Four Generations, One Workplace · Four* Generations, One Workplace Erin M. Fuller, FASAE, CAE President, Association Management & Consulting . MCI USA

Four* Generations, One Workplace

Erin M. Fuller, FASAE, CAE President, Association Management & Consulting

MCI USA

Generational Perspectives

Greatest (born 1928 – 1945)

Boomers (1946 – 1960)

Xers (1961 – 1979)

Millennials (1980-1995)

Generation Z (1996 - )

Each Generation is Impacted By…

Internal

Parents’ views

Religion

Race, Ethnicity, Gender

Socioeconomic status during upbringing

External factors

External

Community changes

Global changes

Economic changes

Social changes

Greatest

WWII Victory

Cold War

New manufacturing technology

Booming Post-War economy (But Depression childhoods)

Growth of suburbs

Explosive growth of consumer goods

Greatest

Joiners

Loyal to institutions

Accepting of hierarchy and rules

Respectful of positional authority

Interested in money as a metric of success

Greatest

Outlook: preserve the past Work ethic: dedicated View of authority: reverent Leadership by: hierarchy Perspective: civic minded Participation: seat at table Involvement criteria: networking value \ Attendance: regular

Boomers: Shaping Their Experience

Kennedy’s idealistic “Camelot” Presidency

The Cuban Missile Crisis

Vietnam

Civil Rights

Women’s liberation

Widespread protests

Assassinations

Watergate and Nixon’s resignation

Lots of other Boomer teenagers!

Boomers

Competitive – viewing life as a “zero-sum” game

Hard-working and driven

Anti-authoritarian

Idealistic

Boomers

Outlook: Idealistic Work ethic: driven View of authority: love/hate Leadership by: consensus Perspective: teams Participation: seat at table Involvement criteria: networking value Attendance: regular

Gen X Troubled economy

Widespread lay-offs from re-engineering

Women entering the workforce

Rising divorce rates

Challenger disaster

CNN and electronic games

Entered workforce during economic downturn

Gen X

Self-reliant

Mistrustful of institutions

Rule-morphing

Tribal – beyond family lines

Dedicated parents

Xers

Outlook: skeptical Work ethic: balanced View of authority: unimpressed Leadership by: competence Perspective: self-reliant Networking: e-mail, chat room Participation: pay for access Involvement criteria: educational value Attendance: maybe, depends on the cause

Millennials

Terrorism: 911, World Trade Center, Oklahoma City

School violence: Columbine

Ubiquitous technology

Sexualized content

Working mothers

Unprecedented bull market

Pro-child culture

Millennials

Immediate and eager to live each day to the fullest

Confident and determined

Optimistic and upbeat

Digital natives

Tolerant

Family-centric

Millenials

Outlook: optimistic Work ethic: energetic View of authority: respectful Leadership by: achievement Perspective: global Networking: e-mail, chat room Participation: pay for Involvement criteria: educational value Attendance: maybe

Generation Z: 1995+

Recession and refinancing

Resource shortages – energy, water

Self-reliant parents

Reality TV

Mobile technology

Visible diversity in leadership

Gen Z

Reality and finite limits

Ubiquitous access to information

Conservation and renewal

Frugality

Pragmatism

Tradeoffs and compromise

Commitment to make a difference

How to Ensure You Won’t Get Any Millennials On Board

Culture resistant to change

Overestimating knowledge and understanding

No value propositions for engagement

Not appreciating financial barriers

Not communicating the benefits of engagement

Not creating paths for engagement

Underestimating the influence of external factors

How to Engage the Young

Be specific Allocating a larger percentage of marketing around

awareness and knowledge Investigate the goals, attitudes and perceptions of young

professionals Identify and customize young professional engagement

models Develop outreach strategies that link young professionals

with more senior Focus on trial engagement strategies Create engagement paths with rewards or recognition

The Young Have Always Had…

Less experience.

Less power.

More uncertainty.

Barriers

Awareness

Role

Career benefits

Traps

Underestimating the level of career commitment

Underestimating career education requirements

Poor links between association benefits and career paths

Influences

Managing work/life balance

Workload management

Information overload

Financial pressures

Association alternatives

Competing engagement alternatives

Thanks! Questions?

Erin M. Fuller @erinmfuller

@mci_usa @MCIAssociations