Blog
Working with intergenerational teams. The importance of good leadership!
Your team probably includes a growing number of people from different generations. How can we mutually nurture each other?
Let's do an imagination exercise. One colleague has been working in the same company for more than 10 years, she is over 40 years old and a mother of two children. She's working next to a student who manages to combine her university timetable with a contract that gives him a certain financial independence. It's not so difficult to imagine, is it?
Many generational studies have only fuelled clichés… Hundreds of publications have been published on the characteristics of Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials and Gen Z, but this bog post is not going to be just another one. We recommend Professor Ryback's article “From Baby Boomers to Generation Z”, which illustrates it much better, or the article by our colleague Mariona Grau on Generation Z at work.
The secret for managing different generations: Talking
The question is, what is true in these clichés, and how can we learn to manage diversity in our teams? The answer is quite simple: by getting to know the people we work with. A leader (not necessarily a manager) has a deep understanding of the people in his or her team, their professional and personal priorities and aspirations, their concerns and shortcomings.
Generalization and prejudice are not good leadership partners.
Lack of attention to your team will make them feel indifferent, and they will eventually choose to leave the company and feed a high rate of turnover in the company.
Improving Your Intergenerational Management Strategy
Now, how can we go about this?
Building trust with our teams, particularly when they come from various generations, can be quite a challenge. Recent studies conducted by Great Place to Work have shed light on some invaluable insights for effective project management in a multi-generational workforce. Here are a few key tips:
- Maintain Regular Communication: Make an effort to engage in regular conversations with your team members. Inquire not only about their work progress but also about their personal well-being. This not only fosters trust but also provides an opportunity to offer incentives and benefits that genuinely matter to your colleagues.
- Adapt to Their Communication Preferences:It's crucial to pay attention to the preferred communication styles of your team members, and equally important is understanding how the tone of your messages is interpreted. Communication norms have evolved significantly in recent years, and grasping how calls, messages, or emails are perceived is vital.
- Leverage the Unique Skills of Each Generation:Create an environment that encourages the sharing of knowledge and skills from various generations. For example, invite a baby boomer to impart their expertise in public speaking to Gen Z, who may struggle with negotiation and networking. Similarly, harness the technological prowess of millennials by appointing them as mentors for integrating new digital tools into your teams. Always remember that every person on your team possesses unique strengths. Empower each team member to shine in their respective areas of expertise.
In conclusion, by following these strategies, you can bridge the generational gap within your team and create a cohesive and efficient work environment.
Training
What We Offer at Retail Academy
We firmly believe that for training to be meaningful, it must not only be engaging but also useful. Through discussions with our clients, we have developed and refined a training proposal focused on leadership and team management. This training is built on a foundation of understanding team members thoroughly to create a happy workspace.
Here's a brief overview:
- We begin with self-awareness. If I don't know myself, how can I understand others?
- We've stressed it repeatedly, but grasping the diversity within the team is essential for building stronger teams and showcasing their best qualities.
- Maintaining positive, continuous, and two-way communication ensures that we align with personal and organizational goals. Active listening is crucial.
- Always practical: we collaborate with facilitators who have managed or currently manage teams in the retail sector, so they can directly share their experience and tools.
- We guide you in designing and implementing a multi-generational inclusion action plan. Without implementation, it's all in vain.
If you're interested in learning more about our training programs, please feel free to contact us at https://retailacademy.es/contacto/.
If you want more tips, follow us on our social networks: LUXE TALENT on Instagram, LUXE TALENT on LinkedIn, or in our academy RETAIL ACADEMY on Instagram, RETAIL ACADEMY on LinkedIn.
