Generational DifferencesGenerational Differences
By: Sandi Bullington
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GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES
GI Silent/Mature Boomers Generation X Millennial/Y Generation Z -Futuristic
High achievers, Fearless but not reckless, Patriotic, Duty, Honor, Country Dedication, Sacrifice Idealistic, Morally consciences
1901-1924Greatest Generation
America's first astronauts, Nobel laureates, Legendary movie stars, Political leaders
1901-1924
"G.I." stand for general issue or government issue
Throughout the G.I. life cycle, – Federal government directed and supported its
members with new programs and departments. A generation of "doers' and "believers," Survivors of the great depression
1901-1924
Good team player Put their trust in
– Government, – Authority – Community.
1901-1924
Fun Fact– A dollar in 1924 is equal to $11.37 in 2005– Birth Name (Death)– 1901 Walt Disney (1966)– 1902 Charles Lindbergh (1974)– 1902 John Steinbeck (1968)– 1907 John Wayne (1979)– 1916 Walter Cronkite (2009)– 1924 Lee Iacocca
1901-1924
– Formative Experiences• Roaring 20s
• Great Depression
• FDR Administration
• Rationing
• Pearl Harbor
• Atomic Bomb
• Korean War
1901-1924
– They will remember where they were when:
• The stock market crashed in 1929
–Black Thursday
• Pearl Harbor was bombed
–December 7, 1941
1901-1924
– Lifestyle
•Boy & Girl Scouts founded
•Electricity discovered
•Freon discovered
•First retail stores established–Woolworths
1901-1924
Cautious Patience Unadventurous, Unimaginative, Withdrawn, Silent
1925-1945
Generation without a cause – Many looking for cause (Peace Corp founded)
Wanted job security offered by big corporations
Earliest marrying group in American history Women became mothers and stayed at home Start of the "divorce epidemic"
1925-1945
Duty, honor, country Dedication, sacrifice Conformity Patience Hard, hard times then great prosperity National pride Doing a good job was most important Age=Seniority
1925-1945
Fun fact A dollar in 1942 is equal to $11.93 Birth Name (death) 1925 Margaret Thatcher 1926 Queen Elizabeth II 1928 Marin Luther King (1968) 1936 Jim Henson (1980) 1941 Bob Dylan
1925-1945
Formative Experiences-Grew up with social turmoil– Television– Korean War– Cold War– Civil Rights– Space Race
1925-1945
Will remember where they were when– John Kennedy was assassinated
• November 20, 1962
1925-1945
Lifestyle Parents strict with their children.
– Pressure to conform came from the adults not from peers.
Housing developments increased– Many moved to the suburbs– Suburban life encouraged conformity
Women started to wear trousers Transistor radio, television, and electric
typewriter mass marketed
1925-1945
In the Workplace– More direct because of life experiences– Appreciate formality and order– Managers don’t always know how to treat
women in workplace– Like to be asked about their past experiences– Comfortable with top-down organizational
structure-respectful of hierarchical authority– Loyal to their company
1925-1945
How to Motivate– Personal touch– Allow them time to chat between tasks– Honor their hard work and achievement with
symbols– Ask them their life story
1925-1945
Developed under parent's care – Dedicated to nurturing their children to success– Stay-at-home moms
• devoted to children's social, economic, & spiritual. well being • Advice from Dr. Benjamin Spock
Develop personalities that mixed high self-esteem with self-indulgence
Taught to think critically by questioning everything– Justify, purify, and force change wherever they believed it
was necessary. – Made themselves heard by lighting social and political
fuses
1946-1964
Formative Experiences-Grew up with social turmoil– Cold War– Civil Rights– Space Race– Assassinations– Vietnam War– Energy Crisis– Watergate
1946-1964
Will remember what they were doing when– John F Kennedy was assassinated– The Challenger exploded
1946-1964
Lifestyles– Poodle Skirts, bobby socks– Bell bottoms, bikini– Jonas Edward Salk Develops PolioVaccine – Dr. Christian Neethling, a South African surgeon,
performed the first human heart-transplant
1946-1964
In the Workplace– Work ethic = work ethic, workaholics, motivated– Positive, optimistic, over-confident, question
authority– Still believe in hard work and service– Like having a consensus to plan– Like face to face meetings; Like being star of show– Want loose structure that has temporary power– Defined by their job– Today, hold majority of management & leadership
positions
1946-1964
How to Motivate– Public recognition– Give them a chance to prove themselves– Perks associated with status– Reward working long hours
1946-1964
What Boomer Women brought to the Workplace– Job sharing– Daycare in business– Flex-time– Telecommunity
1946-1964
Older generations classify this generation as – Irresponsible, – Reckless, – Uneducated, – Violent
X’ers find this criticism both overblown and very unfair.
