TM - February 2008 - (Page 14)

[leading edge] by Dr. Jac Fitz-enz K K Boomerville Who’s on First? eeping track of the multigenerational workforce is almost as difficult as Costello trying to find out the names of the players on Abbott’s mythical baseball team. The real question is not who is on first, but what kinds of differences there are between the baby boomers, Gen X and Gen Y. How much difference can there be? What makes someone the way they are? Is it their genetic makeup or their life experiences? The answer is yes. The Ancient Ones boomers sailed into the land of promise. True, they had a lot of competition for jobs, but it was not a time of 20 percent unemployment like the early 1930s. Boomers came to believe they were the anointed ones, with a new car every two years and vacation trips every First off, we can dismiss the Depression-era people like me, born before World War II. We are older than plastic, and we don’t count, since we are dropping like flies and only make up a rapidly declining percentage of the workforce. Boomers are the first generation not faced with mandatory retirement programs. Before they totter off into the sunset, many will continue to occupy positions of significance in the workforce for another decade or more. Now they are moving into power positions, determined to change the way organizations handle people. Their ideas are shaping the new approaches: flex time, work at home, paternity leave, work-life balance. While they are coming up with more humane talent management ways, they have to deal with the economic realities of how to compete, be profitable, satisfy the encroaching government and maintain their standard of living in the face of the crashing dollar. Ten years ago, the dollar was worth about 10 percent more than the euro. Today, it is worth almost 50 percent less. There goes Paris in the spring. About the author Dr. Jac Fitz-enz is founder and CEO of the Human Capital Source and Workforce Intelligence Institute. He can be reached at editor@TalentMgt.com. The most publicized and studied generation in history is now approaching retirement; or they would like to. Boomers are the first generation not faced with mandatory retirement programs. Before they totter off into the sunset, many will continue to occupy positions of significance in the workforce for another decade or more. Do you know why the Social Security retirement age was set at 65 in 1933? It’s because most people didn’t live much past that. Now, their children and grandchildren can expect to tack on another decade at least before they go for the rocking chair. The youngest boomers are still in their 40s; they will be running companies for quite a while yet. So, what drives them? The baby boom generation grew up in the postwar affluence of the 1950s and ’60s. Before the GI Bill paid college tuition and FHA made low-cost housing loans, life was much more of a struggle. With no Great Depression or World War to curtail their ambitions, the summer. You name it, they had it good. So, what are they worried about? Their kids, of course. Where are Captain Kangaroo and Mr. Rogers now that we need them to teach values? Every generation is somewhat put off by the antics of their kids, but this is ridiculous. Look at the world of affluence they provided. The Cold War is over — no more “duck and cover” if the Russkies launch their ICBMs. How come these kids don’t get it? Gen X Gen Y Are these guys serious? Everything doesn’t come in an iPod, you know. Well, maybe not quite yet. Here is the now group. You want it? You got it on your BlackBerry. Never has a generation grown up with such power to learn, share, grow and communicate. They want to transfer this power to all aspects of their lives. They believe, with some supportive evidence, they can or should be able to manipulate the world with those magic sticks. The ironic thing is they can, if they don’t spend all their time on MySpace and Facebook. This generation may actually come close to achieving the youthful idealism we all grow up feeling. I sincerely hope they do. I also hope we of older orders can set aside our obsolete views of the past and embrace the future that Gen Y believes can be attained. These are the tweeners. They came along between the boomers and the first generation to grow up with computers in school. Gen X didn’t have to use stone tablets and chisels, but they also didn’t have the world literally at their fingertips. They witnessed the tail end of the hippie revolution as it descended from free love into AIDS. It must have been a confusing time trying to figure out how much to rebel. 14 February 2008 talent management magazine www.TalentMgt.com http://www.TalentMgt.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of TM - February 2008

Talent Management - February 2008 Editor's Letter - Talkin' 'Bout My Generation Contents Human Performance - Achievement Motivation: Top Talent At Any Age Leading Edge - Who's On First? Foundations - Managing the Next Generation Workforce Viewpoint - Talent Strategies That Work Are Talent Strategies That Stick Those Who Have Left: The Value of Building Employee Relationships Alternatives to 360s: The Manager's Role Compensation and Benefits For X&Y Build A Multigenerational Performance Management Strategy Development's Role in Creating A Culture Of Inclusion Tomorrow's Leader: Identifying the Next Generation Integrating Talent Management Systems Strategically Seagate Uses Yearlong Evaluations to Help Integrate Talent Efforts Western Union: Connecting Strategy and People Globally Advertisers' Index Editorial Resources Full Potential - The Best Time to Change? Right Now!

TM - February 2008

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