Generation Gap: Closing the Generation

Gap in the Workplace

There are currently five generations in the workforce, and employers faced with mass
retirements of Baby Boomers are looking for ways to prepare for the changes that will
result. This course examines the history and reality of the generation gap.

This course explores whether defining the actual limits of each generation is most
important, or whether the merits of people within the context of employment is the bigger
issue. Understanding others helps us to understand ourselves and to manage the people
that we work with. We will explore problems, solutions, and strategies to help overcome
issues of the generation gap.

Learning Objectives
 This one-day workshop will teach participants how to:
 Identify where the generation gap issue surfaces, and the impact it has on the modern
workforce.
 Describe and apply language that is specific to each generation currently in the
workplace.
 Explore organization strategies that overcome gap issues.
 Evaluate the need and effectiveness of recruiting, retention, and succession plans in
context of the generation gap.

COURSE OUTLINE (click for details)

History in Brief
To begin, participants will look at how the generation gap is defined and where it comes
from. Participants will also determine similarities and differences amongst themselves.

Finding Common Ground

As individuals, we have more in common at work than we may think. This session will
teach participants how finding things that are in common can be useful when deciding
how to approach differences.
Silents, Boomers, Xers, Y’s, and Millennials
This session will look at common generation definitions in an effort to understand their
history.

Recruiting that Bridges the Gap

During this session, participants will explore generation-specific factors that affect
retention and recruiting.

Pre-Assignment Review
This session will review the pre-assignment and explore common generalizations.

Creative Solutions
During this session, participants will identify targeted ways to appeal to different
generations.

The Value of Planning

Participants will learn how succession planning and coaching can increase an
organization’s sustainability.

Developing Targeted Retention Strategies

Next, participants will learn how to use the generation gap to their advantage when
developing retention strategies.

What We Really Want

To wrap up the day, participants will explore how to make our workplace engaging.
Tips for Bridging Generational Gaps in
Workplace Training
Today’s workforce is a multigenerational collection of individuals who have grown together as a
result of many years of expansion, attrition, consolidation, and new hiring policies. This
assimilation of many generations — and many perspectives — under a single roof can often pose
organizational, managerial, and instructional challenges. Unless these complications are
recognized and addressed, those gaps can create a communications stumbling block that impedes
a company’s or an organization’s long-term success.

The best way to address this in terms of workplace education is through a cross-generational
training strategy. However, prior to designing your strategy, it is important to recognize the
specific nature of the challenges that lie ahead.

Recognizing the Divide

Many families are multi-generational in their formation, and many people can testify to the
tensions and stresses that this arrangement can bring. If you’ve ever had to juggle the
personalities and opinions of a wide array of relatives at a holiday party, imagine doing the same
at a large corporation, where the volume, scope, and network effects of these challenges are
magnified 10 or even 100-fold!

The Center for Generational Kinetics defines the make-up of various generations as follows:

 iGen, Gen Z, or Centennials (also called Post-Millennials) — born 1996 and later
 Millennials or Gen Y — born 1977 to 1995
 Generation X (or Gen-Xers) — born 1965 to 1976
 Baby Boomers — born 1946 to 1964
 Traditionalists or Silent Generation — born 1945 and before

Few Traditionalists are still active in the workforce today, but many organizations have Baby
Boomers, Gen-Xers, Millennials and even Post-Millennials in their ranks. A 2015 Pew Research
Center study shows that while the percentage of working Baby Boomers (29%) and Gen Xers
(34%) continues to decline, more and more Millennials (34%) and Post-Millennials (1%) are
taking their place.

While everyone is an individual with his or her own personality, perspective, and preferences,
each generation is also broadly characterized by a unique set of core workforce “peculiarities”
that are often a product of the cultural and societal norms that were popular during each era’s
career ascent. Instructional designers must take these audience attributes into consideration when
designing training modules. Some of the factors and user perceptions that need to be considered
in any training program include:
  loyalty to the organization
 aversion to change
 teamwork
 work-life balance
 embracing technology
 disregard for formality
 loyalty to self
 “lone wolf” preferences

When you have a multi-generational group working together, each with characteristics that may
contradict one another, you may have one or more gaps between what each sub-demographic
thinks of as “normal” or “best practices.” As instructional designers, you need to find a way to
bridge these gaps to ensure that all generations will find your training meaningful and engaging
— or they may disregard your lessons as being illogical, irrelevant, or out of touch.

Training to Build the Bridge

While many current corporate leaders are members of the Boomer and Gen-X populations, the
seismic shift on the horizon now that Millennials have become the largest segment of the
workforce makes it imperative for the workforce at all levels to be exposed to training that helps
them interact with and better understand their cross-generational co-workers.

