21 Managing Multiple Generations

Let s take a look at some of the key traits of each generation. Generational dynamics play out everyday. And as a manager, it will serve you to know more. A generation is a societywide peer group who collectively possess shared values, attitudes, world views and even behaviors. Generations are shaped by a series of forces like family life, education, media and world events. Generations occur in every country and culture but are unique to that cultural context. In this course, I m going to focus on the generations in the U. S. and Canada. Follow along on the handout in the exercise files. Let me issue a warning about generational research, it s broad brush strokes about a group of people, but not necessarily true about each individual in that generation. I want you to take this all with a very large grain of salt. Baby boomers were shaped by the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, and the advent of television and credit cards. Some of their key traits are being hardworking, focusing on accomplishments,