September 23, 2009

Edited and Written by Ira S. Wolfe

Published by Success Performance Solutions. Major Sponsor,

2008 Best Places to Work In Pennsylvania

What's Inside this issue of The TotalView:

1.  Gen-Blending Relieves Stress of Generational Crowding

2.  Perfect Labor Storm Warnings

3.  CriteriaOne DISC

4.  eSKill Office Skill Testing

5.  Quotes from the Hire Authorities

1. Gen-Blending Relieves Stress of Generational Crowding

Juggling multigenerational workforces is nothing new for many organizations.  What's changed however is that the Baby Boomers aren't retiring as expected and it's capping career growth and stalling job openings for younger workers. This new phenomena, which I've called "the gray ceiling," is creating a state of generational crowding.

This workplace crowding is forcing managers to do what my colleague and friend Bette Price calls "gen-blending," a practice where different generations of workers representing multiple ranks of personnel come together as equals to solve company issues.

Cross-generational teams, according to a just published article in the Financial Times, "are about more than young people imparting technical skills to older workers; they give senior employees the opportunity to learn more about the ideals, behaviors and values of the younger generation," according to Dan Woodward, senior vice-president at BakBone Software, who was interviewed for the article.

"Young people have a different way of thinking and [to use that effectively] creates a real competitive advantage." Price believes "The goal is to collectively brainstorm in order to identify problems and get a broader vision of the company."

One practice that I recommend as a key strategy for getting different generations to collaborate is for young workers to tutor management and older workers how to use social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter for recruitment, business development, customer support, and employee engagement. Time Warner is using what they call "digital reverse mentoring" to blend different generations in strategic discussions.

Another effective tool I recommend for exposing similarities instead of dwelling on the differences is our old friend "CriteriaOne DISC." Why DISC? Because every generation has its share of different behavioral styles.  That diversity also means that each generation has individuals who share similar styles with people from other generations. DISC can be a first step in helping people find things they share in common with other generations.

Gen-blending has improved company morale, according to several companies interviewed for the article.. They get better buy-in for change and avoid what one manager called "warm seat attrition," when workers just stay around because they have no better options.

Perfect Labor Storm Warnings   

Labor statistics for August show that 15.1 percent of Americans age 20 to 24 are without a job. Among 25 to 29 year olds, unemployment is lower but still troublesome at 11 percent.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

For more workforce and hiring trends. subscribe to the Perfect Labor Storm 2.0 blog.

Purchase the NEW Perfect Labor Storm 2.0 books (soft and hard cover versions) at PerfectLaborStorm.com.

CriteriaOne DISC - Easy to Use, Accurate, Affordable

We all have a basic behavioral style that affects how we work, play, communicate and build relationships.   CriteriaOne® DISC Behavioral Style reports produce an overview of four basic behavioral styles based on an individual's responses to a short 10 to 15 minute questionnaire. Each report then describes how an employee will deal with problems, interact with people, comply with rules and procedures, and the pace at which he or she will work.  

CriteriaOne® DISC also provides management with a powerful new business tool to identify similarities among people from different generations and to help manage and defuse conflicts when they do arise. Read more about CriteriaOne DISC reports.

Social Media and Manager Training for the "Wired and Tired"


Attention Meeting Planners, Program Chairs, HR Professionals

Don't miss out on the opportunity to schedule Ira S Wolfe for your next meeting on one of the following hot topics:

Geeks, Geezers, and Googlization

When Boomers and Young Workers Collide

Social Media 101: Link Me, Tweet Me, Nudge Me

Marketing Your Business: Using Facebook

Learn more about these seminars. Contact us today.

Test for Office Skills Accurate & Affordable   

eSkill assessments are an effective method of ensuring your candidates have the skills needed for your jobs before an extensive interview process. eSkill's online testing tool creates valid, job-based tests by combining multiple subjects and skill levels as needed into a single assessment.  

• Accounting
• Bookkeeping
• Arithmetic
• English and grammar

Click here to learn more

Quotes from Hire Authorities

"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending."
 
Maria Robinson

 

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Ira S. Wolfe Copyright 2009 - All Rights Reserved. Reprints and other distribution by permission only.