From Baby Boomers To Gen X To Millennials To Gen Z: Here’s How IT Leaders Can Leverage Each Generation’s Strengths

‘The important thing to remember about generations is you may have an issue with a particular generation, but every generation moves this country forward. They just do it in their own way, and that’s good,’ says Scott Lesnick, global leadership keynote speaker and author, at the Midsize Enterprise Summit.

Scott Lesnick, a global leadership keynote speaker, author and trainer, is convinced that the foundation of any business is IT and human resources.

“Without IT, good luck. Without HR, you‘re in trouble,” Lesnick said. “These two are the foundation that grows everything as a company.”

Lesnick spoke at CRN parent company The Channel Company’s Midsize Enterprise Summit in Orlando, Fla., this week to teach IT leaders how to best leverage a workforce that may span four generations.

Lesnick’s goal is to help companies navigate those generations, build connections and grow as a workplace.

Twenty-five percent of the U.S. workforce today is baby boomers, 33 percent is Gen X, 35 percent is millennials and only 5 percent is Gen Z because half of that population is children.

But by 2030, 33 percent of the U.S. workforce is projected to be Gen Z, 41 percent is expected to be made up of millennials, 25 percent is projected to be Gen X and 1.5 percent is expect to be baby boomers.

“When we’re talking with folks in the workplace and when we’re having conversations, it’s not one size fits all,” he said. “We’re not all from the same place. We’re not all from the same city, state or country, but we are from the same planet.”

Antonio Albeshelani, CTO of PSL Group, a consulting firm in Montreal, Quebec, said it’s important to learn about how to leverage various generations in the workforce.

“I think it’s becoming more and more important, especially with Gen Z,” he told CRN. “If companies are capable to capture the Gen Z [mindset], they will be able to get a lot of good resources, be creative and have a lot of innovative resources and opportunities.”

To successfully blend the generations in the workplace, Lesnick said to create a personal connection with each generation’s workers, adding that there are seven things that connect all four generations: respect, listening, looking at the big picture, communication, mentoring and training, new ideas and positive feedback.

Lesnick broke down each generation and how companies can leverage each one’s strengths to move business forward. Here’s what he had to say during his keynote at the Midsize Enterprise Summit.

Baby Boomers: Born between 1946 and 1964

Baby boomers were born during or after WWII in an era of optimism, opportunity and progress and grew up in a two-parent household and prefer face-to-face communication, he said. They’re good with technology, but not great.

In the workforce, they’re workaholics and get fulfillment from work. They like meetings and can work remotely and tend to not have a good work/life balance. They work to live.

“What ended up happening is the generation before us, the silent generation, made things so cool that boomers could work one job, they could have another if they wanted, they could have a house, a car, maybe a second car or a second home, things started moving forward,” Lesnick said. “The important thing to remember about generations is you may have an issue with a particular generation, but every generation moves this country forward. They just do it in their own way, and that’s good.”

About 10,000 baby boomers are retiring every day, Lesnick said. However, many cannot afford to retire and work part-time or are hired as contract workers after retiring.

“From a technological standpoint and from incredible engineering, we were able to take TVs outside as boomers,” he said. “You could plug it in, and you could watch three or four channels outside of your house.”

When Lesnick asked for audience participation, one IT leader said that boomers are accurate but tend to take longer to complete tasks.

“The bottom line is everybody moves at their own pace,” Lesnick said. “If they‘re getting their job done, that’s a good thing. It‘s another discussion if they’re not getting their job done, but it‘s an individual conversation. Sometimes if they’re really holding a whole project back, then you need to sit down with whoever that person is and have a conversation to see what you can do.”

Another IT leader said baby boomers are OK with whatever task they’re given without giving any feedback, which he said is not good given they have so much knowledge and experience. Baby boomers will do what they’re asked by their manager so they don’t have to be held accountable, he said. They’re too agreeable, something he’s afraid of because they could be withholding their wealth of information and insight that could be useful.

Lesnick said one practice that works well is cross-mentoring.

