Managing the Generation Gap:
Leveraging Generational Differences in the Puerto Rican Workplace

By Dr. Maritza Soto

Literature Review

For the first time in history, four generations work side-by-side in many, if not all, organizations. The working generations span more than 60 years, including the so-called Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Generation X and Millenials/Generation Y. 1 These bring different perspectives into the workplace, including work styles, ethics, expectations, experiences and create what we have heard before- “the generation gap”. Despite the
perceived gap, these individuals are the human resources of the organizations and they must work together and achieve the goals established for their businesses. It is because of this that we need to thoroughly understand the generations, what these perceived differences or gap may be and develop strategies to maximize these differences.

These are the aspects that identify each generation:

The Silent or The Veterans (also called Matures), born 1922-43 (sometimes 1930-1945), lived through World War II and the Korean War. They believe in family values, hard work and dedication. They grew up in an era when most men worked and women reared children.

This group is too young to have been World War II heroes and too old to participate in the rebelliousness of the 1960’s. These kids of the Great Depression learned that “children are to be seen and not heard”. They value thrift, hard work and respect for authority. They built on work ethic, on commitment, responsibility and conformity as tickets to success. A command and control approach comes naturally to the members of this generation.2

"They are loyal to employers and expect loyalty in return. They expect to receive promotions and raises based on tenure and time with the company, not productivity, and to be taken care of into retirement - what some describe as a cradle-to-grave mentality," Johnson said.

The Baby Boomers, born 1943-60 (some say 1946-65), grew up in economic prosperity at a time when children's needs and wants were at center stage. They grew up with the Cleavers, the can-do optimisim of John F. Kennedy and hopes of the post World War II American Dream.

But the social and political upheaval from Vietnam, Watergate and Woodstock spurred them to rebel against authority and carve lifestyles based on personal values and spiritual growth.3 While some have called them pampered and self-centered, baby boomers also like teamwork and were taught "to play well with others" in school. In the workplace they are optimistic, service-oriented and willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done.

They've witnessed the recession, layoffs and mergers since the 1980s. "You have to remember that 51 million of these workers hit the job market at the same time, so they are fiercely competitive. Some call them workaholics," Johnson said. With their vast numbers, baby boomers dominate the workplace. There are now more workers over 40 than under 40.

Another generation has been identified more recently called Generation Jones. Generation Jones is a term typically used to describe the younger baby boomer generation (people born between 1954 and 1965). The term was brought to life by cultural historian Jonathan Pontell to help explain what he considered a generation lost between Generation X and the Baby Boomers.

Generation Jones stems from the line “keeping up with the Joneses” and can be understood mostly within the American culture. It marks a competitive generation. Individuals born in these years typically had children early, are internet and technologically savvy (despite the reputation of not being so, due largely to their older Baby Boomer counterparts) and were one of the first generations to look at their work more as a career than a job. Many Jonesers feel that they share some things with Gen X and some things with Boomers, but they feel there are
some major differences. Over 80% of people born between 1954 and 1965 say they fell “inbetween” these two generations. Because of this, usage of the Generation Jones term is growing rapidly. In fact, Yale University now teaches Generation Jones in a course called:
Managing a Multiple Generation Workforce.

In his article, “Generation Jones: Between the Boomers and Xers”, John Lang indicates that there are fifty-three Americans that are practically invisible. It has been difficult to keep up with them both as a group and individually. But they exist, they have not been properly recognized, ignored but ready to claim their place.

There has been a huge impact regarding this new generation. A poll released on August 4, 2008 stated:

A new poll released today, of a nationally representative sample of 500 U.S. adults born in 1961—the same year Obama was born—shows that today’s 47 year olds clearly feel not like Boomers nor Gen Xers, but instead believe they belong to the heretofore lost generation in-between Boomers and Xers…Generation Jones. ThirdAge, a popular website for mid-lifers, commissioned the poll, in conjunction with Obama’s Aug. 4, 2008 birthday. When respondents were asked which generation they believe they are a part of: 57% chose Generation Jones, while only 22% picked Baby Boomer, and only 21% said Generation X. ThirdAge, a site that is known for prioritizing consumer insight about its audience, has used this insight to build one of the most popular mid-lifer websites, with over 500,000 unique visitors a month. The underlying concept for the poll was that rather than focusing on expert opinion to determine the question of Obama’s generational identity, a very effective way of answering this question is to ask the actual people born in 1961 to self-identify their generation.

Next we have Generation X'ers, born 1960-80 (some say 1965-79, especially after Generation Jones), were street-savvy survivors of latch-key two-income families or were affected by divorce as well as AIDS, violence and low expectations. They saw the stresses of their baby boomer parents and learned to be self-reliant at an early age. They have been labeled “at risk” and denounced as slackers, but they embrace free agency over company loyalty. 4They are technologically savvy, adaptable, informal and globally oriented.

"Having watched their parents burn out, they are interested in a work/life balance and are more loyal to people than companies. They will go wherever they see the best opportunities, which means they're not afraid to job-hop," Johnson said. "They also believe that promotions and raises should come from productivity and results."

The echo-boom, Nexters, Generation Y or Millennials, born 1980 to the present, are the youngest and hardest to categorize. They grew up with computers in their homes, are more tolerant of a diverse society, and have an amazing capacity for multitasking. They benefited from the backlash against hands-off parenting and the cultural elevation of stay-at-home moms. Coming of age during a shift toward virtue and values, they set their sights on meaningful goals. In many ways, their work ethic resembles that of the grand-parents who welcomed authority. In seeking personal and professional fulfillment, they adopted a can-do
attitude that characterize their work ethic.5

"Some say they've been coddled and doted on and expect lots of feedback and recognition," Johnson said. "But they are hard-working, confident, [and they] value individual relationships and personal satisfaction. They believe they can work well and do good simultaneously."

