A Key to Employee Retention:

Effective Cross-Generational Work

Carol Cortez, Ph.D.

RAM/SWANA Conference

October 15, 2018

Employee Retention A Significant Challenge in 2018

Low unemployment rate

+

Unprecedented retirement rates

=

Intense competition to hire

and retain employees

Managing a Multigenerational WorkforceAnother Significant Challenge in 2018

Traditionals

73-96 years old

Baby Boomers

54-72 years old

Gen Xers

38-53 years old

Millennials

18-37 years old

Gen Zers

17 years old and below

Effectively engaging your

multigenerational workforce is a

key to managing retention

90%prefer to work in a

multi-generational

team

84%

believe their direct manager’s age

is not important as long as he/she

is inspirational

BUT…..

76%

prefer their direct manager to be

their age or older

2018 Randstad Study Results

from U.S. Workers

Recent Research Findings:

Generational Similarities

All employees want:

Respect and fair treatment

To work with others who are trustworthy

To learn and grow

To work on challenging projects

Competitive compensation

Opportunities for advancement

Work-life balance

Recent Research Findings:

Generational Similarities

People want leaders

who have similar values

People want leaders

who are credible and

trustworthy

Organizational politics

are a problem —

regardless of age

o problem —regardless of

age

A Few Ideas to Engage and Retain

Your Multigenerational Employees

Talk about Multigenerational Issues

Facilitate regular

conversations about

generations and allow

for observations and

issues to be discussed

Offer training about

generational similarities

and differences

Train leaders how to lead multigenerational teams

Ensure Multigenerational

Representation in Key Areas

Teams, committees, task

forces, and work groups

should reflect the generations

in your workplace.

Improves innovation and

decision-making

Produces unique ideas and

outlooks

Interview teams should be

multigenerational

Listen and Learn

Work to understand how generations in your

workplace are similar and different and adjust

your practices accordingly

Effective leadership

Appreciation and

recognition

Feedback

Work-life balance

Create Knowledge Transfer Opportunities

Assume everyone

wants to learn

Plan for

successions and

knowledge sharing

Provide reverse

mentoring

opportunities

Diversify Your Channels & Formats

Use a variety of communication

channels for organizational

messages—email, face-to-face, video,

texts, phone, social media

Offer training in a variety of formats—

classroom style, online, experiential,

interactive, self-learning

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