Does your belonging culture include every Generation?

Age ranges are growing across UK workplaces.

This is largely because the proportion of workers aged 65 and over has more than doubled in the last two decades.

A four generation workplace with an age range of fifty, if not sixty, years has become increasingly common. At the younger end Generation Z now account for over a quarter of the workforce, with that figure set to exceed a third globally by 2030.

At no point in modern history have so many different generational experiences been present in the same building, on the same Teams call, or trying to agree on what a productive working culture looks like.

Concept of generations

The concept of generations is useful in terms of analysing outlooks and attitudes over time. Fifteen to twenty years is long enough for there to have been enough economic, social, political and technological change for that exercise to be worthwhile.

But we are all the same species, and there is no guillotine between them. Whilst the concept is useful it is also limited, and generational stereotypes serve no one. Differences within generations are far bigger than those between, and I strongly recommend you treat everyone as individuals first with no generational label.

Analysing the impact of change over time can offer clues when understanding your workforce, and therefore what needs to be done to ensure everyone feels they belong.

I want to differentiate between ‘age’ and ‘generations’. The former is, of course, a protected characteristic. The latter is cohort-based. Opinions and outlooks may change for individuals over time, but there is something about those created in the formative years which stick with people in different ways and to various extents.

It would be an interesting tribunal case that sought to separate the two fully. My argument is organisations who consider the full range of their age diversity to be a considerable asset are in a better position to thrive, and considering generational perspective is part of that exercise.

This is the set of names and dates that I use. You may find others elsewhere, which is fine as it reinforces the idea that these are not hard and fast:

• Silent Generation (1925-1945: 81-100 years old)
• Baby Boomers (1946-1964: 62-80 years old)
• Generation X (1965-1980: 46-61 years old)
• Millennials (1981-1996: 30-45 years old)
• Generation Z (1997-2012: 14-29 years old)
• Generation Alpha (2013-2028: max 13 years old)

The snowflake problem

I came into this topic area as a reaction to the youngest generation currently in the workplace, Gen Z, being labelled as ‘snowflakes’.

In my book The Snowflake Myth, I argue that the stereotypes routinely applied to Gen Z  (lazy, unreliable, apathetic etc) tell us more about a failure to understand them than about who they actually are. 

Gen Z’s academic record is off the scale compared to all who came before them. They are more likely than any previous generation to work nights and weekends for higher pay. They are the most diverse generation we have ever seen, and the most vocal advocates for equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging in the workplace.

Calling them snowflakes is not a neutral observation. It is an exclusion.

But you know this, otherwise you would not be on this website. So what to do?

Belonging Is not age-selective

Let me tell you something else you already know. When belonging is present, engagement rises, wellbeing is protected and performance improves. When it is absent, the damage is real.

Does your belonging culture extend to the oldest and youngest people in your organisation?

Gen Z in the workplace will tell you, should you ask them, that they are watching. They notice whether the DEIB commitments on your website show up in how decisions are made and who gets a seat at which table. They notice whether authenticity is genuinely embedded in your culture, or whether the sign behind reception is performative. They notice whether any effort has been made to understand their experience, or whether they are simply expected to adapt.

The Boomers (and Silents too) will also give you their feedback as to whether they belong or now feel marginalised, but you may need to work a little harder to capture their voice. It is too tempting to consider that your belonging culture is in the right place because a clear majority say they belong. It needs to work at both ends of your age range.

What multi-generational belonging looks like

The good news is that this is less complicated than it sounds. It requires curiosity more than strategy.

It means seeking genuine feedback from colleagues, and on an ongoing basis rather than just at onboarding. 

It means recognising that a generation which grew up collaborating online, co-creating content and working simultaneously on shared documents brings real and underutilised strengths to any team. 

It means deliberately noticing what is happening at the edges, and across every group. That includes noticing that the older colleagues who had their eyes wide open as the new recruits refused to stay late or take work home started wanting the same themselves. What used to be ‘Gen Z demands’ has now extended elsewhere.

It means understanding that cross-generational collaboration is not a nice idea for an away day. It is about driving better decisions and developing ownership amongst your workforce that creates the belonging culture you need.

Most importantly, it means accepting that belonging is not something organisations  can get away with extending only to the groups they find easiest to champion.

To what extent does your belonging culture cover the full breadth of your age range? 

www.alexatherton.com