Generations in the Workforce

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Generations in the Workforce

• Heather Winchester
• Talent Acquisition Manager
• Frito-Lay
• November 5, 2008

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Goal of our time together

• To provide you with generational insights that
  you can use to develop your own strategies to
  attract, deliver, and engage talent based on your
  work environment.

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A little about me

• Background
• Hobbies
• Why am I so passionate about this topic?

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What is a Generation?

• Traditionally defined as the average interval of
  time between the birth of parents and the birth
  of their offspring.
• Todaya generation refers to a group of people
  born into and shaped by a particular span of time
  (events, trends and developments).

Dictionary.com Wikipedia.com
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The four Generations?
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The numbers
Based on a workforce of 150MM people
(Steelcase Consulting)
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Why is this even an issue?

• In the last 100 years
• Life expectancy has doubled from 47 to 80
• People are living longer and staying in the
  workforce longer

Creates vast differences in work style
preferences and behaviors that are all part of
the talent pool and the workforce
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What influences a generation?

• People
• Places
• Things
• Events

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Traditionals
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Traditionals (1928 1945)

• WWII Generation
• Silent and Mature Generation
• Veterans
• Influenced By
• The Great Depression
• December 7, 1941
• Growth in white collar jobs
• Significant increase in economic prosperity

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Images that influenced
Pearl Harbor 1941
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About Traditionals

• Dedicated Sacrificing
• Loyal to Institutions
• Hierarchical
• Hard Working
• Need Stability and Security
• Rule Makers and Conformists
• Respect for Authority
• Patient Delayed Gratification

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In the workforce

• More than 1 million, 75 years of age or older,
  are still active in the workforce
• Millions more, between 65 and 74, continue to
  represent an incredible store of skill,
  knowledge, wisdom, institutional memory, and
  relationships
• By the year 2011 they will virtually disappear
  from the workforce

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Why this group is sought after

• They come to work on time
• They wear seatbelts
• They dont have rings in their faces
• They do not get pregnant

Translated to a Staffing Strategy
Source AARP
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Recruiting and Engaging

• Security and stability are key
• Respect
• Help them understand you need their experience
• Do not lose sight of traditional communications
• Be patient regarding technology

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Baby Boomers
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Baby Boomers (1946 1964)

• Boomers
• Hippies Yuppies
• The me Generation
• Influenced By
• I have a dream
• Woodstock
• The Vietnam War
• The Civil Rights Movement

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About Baby Boomers

• Anti-Authoritarian
• Idealistic Optimistic
• Motivated by the Changing World
• Competitive
• Values
• Work
• Self
• Involvement
• Personal Gratification
• Community

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Recruiting and Engaging

• Offer opportunities to make a difference
  overcome obstacles do it on-stage if possible
• Offer and promote career enhancement growth
  success (corporate ladder)
• Opportunities to impact in the community
  resonates with this generation

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Generation X
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Generation X (1965 - 1977)

• Gen X / Xers
• Baby Busters
• Slackers
• Latch Key Kids
• Influenced By
• The Material Girl
• I wanna be like Mike
• Anything electronic
• Challenger

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Not what everyone thought
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About Generation X

• Fierce Independence
• Change
• Techno-literacy
• Skepticism
• Work is just a job
• Enjoy autonomy
• Global Thinkers
• Informal

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Recruiting and Engaging

• Talk about the latest technology
• Offer and promote independence
• Work-Life Balance (work to live not live to
  work)
• Show them that you are a fun and empowering
  organization
• Avoid micromanagement, bureaucracy, and politics

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Millennials
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Millennials (1978 to 1990)

• Gen Y
• The next Me Generation
• Gen Net
• Influenced By
• Portable technology
• IM/You Tube/My Space/Facebook
• Prince William
• Brittany Spears
• Columbine

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How connected are they?

• 97 own a computer
• 97 have downloaded music and other media using
  peer-to-peer file sharing
• 94 own a cell phone
• 76 use instant messaging and social networking
  sites
• 75 of college students have a Facebook profile
  and most of them check it daily
• 60 own some type of portable music and/or video
  device such as an iPod

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About Millennials

• Optimistic
• Civic-minded
• Confident
• Easily Bored
• Social
• Impatient
• Moral
• Mature for their age
• Techno-fused
• Collaborative

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Recruiting and Engaging

• Great opportunities to do meaningful work
• This is the awards generation everyone is a
  winner
• You are special unique and different
• TECHNOLOGY is expected
• Job hopping will be the norm get used to it!

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The Changing Work Dynamics
2000
1990
2005
1995
2010
Work/Life Integration
Work/Life Balance
Work
Millennials
Gen X-ers
Boomers
1978 to 1990
1965 to 1977
1946 to 1964
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What does this all mean?

• It means you need to help the hiring managers you
  work with think differently about talent and
  customers
• It means you need to be prepared for folks to
  turn down offers that require relocation and/or
  doesnt offer flexibility
• It means you need to be prepared at some point in
  time to have conversations with a candidates
  parents!

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Questions?