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.

Someone recently asked me, "What happens when a Gen Y employee is promoted to a managerial level and starts working with Gen X colleagues? Do they become more X-ish? Or stay as a Gen Y?"

Here's my answer: Every individual has deeply ingrained generational and personal values. Gen X generally values independence, pragmatism, focus, metrics/results and financial freedom. Gen Y generally values connections, making a difference, balance and global diversity. As the generations mature though life, these values will remain the same and adapt to the new life circumstance.

For example, if Phillippe, a Gen X manager, has a baby, he will still value financial freedom and pragmatism. However, instead of just focusing on his own financial freedom, he will also focus on taking realistic steps to achieving financial freedom for his child. And if Eliza, a Gen Y manager, just got married, she will likely find ways to balance her life's priorities through her online connections.

So what happens when Marie is promoted to Phillippe's level? Will she become more X and less Y? No. She will always have her Y tendencies; it's just who she is. And the more you understand each generation's values, the better you'll work with everyone on your team.



I recently spoke about managing generational differences at a leadership conference. After my talk, a Boomer asked me "How do I motivate my Gen Y son? He has so much potential, yet seems to want to do so little with his life." This is a common question from both parents and employers; it's clearly a big issue in today's workplace and will only get bigger as the Gen Y's mature.

Let's answer this question in two stages:

1. Remember that each generation has its own prism through which it views life. So a Boomer's goal and motivations are different than a Gen X or a Gen Y's motivations. Try not to place your motivations on someone else's life; instead, find ways to connect with them and listen to what excites them.

2. In general, Gen Y values meaningful experiences, education, making a difference, balance and connections. So use those values as the starting point for the conversation. Find out what connections are important to them. How they would like to make a difference in the world? Inquire about past experiences that were meaningful to them.Once you know these aspects of your employee or child, their motivations become quite clear.

For example, let's say your Gen Y son enjoys music, travel and working with youth. Find a way to incorporate these into a larger goal or motivation. Maybe it'll be creating a music program for international schools. Or traveling with American music programs to other countries. Or teaching music to inner city kids. The options are limitless, once you know what excites and is important to him.

How can you do the same thing at work? Say a Gen Y HR employee likes computers, history and mentoring new employees. You would like this employee to get more engaged at work; she would like some new experiences. So what can you create together? Perhaps she could mentor new employees on the computer protocols. Or create a podcast of the company history. Or create a new employee work-sheet on the industry's milestones and best practices. All of these motivate her to stay engaged at work, while helping you think out of the box. Now that motivates everyone!

Someone recently asked me about Gen Y's lack of commitment, saying "They're not as dedicated at work as the rest of us". My answer: It's all a matter of perspective.

Let's take the case of Marie and Alicia. Marie, 45, has been a senior-level manager at the Generate Health Food Store for over 5 years. She ensures that the organizational values and standards are met on a regular basis. She is also Alicia’s supervisor.

Alicia, 27, just joined Generate one year ago. She is well respected by her peer group and loved by the clients.

Lately Marie has noticed that in general, the newer and younger members of Generate are not adhering to the standards she holds. She has also noticed this with  Alicia. Although Alicia can recite the organizational values and behaviors, she doesn’t seem to embrace them. For example, Marie believes that unwavering commitment means working extra hours and doing whatever it takes to exceed customer expectations Alicia is very committed to helping the customers when she is with them; she also leaves as soon as her shift is  over and declines any extra work from her supervisors.

Alicia is very surprised when Marie discusses her “lack of commitment” at a recent one-on-one meeting. Alicia feels that she is very committed to her customers and work; she gives 110% at work. She is also committed to her personal health and marriage, which is why she leaves work right at the end of her shift, so that she can exercise and spend the evening with her husband.

So how can Alicia and Marie bridge this generation gap?

1. Generate needs to define "unwavering commitment", since it can mean different things to different people. Once everyone in the company understands what it means, then people can start from the same point.

2. Once the company has defined the components, Alicia and Marie need to discuss what it means to them as well. If they take the time to explain their perspective, they'll understand each other's behaviors better. And instead of saying "Alicia isn't committed", Marie may start to see that Alicia is actually very committed to health in many ways, not just at work.

3. Finally, Alicia and Marie need to determine each other's 'hot buttons'. If they know what potentially offends the other person, they can find ways to avoid that behavior.

It's not always easy to do. However, if both people are committed, it is possibler to bridge the generation gap!