Leading and Managing a Multi-Generational Workforce Curriculum

What The Workplace Will Look Like, and Understanding the Five Generations Working Side-By-Side

There is no question that the workplace today is changing rapidly. With artificial intelligence, the gig economy, and employees living longer, healthier lives, the future will no doubt be even more different. Companies need to prepare now and fully understand the implications of these changes to their business strategies. One key component is leveraging the multiple generations in the workforce.

Key Takeaways:

  • Data and trends which will impact the workforce over the next several years
  • Awareness of the different generations, their core values and preferences
  • Key areas of differences among the generations
  • Commonalities across the generations
  • Providing feedback in a way that is valuable to each generation
  • Understanding how these demographic changes impact business and strategy execution

Leading and Communicating with Each Generation

We find ourselves at a unique time in history where leaders and coworkers must connect with five distinct generations. This insightful module will examine the reasons that drive generational differences, discuss the advantages and opportunities of each generation and then share best practices for leading and communicating across the generations.

Key Takeaways:

  • Develop an understanding of the importance of using different styles to lead and communicate with each generation
  • Gain an appreciation of how employees from different generations approach work, projects, and relationships
  • Learn strategies and specific techniques for leading and communicating with all five generations, including best practices from a variety of industries
  • Receive the Generational Leadership Matrix with tips for how to recruit, train, manage and inspire members of every generation in the context of your own

Managing Across Generations – Creating the Right Environment for Different Generations of Talent

The war for talent – a term first coined by McKinsey in 1997 – rages on. Is there ever a time when employers are not in a virtual war for attracting and retaining the best talent?

Attracting talent is the first step in the employee lifecycle; many argue the real work begins once employees join a company: How to engage them effectively? How to best manage them, taking generational nuances into account? What are the secrets to retention?  

Employee engagement continues to be a foundation to achieving all of the above, even with five generations working side-by-side in today’s workforce. Much fanfare has been made about the arrival of the millennials into today’s workforce, and what engagement means to them versus employees of other generations. Is all this talk more fact than fiction?

Key Takeaways:

  • Traits of highly effective and impactful managers, as well as the similarities and differences in how different generations want to be managed and engaged
  • Common misperceptions of engagement drivers by generation
  • Essentials of time-tested best practices that drive employee engagement and retention across the generations
  • How to create a culture of engagement to foster managers, executives, and HR professionals to learn and practice methods designed to increase the level of organizational engagement
  • Solutions and techniques to improve engagement within an organization
  • Building accountability at all levels to ensure an engaged workforce
  • Creating short- and long-term engagement goals for participants’ specific situations using a proven Action Planning template to address challenges and areas of focus

Leveraging Collaboration and Developmental Networks Across Generations

Effectively coordinating daily interactions with different generations, as well as understanding how different generations view, manage, and craft their careers, are core competencies for successful leadership. In this module, participants will learn: (1) the principles of personal and organizational networks, (2) how these networks spark different strategies for communication and collaboration across generations, (3) various tools and techniques for effective mentoring, and (4) how to assess and leverage developmental networks.

Key Takeaways:

  • Applying the principles of organizational network analysis
  • Assessing key network metrics
  • Crafting effective managerial networks
  • Taking stock of your social capital
  • Building network agility
  • Fundamentals of various generational similarities and differences in effective mentoring
  • Shifting our mindset from traditional mentoring to developmental networks
  • Evaluating developmental networks
  • Developing talent through relationships

Managing and Leading Multi-Generational Teams: What Works

Organizations today do much of their work in teams, and this trend is even more likely to continue in the future, especially with the increasing number of Millennials and Gen Zs in the workforce. Fortunately, the research and practice on what makes for high-performing teams is well established, and there is substantial agreement on the essential ingredients for team effectiveness.

In this module, participants will learn what team leaders can do to help ensure that different generations work collaboratively with one another. We will discuss the basics of team effectiveness, the key responsibilities of team leaders and team members, specific tools on how to design and manage teams, and fostering collaboration and teamwork among multi-generational team members.

Key Takeaways:

  • While generational differences no doubt exist, there are in fact common management practices that all generations want in the workplace.
  • All successful teams have a “secret sauce,” and we will review the key ingredients of what makes a multi-generational team successful.
  • Leading multigenerational teams is especially challenging; we will offer strategies and techniques for how to coach, give feedback to, and manage conflict across the generations.

Program Overview

For an overview of our Leading and Managing a Multi-Generational Workforce program plus program benefits and outcomes, please click here.