Generational diversity in the Workforce
amita-adminAnnually, 5-7 million people enter the Indian workforce. As of 2021, the share of millennials and Gen Z in the country’s population stood at 52 percent, higher than the global average of 47 percent. This trend is expected to maintain momentum till 2030 when the share of India’s Gen Z and Millennial population will be 50 percent.
Around 380,000 freshers have been hired by the Indian tech space in FY22. Significant fresher hiring over the past few years has pushed the share of Gen Z to 18-20 percent and Millennials to 68-70 percent of the total employee base in FY22.
Organizations will have employees from different generations, and it is expected that Gen Z and Gen Y will dominate the workforce in the coming years in India.
One of the burgeoning aspects that will soon top the diversity charts is generational diversity. Whether you are working for a startup or a legacy company, workplaces have at least two or more generations with their unique values, opinions, work styles, or culture. This leads to a potential risk of conflicts, lack of mutual understanding, and communication gaps.
There are many ways that companies can benefit from embracing generational diversity, too, as employees from different generations can offer unique perspectives and bring different strengths to the table.
- As each generation has different approaches to problem-solving, having a multigeneration workforce can be beneficial for finding new ways of addressing problems.
- Employing people from different generations can help you understand the diverse target audiences.
- Generational diversity at work presents learning opportunities for all employees as they can teach new ways of approaching things to each other.
- A generation-diverse workforce is a perfect environment for mentoring.
But, the element of diversity will soon call for organizations to modify their policies to support and enable individuals from different spectrums of life.
Here are three approaches that help people see the value in age differences and use that diversity to boost employee retention and productivity, innovate more consistently, and deepen customer relationships.
- Build and Capitalize on a Shared Sense of Purpose: Leaders who recognize and act intentionally to bridge this generational gap are likelier to foster a more cohesive, energized workforce. Holding meetings that put people in mixed-generation groups (of around six to eight people) and having them answer a set of questions about purpose is a good idea to forge bonds. These facilitated sessions help them realize they have similar values. It shifts into a conversation about how these priorities can be supported at work, helping people across generations feel heard and more engaged — a prerequisite to staying with the company and being a productive contributor.
- Use Team Launches to Highlight How Differences Matter: Differences among these cohorts should also be embraced and harnessed — for example, when a new team is just getting off the ground. The best teams have a mandatory kickoff meeting for every project, even if team members have already worked together. This way, they can get on the same page about each person’s expertise, including the advantages they offer because of their age, tenure at the company, and life and professional experiences. Leaders should find time to hold “re-kick” meetings periodically for teams that do not do project work. Triggers might be the new budget season, an annual strategy review, or when new people join.
- Launch and Sustain a Reverse Mentoring Program: Reverse mentoring is when a more junior employee mentors someone more senior than they are. These programs can help senior executives or managers become more sophisticated about topics like social media, collaboration (younger people tend to work better on teams), work-life balance, and troubleshooting technical issues.
As the older group gains knowledge in these areas, they can develop a greater understanding of their younger counterparts’ working styles and preferences and they can become more self-reflective and open to change. The mentor also benefits from a boost to their confidence and communication skills. There will inevitably be some give and take between them and their mentee, helping them see their more tenured colleague in a more human and multidimensional light. Once the mentoring relationship is over (typically after six or 12 months), a human resources director or manager should assess the progress and how it can be leveraged to benefit the larger company. This evaluation is a huge opportunity to boost employee morale and top strategic outcomes.
While generational diversity in the workplace can be challenging for employers and employees to navigate, it can also bring a strong competitive advantage for companies that embrace it.
Sources:
https://hbr.org/2022/12/3-strategies-to-bridge-generational-divides-at-work
