GenXHitsTheGrayCeiling

1. Gen X Hits the Gray Ceiling

2.  Perfect Labor Storm Warnings

3. Free Generation IQ Test

4. Geeks, Geezers adn Googlization

5.  Speaking Schedule

6.  New Book: Coming Job Boom

7. Quotes from the Hire Authorities

Warnings about the near apocalyptic "brain drain", when baby boomers would leave the workforce en masse to travel, play golf, visit grandchildren or consult, has made nearly every executive and business owner feel like they were standing on a track with a locomotive barreling toward them.

But suddenly over the past few months the locomotive seemed to slow. From the tracks you could hear a huge sigh of relief and shouts of joy - the boomers are staying, the boomers are staying!

Boomers are staying in their jobs longer for a whole host of reasons. Topping off the list is a lack of money to retire in a style in which they are accustomed. According to a recent McKinsey & Co. report, nearly two-thirds of Early Boomers - who are aged 54 to 63 - are financially unprepared to retire. The second reason is that many boomers do not know what a life without working is. Eighty-five percent of the boomers in the McKinsey study said it is at least somewhat likely that they will continue to work with 38 percent saying it is extremely likely they will continue to work.

So what's the problem? What's so wrong with boomers staying in place longer? Managers should be celebrating and shouting from the rooftops. All this brain drain stuff was just a bunch of hype, just like many said it would be.

But just like a medication that eliminates an infection, it sometimes creates a side effect that may be worse than the cure. At least for companies that are thinking long term, the workplace side effect in this case is that twenty- and thirty-something managers are in trouble. That big promotion from middle-management into the senior ranks has just been put on ice. Bosses who aren't focused on how to keep Gen Xers happy will inevitably find that somebody else is. The risk of losing these experienced 30-somethings is huge. Eventually the boomer will retire and when the coach turns to the bench, it might be empty. So much for the "future of the firm."

Continued - Read more about Gen X and the Gray Ceiling

Brazil is projecting a period of sustained growth, with the gross domestic product increasing 5 percent a year, from now to 2010, and about 3 and 4 percent annually for the decade after. But many companies and economists, including some inside the government, say the dearth of highly skilled labor, particularly engineers and tradesmen, will jeopardize those goals, and Brazil's economic and political rise.

A study by the National Confederation of Industry last September found that more than half the 1,715 industrial firms polled could not find the skilled workers they needed. Of those, 69 percent said the lack of a qualified work force resulted in inefficiency; 36 percent said it led to lower quality goods; and 25 percent said it made acquiring or assimilating new technologies more difficult.

Listen to the new Perfect Labor Storm interview now.

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

Song now available for easier viewing on YouTube.

With four generations co-mingling in the workplace, dozens of different managerial approaches and working styles seem to be popping up. At times these co-workers seem to be worlds apart in their attitudes and values. As a result, conflicts between the generations are distracting co-workers and diverting the attention of managers. Where do you start to learn to how to manage the generation mix? Begin by testing your Generation IQ here.

We live in interesting times, indeed. Four generations are co-mingling in the workplace, each bringing with them different managerial approaches and working styles. Capitalizing on each generation's strengths is a must. Minimizing generational clash-points is a necessity. Finding common ground is critical. How do you keep Veteran workers, Baby Boomers, Gen-Xers, and Millennials all engaged, motivated, and on the job?

During this presentation, participants will learn from workforce management expert/author Ira S. Wolfe about workforce trends that are changing the way employers will do business followed by a lively and interactive discussion about the newest challenge facing managers: managing the four generations in the workplace.

Call 717-291-4640 or click here to schedule Ira S Wolfe for your 2008-2009 meetings and conferences

August 20 (tentative) - President's Circle Summer Symposium, Mt. San Antonio

August 27 - Talent Challenge: Recruiting in a fast-changing world, Roanoke VA

September 8 - Electrical Generation Systems Association - "The Perfect Labor Storm"

6. Hot Off The Press! "Coming Job Boom" - Buy Today!

Ira recently collaborated with Bonnie Kerrigan Snyder on a new book, The Coming Job Boom. Bonnie is the author of The Public School Parent's Guide to Success. The Coming Job Boom is the "ying" for the "yang" of The Perfect Labor Storm. While the Perfect Labor Storm is beginning to make managers feel like storm chasers looking for qualified workers, high school and college students must be smiling at this Upcoming Job Boom. For those young workers with the right skills and motivation, the job market will make these kids feel like - well, like kid's in a candy store!

"Many highly intelligent people are poor thinkers. Many people of average intelligence are skilled thinkers. The power of a car is separate from the way the car is driven." Edward de Bono

Permission is granted to consultants, managers, business owners and HR professionals to reproduce content from this newsletter for your internal publications, or to distribute copies to your workforce, on the condition that you reproduce the credits and contact information as follows: "Reprinted with permission from Ira S Wolfe and Success Performance Solutions. Copyright 2008 Ira S Wolfe." We also hope you will forward the newsletter in its entirety and recommend to others that they subscribe.