FCC Generational Conflict in the Workplace Essay

Us vs. Them: Generational conflict in the work place

Description

Please read p. 77 in your textbook, and the articles listed below.

Write an essay response and answer the questions from the textbook. Provide your analysis in cross-generational communication in a thoughtful manner about how you would approach communication with various employee age groups.

Resources

p. 77 textbook

Don’t Let Generational Conflict Kill Your Small Business (Links to an external site.)

Generational Conflict At Work: Separating Fact From Fiction

Answer the questionsWhat are the main differences between generations at work?How are the generations similar and different?What are misconceptions about each generation?How has technology influenced each generation at work?How would you resolve a conflict between a Boomer manager who worries about the privacy and productivity aspects of social networking and a Gen Z employee who wants to use these tools on the job?

CHAPTER 3
Communication Challenges in a Diverse, Global Marketplace
77
Each has been shaped by dramatically different world events, social trends, and techno-
logical advances, so it is not surprising that they often have different values, expectations,
and communication habits. For instance, Generation Y workers (see “Us Versus Them:
Generational Conflict in the Workplace”) have a strong preference for communicating via
short digital messages, but Baby Boomers and Generation Xers sometimes find these brief
messages to be abrupt and impersonal.
38
GENDER DIFFERENCES
Gender influences workplace communication in several important ways. First, the percep-
tion of gender roles in business varies from culture to culture, and gender bias can range
from overt discrimination to subtle and even unconscious beliefs.
Second, although the ratios of men and women in entry-level professional positions
is roughly equal, the share of management roles held by men increases steadily the further
COMMUNICATING ACROSS CULTURES
Us Versus Them: Generational Conflict in the Workplace
The way adults view the world is profoundly shaped by the • Generation Y (1981–1995). Also known as millennials,
social and technological trends they experienced while grow- this youngest generation currently in the workforce is
ing up, so it’s no surprise that each generation entering the noted for its entrepreneurial instincts and technological
workforce has a different perspective than the generations savvy. This generation’s comfort level with social media
already at work. Throw in the human tendencies to resist and other communication technologies is helping to
change and to assume that whatever way one is doing some- change business communication practices but is also a
thing must be the best way to do it, and you have a recipe for source of concern for managers worried about informa-
conflict. Moreover, generations in a workplace sometimes feel tion leaks and employee productivity.
they are competing for jobs, resources, influence, and con- • Generation Z (after 1996). If you’re a member of
trol. The result can be tension, mistrust, and communication Generation Y, those footsteps you hear behind you are
breakdowns.
coming from Generation Z, also known as Generation
Lumping people into generations is an imprecise science I (for Internet) or the Net Generation. Those in the first
at best, but it helps to know the labels commonly applied to full generation to be born after the World Wide Web
various age groups and to have some idea of their broad char- was invented are now entering the workforce.
acteristics. These labels are not official, and there is no general
agreement on when some generations start and end, but you
These brief summaries can hardly do justice to entire
will see and hear references to the following groups (approxi-
generations of workers, but they give you some idea of the
mate years of birth are shown in parentheses):
different generational perspectives and the potential for com-
munication problems. As with all cultural conflicts, success-
• The Radio Generation (1925-1945). People in this ful communication starts with recognizing and understanding
group are beyond what was once considered the tradi- both differences and similarities. Beneath the superficial dif-
tional retirement age of 65, but some want or need to ferences in technology usage and other factors, various gen-
continue working.
erations are a lot more alike than they are different.
• Baby Boomers (1946–1964). This large segment of the
workforce, which now occupies many mid- and upper-level CAREER APPLICATIONS
managerial positions, got its name from the population 1. How would you resolve a conflict between a Baby
boom in the years following World War II. The older mem-
Boomer manager who worries about the privacy
bers of this generation have now reached retirement age,
and productivity aspects of social networking and a
but many will continue to work beyond age 65—meaning
Generation Y employee who wants to use these tools
that younger workers waiting for some of these manage-
on the job?
ment spots to open up might have to wait a while longer.
2. Consider the range of labels from the Radio Generation
• Generation X (1965–1980). This relatively smaller “MTV
to the Net Generation. What does this tell you about the
generation” is responsible for many of the innovations that
possible influence of technology on business communica-
have shaped communication habits today but sometimes
tion habits?
feels caught between the large mass of baby boomers
ahead of them and the younger Generation Y employees
Sources: Rebecca Knight, “Managing People from 5 Generations,” Harvard Busi-
ness Review, 25 September 2014, hbr.org; Anne Fisher, “When Gen X Runs the
entering the workforce. As Generation X begins to take Show,” Time, 14 May 2009, www.time.com; Deloitte, “Generation Y: Powerhouse
over the management ranks, it is managing in a vastly dif- of the Global Economy,” research report, 2009, www.deloitte.com; “Generation
ferent business landscape-one in which virtual organiza-
Y,” Nightly Business Report website, 30 June 2010, www.pbs.org; Sherry Posnick-
Goodwin, “Meet Generation Z,” California Educator, February 2010, www.cta
tions and networks of independent contractors replace
.org; Ernie Stark, “Lost in a Time Warp,” People & Strategy 32, no. 4 (2009):
much of the hierarchy inherited from the Baby Boomers. 58-64.