“The key over the last several years has been listening,” Lesnick said. “If we listen to our staff, if we listen to these folks, they will share with you what‘s going on and then you can come up with solutions to help them navigate this.”

Generation X: Born between 1965 and 1980

“This generation is going through a lot right now,” Lesnick said. “You are a ‘sandwich’ generation;’ you‘re sandwiched between two big generations. It’s Gen X’s turn to be raising kids and also take care of aging parents, so they’ve got a lot going on.”

There are 65 million Gen Xers in the U.S. and they generate 63 percent of the total income in the country.

Gen Xers were born into a rapidly changing social climate and economic recession and had family dynamics where both parents worked. They grew up in an era were divorce rates were on the rise and there was an emergence of technology and information for school-age children. They communicate best over text, email and face-to-face.

They work best independently and with fewer rules, want immediate feedback and favor structure, according to Lesnick.

In leadership roles, Gen Xers challenge others and communicate directly to their counterparts. They value a healthy work/life balance, can easily adapt to technology and are individualistic.

“They‘re the first generation that started to look at things from a perspective of, ‘Hey, we’re doing it this way. Why don‘t we do it this way instead and we can save time? We can be more productive and we can do a better job,’” he said.

Millennials: Born between 1981 and 1995

Millennials are the No. 1 generation in the workplace in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

“This is the generation that wants to be able to move forward. They wanted to do things quicker,” Lesnick said. “This generation has been through a ton, but they‘re going to move the country forward in their own way.”

Millennials were raised to share more and to talk more and prefer an open, friendly environment. The also prefer to communicate over text and email, are fast learners and can think outside the box. They’re confident, social and are open to new ideas.

“Millennials are actively engaged when they’re talking,” Lesnick said. “But they want to talk about you, your life and what’s going on. They’re truly interested. Yes, they want to talk about their job but they don’t want to be a robot. They want to have a relationship that allows people to continue to have conversations that moves projects and business forward, but also information, knowledge, ideas and relationships.”

In the workplace, they’re good at multitasking and are easily adaptable. They have an entrepreneurial spirit, are creative and passionate, and prefer direct feedback and praise.

They’re also uncommitted to jobs and careers, would prefer to wear sandals to work every day and work only the hours required of them, maybe a little more, Lesnick said.

While they represent 35 percent of the workforce today, they’ll make up 75 percent of the workforce by 2025. Lesnick also said that 21 percent of millennial workers have switched jobs in the last 12 months, costing the U.S. economy $30.5 billion in turnover costs.

He added that 44 percent of millennials would be more likely to increase their engagement at work if their managers met with them regularly, and 62 percent who are looking to switch jobs are considering freelance positions.

Micromanaging does not work for millennials, Lesnick said. In fact, only 29 percent feel engaged at work, 35 percent move jobs for better pay and 75 percent believe that their employer is focused on the company and not their people, according to Lesnick.

To retain them in their IT roles, Lesnick said employers must motivate, coach and support them, offer training, share the company’s mission, be specific with directions and show them how you can assist them.

Generation Z: Born between 1996 and 2010

Gen Z is the largest population, “and they‘re going to be huge in the workplace,” Lesnick said.

“They’re the silent generation meets millennials on steroids,” he said. “They do incredible things, even faster than millennials.”

But they’re also very cautious, he added, as they’ve seen what’s happened around the globe such as the war on terror and crippling student loan debt.

Only 5 percent of Gen Zers are in the workforce today. This generation had to adapt to the COVID-19, which led to home schooling and isolation, but they’re very social, practical and independent.

They grew up with smartphones and social media and communicate best that way.

They’re also very entrepreneurial and want to work for themselves or own their own company. But they’re going to stay at their jobs longer.

In the workplace, they prefer in-office work and use social media as a tool, like finding jobs on Twitter, Lesnick said.

“If you‘re looking for employees, and you’re looking for staff, this generation is on Twitter,” he said. “They‘re not looking for jobs, they’re on Twitter for other reasons, but if they see your information on Twitter you are so far ahead of the game. You have an advantage over your competition that others don‘t know about.”