotyping others on the team, with “Oh boy. Here comes Rahul, the classic Gen X. He’s gonna put a damper on everything; he makes no time to socialize.”, then we’ll make assumptions about him, based on that stereotype. We’ll start to judge him based on his age, rather than on his talent, ideas and insights. That’s a huge loss to any organization.

So how do we become aware of our own stereotypes and stop them from hindering team performance? The first step is to become aware of what we say in our heads, and out loud, about others. It may be something like “Why do THEY always do that?” or “I just can’t relate to them; THEY make me crazy.”

Once you become aware of your personal biases, you can then start to get answers about them. Ask your question to someone of that generation and see what he or she says. You might ask a Gen Y why she’s online all the time; the reply will likely be that she values connection to her community and uses technology to stay connected. Or you might ask a Gen X why they are so practical and pragmatic about everything; he’ll likely answer that he was forced to mature quickly so views everything from a more focused angle.

The actual answer doesn’t matter so much. What matters is that you have created a conversation with someone who sees the world differently than you. That helps you understand why people do things and opens your world to new perspectives. And what does that create? Collaboration and innovation. Just what the doctor ordered when it comes to team performance!

Want to know how to reach each generation online?

Baby Boomers are less price sensitive and tend to purchase for need. They place a value on product/service experience. Yet, to date, there is a lack of relevant content that mirrors their need for understanding features and benefits. They are a growing presence online, especially in social media, online shopping, loyalty programs and email.

Gen X purchase for want. They are market savvy, pragmatic and demand honesty. They are less loyal to brands and more solution orientated. They are a busy generation, often taking care of kids, a career and aging parents, so they will use technology when it supports a lifestyle need. They are an entrepreneurial generation, owning 70% of all new businesses, thus heavy users of online shopping and banking, blogs and email.

Gen Y is a culture of strong brand loyalty. They are the key to future revenue growth. Viral elements, not static links, are the key to their engagement. They will likely Tweet and text in real-time from stores and venues. This will likely cause a resurgence of high customer service standards.

So if you want to create a Web 2.0 plan, where the buyers are in charge, you need to focus on the basics: Choose one generational target market, determine how your target market participates online and use the appropriate technology, tactics and tools for your market. Following this simple plan will help you target your market and connect with them in new ways.

Gen Y is a tough act to teach. They grew up surrounded by media and marketing; they can download anything, at any time. So how do you keep them engaged when delivering a webinar or other types of distance courses?

Here are some tips to keep it mind:

- Keep it short

- Use media-rich “Edu-tainment”

- Create small metacognitive tasks

Keep It Short

Gen Y has a short attention span, especially online. They are the ultimate multi-taskers; your challenge is to keep them engaged so that they don’t check email and IM while also participating in your webinar. Bite-size webinars that only last 10 to 15 minutes with links to more information will keep them engaged at the time, as well as later for their ‘homework’.

Use Media-rich “Edu-tainment”

Enjoyment during the learning process improves retention and promotes curiosity. You will have better student engagement with Gen Y when using more media-rich methods of delivery. For example, embed 1-minute videos into your presentation to reinforce a key point, use music during the lecture, ask the students to create wikis as class projects or have them post their answers as videos on You Tube. Using a variety of media-rich methods will help the students learn your key points in fun, interactive ways.

Create Small Metacognitive Tasks

The concept of a “course” as a one-hour lecture is becoming granularized. To engage Gen Y, you need to find ways to create smaller metacognitive tasks. This means that planting the seed of a topic for 10 minutes, followed by planned activities, will be more effective than discussing the topic in detail for 45 minutes. Once you plant the seed, you then create other methods of discussion to keep the students engaged. For example, plant the seed in a 10-minute lecture, then allow time to reflect, read, journal. The next activity could be group projects using media rich methods. Then you can plant the second seed in a similar manner, allowing all your points to eventually be made.

As I was recently explaining this concept to a client, they summed it up beautifully by saying, “It takes more work up front on the teacher’s part, but less work during the actual course as the students are engaging and learning for themselves.” That’s what I call a win-win.