With such diverse perspectives, it is expected that the majority of workers experience some type of generational clash of attitudes, ethics, values and behaviors. Despite the differences, workers of all four generations in the 2005 Randstad Employee Review agreed on the importance of "delivering operational excellence with fewer resources" in their companies. They just don't always agree on how to do it.

In Puerto Rico, there has been some research regarding generational differences although not as much as in other parts of the world. A survey conducted in 2007 by Gaither International, found that there were basic differences in answering the survey, although there is great similarity in the issues faced by each generation. With that in mind, the question is, are generational differences something that we need to address? Does it affect the workplace? Many interactions between generations in the workplace are positive and often go unnoticed.

It’s the negative experiences that get noticed and cause people to expend time, energy and emotional resources. Workplace issues between members of different generations are generally not pleasant or productive. Research indicates that these types of experiences are taking place more often resulting in decreased productivity and employee satisfaction. In short these negative experiences represent a real cost (i.e. falling productivity, increased turnover and lost opportunities) to organizations.

Research into multi-generational issues across a wide variety of different organizations is an active field of study. Current research seems to suggest that varying levels of employee disenchantment, miscommunication and ill will attributed to generational differences exists
in all organizations. The research specifically identifies the following:6

Generational Differences Are Real

The ideals, values, traits, goals and characteristics held by the four generations currently in the workforce are increasingly different from one another. These differences are often substantial and play a significant role in how members of each group relate to one another. Specific differences between generations include communication styles, work expectations, work styles, attitudes about work/life balance, comfort with technology, views regarding loyalty/authority and acceptance of change.

Generational Differences Cause Misunderstanding

It is widely recognized and accepted that people of different generations are often not on the same page. The lack of commonly held beliefs and experiences across the generations is often the root cause misunderstandings between the generations. Misunderstandings lead to tensions and these misunderstandings are often difficult for co-workers to settle on their own without some form of management/external intervention.

Generational Issues Impact The Workplace

Misunderstandings and strife within an organization negatively impact employee interaction and productivity. Consequently, the entire organization suffers as valuable time, energy and emotions are wasted dealing with crises rather than managing the business. Differing work and life expectations can also create tensions.

Generational Differences Can Be Minimized

Having a solid understanding of all generations in the workplace is critical. Though differences between generations seem to be increasing, steps can be taken to minimize the negative outcomes.

Other research have also highlighted that there another issue and that is how different generations approach ethics.7 The authors point out that “with value systems and motivation at the heart of ethics, and divergent values systems inherent within the four generational groups, the existence of varied ethical perspectives among co-workers is not a surprise. A common complaint among generations focuses on work ethic. Much of the conflict stems from how the term work ethic is defined and interpreted. The survey “2004 Generational Differences Survey" conducted by SHRM finds that 40 percent of human resource (HR) professionals have observed conflict among employees as a result of generational differences.

In organizations with 500 or more employees, 58 percent of HR professionals reported conflict between younger and older workers, largely due to differing perceptions of work ethic and work/life balance. Overall, the HR professionals surveyed are generally positive about relationships among the generations with half saying they work effectively together and 27 percent saying the quality of work frequently improves with a variety of generational perspectives. However, 28 percent of HR professionals said conflict among generations had increased over the last five years and 33 percent expect it to increase over the next five.
Nearly a quarter of HR professionals say differences over acceptable work hours are the primary sources of conflict, which reflects different perceptions of work ethic and benefits like telecommuting and flextime. Frequently, these complaints came from older workers about younger employees' willingness to work longer hours. Past SHRM research finds that work/life balance is among the most important job-satisfaction factors for younger employees and is typically not as important among older workers.

Other common issues that have been documented, specifically by Len Rothman, an executive and diversity business coach with Action International, is: minimal connections among generations. There are few incentives for boomers to stay, older generations don’t feel valued, younger generations feel discounted, older generations don’t know the full value of their business experience, younger generations don’t appreciate the value of their older generations wisdom, and younger generations are not told of their value in the workplace.

Forty-two percent of HR professionals said their organization had lost GenXers and Nexter employees who believed they could not advance in their careers because veterans and babyboomers held top positions. HR professionals reported implementing succession-planning programs, offering training or increasing compensation in order to retain younger workers.

From all of these recent studies, it had to be assumed that the Puerto Rican workforce was in the same situation. However, nonetheless this might be the case, it was worthwhile addressing the local population to see if the generational issues, and in the long run, the strategies to be used, are similar to those in other areas.

Purpose of the Research

There is increasing interest in examining the strengths and challenges of the four generations in the workplace. Skill shortages coupled with higher rates of employee turnover and an increase in grievance claims have led employers to look for reasons behind these alarming
trends.

Employers need to be aware of factors contributing to generational differences in the workplace, acknowledge the challenges and strengths to work towards building capacity in their organizations. In Puerto Rico, during the past five years, there has been increasing pressure in the workforce due to other constraints such as plant closings, government employee layoffs, exodus of qualified professionals, among others. It is critical at this point that the remaining workforce remain focused on achieving organizational success and performance.

1 SHRM Quarterly Research, The Multigenerational Workforce: Opportunity for Competitive Success. First
Quarter 2009.
2 Alliance Work Partners, Bridging Generation Gaps: Four Generations at Work. January 2006.
3 supra
4 supra
5 supra
6 SHRM, Generation Gap: The Cost, July 22, 2009
7 SHRM White Paper, Ethics and Generational Differences: Interplay Between Values and Ethical Business

Dr. Martiza Soto is a full professor at the University of Puerto Rico Río Piedras. This article has been reprinted in a briefed format and represents only the beginning pages of the complete study.