Suspicious of Boomer values No common heros
1965-1985Baby Busters 1965-1980 MTV Boomerang Generation 1975-1985
X’ers observed adults not in control of their own lives or their country– Vietnam War – Three Mile Island; – Skyrocketing divorces
Working mothers created "latchkey" kids – Children without a childhood– Forced to grow up fast – Overloaded with information, – Had to learn to fend for themselves
1965-1985
X’ers find it hard to understand – What is truth, – Right from wrong,– How to achieve success
Confronted with – Drug addiction, – AIDS, – Sexual freedom, – Uncontrollable violence,– Environmental and world problems created by past
generations.
1965-1985
Fun Facts A dollar in 1961 is worth $6.51 in 2005 Popular Toys: Game Boy,Rubik's Cube
Transformers Popular Movies1982 - The Extra Terrestrial1991 - Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Birth Name (death) 1963 Michael Jordan 1961 Princess Diana (1997) 1961 Eddie Murphy
1965-1985
Formative Experiences– Roe vs Wade– Challenger Explosion– Latchkey Kids– Fall of Berlin Wall– Persian Gulf War– AIDS– Clinton Administration
1965-1985
Important Events– Roe versus Wade - 1986 - Abortion Case
– Challenger Shuttle Explodes on Takeoff - 1986
– Berlin Wall Dismantled - 1989
1965-1985
Lifestyle– Most households have parents working full-time
jobs trying to give their kids the best of life, especially materially, yet at the same time leaving many of the X’ers to fend for themselves
– Communication between family members is done only by portable telephone, beepers or e-mail.
– Best expresses their feeling through music groups, Internet communication, and with what they wear.
1965-1985
Lifestyle– A preppie is an upper-middle class conservatively
dressed in fifties retro country club style– Adult Preppies are better known as Yuppies. – Internet - 1995 – First to develop an ease and comfort with
technology– First Test Tube Baby
1965-1985
Workplace Watched parents get downsized and don’t
believe in corporate loyalty Grew up with computers and tend to be
techno-savvy and entrepreneurial Very self-reliant Want to build skills that will transfer to a new
job
1965-1985
Politicians and parents are taking an interest in improving conditions today that allows this generation to grow up in a nurturing environment
Stay away from drugs, alcohol, profanity, improper TV, unchaperoned gatherings, aggressive behavior, beware of AIDS, and avoid teen pregnancy.
Ambitious yet clueless Generation of hope Sometimes called the Y Generation
1978 – 1990Generation Y also know as Echo Boomers
Fun Facts – $1 in 1982 is worth $2.02 in 2005
Popular Movies– Braveheart 1997– Titanic 1998
1978 - 1990
Formative Experiences – Oklahoma City Bombing– World Trade Center Collapse
1978 - 1990
Lifestyles– Styles from past generations make comebacks
(bell bottoms)– Women cloths expose more of the body– Dress to feel good about self – Live in the moment– Hang with pals– Use Immediate technology– Earn money for immediate consumption– Think Matures are cool!
1978-1990
In the Workplace– Beginning to become employment age– Racially and ethnically diverse– Individualistic, yet group-oriented– Short attention span– Question everything– Goal oriented– Entrepreneurial– Acknowledge and admire some authorities– Demonstrate respect only after being treated
with respect
1978-1990
How to Motivate– Challenge them– Let them work with friends– Constant, constructive feedback– Use latest technology– Combine work and play
1978-1990
Generation Z the New Silent Generation Rise of the Information Age/Internet/dot com
bubble Digital Globalization
Still to be determined!
1995-2007
If your boss is a Boomer
My way is the right way Look over shoulder May not give enough respect
How you can improve your relations with a Boomer boss
Come in early Stay late Ask for their advice
Assignment 1. Design a power point with each
demographic segment-GI, Silent Mature, Boomers, Gen x, Millennial, Futuristic (6 slides)
2. Using only pictures show appealing brands of the following categories:
1. Food
2. Technology
3. Service
4. Clothing
5. Entertainment
