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Several years ago, male-female relationships came to the forefront
as authors like John Gray, (Men are from Mars, Women are from
Venus) published research on the differences between the sexes.
Suddenly society's microscope focused on how the genders communicate,
love, argue, and relate. Men discovered that perhaps mentioning
those few extra pounds on their wives isn't the best way to voice
health concerns. Women were shocked to hear that men go into their
"cave" and sometimes just need to be alone.
The same analysis
is now occurring in the workplace, focusing on male-female relationships
and relationships between generations. At no time in history has
the workforce seen such diversity in the values and motivations
of different age groups. That is not to say an 80 year old has never
worked with a 20 year old but historically, the past generations
had greater shared values...they shared a common history. Now, according
to a new book on the subject, each generation has a different set
of characteristics, in and outside of the workplace, and conflicts
arise from misunderstandings and the lack of commonalities.
Over the next
several weeks, we are going to focus on how the Veterans, the Baby
Boomers, Generation X, and the Nexters are sharing one work space
and what it is exactly that motivates each one. In their book, Generations
at Work, Claire Raines, Ron Zemke, and Bob Filipczak describe
the motivating influences for each generation. Although you will
see several differences in the types of motivation needed to succeed
at their job, it is amazing how each generation shares the need
to be recognized and rewarded for their efforts at work.
This
week:
Read
more about the authors of Generations at Work.
In
the coming Weeks:
Motivating truck
drivers
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