The sooner any such gaps in your organization’s workplace personae are recognized, the faster
you can start building suitable training strategies to help your organization cope with the
challenges these “generation gaps” will pose. Here are some best practices suggested by
nationally-renowned Employee Assistance Program providers Carebridge:

1. Train your leaders to be aware of the preferred work and communication styles of each of
the generations.
2. Teach them to communicate in ways that each target generation understands.
3. Coach them to understand how to provide and receive feedback based on the unique
expectations of each of the generations.
4. Prepare them to appreciate how each of the generations perceive and value work/life
balance.
5. Equip them to deal with inter-generational conflict.

It is important to realize that bridging this gap isn’t the responsibility of any single generation or
person in the workforce; therefore, your training shouldn’t be restricted to a single segment of a
company’s employees.

Instructional Design Practices for Multiple Generations

While it is nearly impossible to meet the needs of all learners in just one training program,
instructional designers should keep each generation’s preferences and habits in mind so the
media you create feels vital and relevant.
For example, most Millennials prefer interactive eLearning experiences to being “talked at.”
They also enjoy collaboration, which can be easily encouraged by incorporating a wiki or a
Facebook page designed specifically to support the course. Additionally, as you design your
courses for younger audiences, note that both Millennials and Gen Z learners don’t like to be told
information they already know and they don’t like the formality of rote repetition. Much like
using Google to answer a question as it comes up in real time, these generations just want to
know what they need to know now. Also, when a younger generation signs up for training, they
may expect that the same course will be available in both the eLearning and mLearning formats.

However, even in cases where most learners are from younger generations, you must also keep
older generations in mind. Gen-Xers, Boomers, and Traditionalists often prefer learning through
more direct methods like lectures, and many of them feel that gamification and interactivity are
simply a waste of their time.

So, how can you make everyone happy?

One approach is to provide multiple media resources that cover the same information — like
offering a PDF file which includes all the vital information that’s found in your interactive
exercises, so users who prefer reading to problem-solving can still download the core concepts.

Another approach would be to create two different versions of your course: one that’s interactive
and one that’s passive. This option could be complicated, expensive, and time-consuming, so if
you feel this approach would work best for your audience, be sure to plan ahead for this process.
(Luckily, CourseArc allows you to create variations and templates of your digital courses, which
can save you lots of time, resources, and headaches! You can see all of CourseArc’s sanity-
saving features here.)

Conclusion

Each generation brings its own unique set of skills and values to the workforce. Older workers
often have deep enterprise knowledge and experience and value loyalty and structure, while
younger employees value the innovation and tech savvy that will lead your company into the
next century. By creating a broad-based multi-generational training strategy, you can build
bridges across the generation gaps in your workforce that allow you to bring out the best in every
employee.
According to The Center for Generational Kinetics, the current workforce may include
four to five generations depending on the specific workplace. Research suggests that
each generation brings with them a specific set of values, ideas, and learning styles.
Here are the birth years for each generation:

 Gen Z, iGen, or Centennials: Born 1996 and later

 Gen Y or Millennials: Born 1977 to 1995

 Generation X: Born 1965 to 1976

 Baby Boomers: Born 1946 to 1964

 Traditionalists or Silent Generation: Born 1945 and before

Intergenerational learning has become a huge consideration in the training industry for
instructional designers and course leaders. It comes up frequently as a “hot topic” in
many of my courses, with folks from each generation asking how to deal with the
other.

The following are a few suggestions to support the commonalities between generations
and demystify the challenges:

1. Don’t Make Assumptions

It’s easy to place each generation in a box. For example, research suggests that the
Millennials are driven by technology and the Boomers prefer paper-based data. While
there may be some truth to this, there are always exceptions. I’ve interacted with
Boomers who are very tech savvy, and Millennials, and Gen Y or X-ers who have very
little interest in technology. So, keep an open mind regarding your learners—they may
surprise you!
2. Relevance
When designing courses, address the adult learner’s reality at work. Explain how
gaining new knowledge and skills will benefit them and how they can apply these new
skills on the job. This adult learning principle is valid across all generations.

3. Performance Based
Training should be designed with a strong focus on learner practice. Regardless of
generation, no one wants to sit through an eight-hour “data dump.” We learn by doing!
All adult learners value hands on-application—and while this is common sense, it’s not
always common practice!

4. Variety
The key to engaging any group of learners is to select a variety of instructional
methods, and this applies to multi-generational learners, too. It’s important to select
presentation and application methods that appeal to all learning preferences: visual,
auditory, and kinesthetic. It is also essential to consider a variety of training strategies
by employing a blended learning approach. Using a blend of traditional and e-
learning strategies will bridge any generational divide.

5. Analyze Your Learners

As instructional designers and professional trainers, it’s important to know your
audience! During the course design process, you’ll want to conduct a thorough learner
analysis to better understand your target audience. If you can’t do a full analysis as part
of your initial design process, do a quick mental analysis at the start of your course.
Cultivating this strategy will help you make adjustments during the delivery of your
program.

These suggestions are not magical, but they are rooted in the best practices of
instructional design. Incorporating them into your training sessions will help you bridge
any generation gaps you might encounter.
Check out our How Adults Learn workshop for more tips and techniques on connecting
with your audience. We offer it virtually, too! All generations are welcome!