Generational Differences
(Continued)

How does this apply to promotions and Millenials?

“They value lifestyle over upward mobility,” Everett said. “They might be pleased to change oil in the lower bay all day long, just as long as they get the weekends off. If they get a promotion that throws off their lifestyle and causes them to work weekends, there are some Millenials who would decline the promotion and keep working in the lower bay.”

To understand how much flexibility means to younger generations, just take a look at some of the companies they’ve founded. At many of the dot-com companies, it wouldn’t be strange to find someone skateboarding from office to office. Some people bring their dogs to work with them, and you will probably find some really fun and crazy foods in the vending machine. Sure, this approach to work life might not be kosher in a lube shop, but that’ doesn’t mean that work can’t be fun.

Each generation may have its differences, but they have two big similarities — they want to be recognized and they want to feel like they, and their ideas, matter.

All people like to be recognized. “Praise them for what they do well,” Everett said. “They will appreciate praise. Don’t be stingy with it. But different people will like to be praised in different ways.

“More people leave their jobs because of lack of recognition than any other reason — not even because of money. This is true no matter how old they are.”

Also, don’t make assumptions about different generations. “Just because someone is older, don’t assume they’re looking for a part-time job,” Everett said. “Maybe they’re looking to start a new career, or maybe they’re looking for a promotion. He may be older than the person you were looking for, but you could get a lot of value out of that person. You might get an employee who will work hard for you, stay loyal and get the job done.”

Just because someone is young, don’t count him or her out. “Look at the companies being founded by the newer generations,” Everett said. “They are being founded by young people and not because of dumb luck; it’s because of smarts and working hard in a new and different way. Just because someone is young, doesn’t mean they wont have good ideas.”

Baby Boomers, like Millenials, want to know their ideas matter. “There might be a lot of bad ideas out there, but once in a while there might be a gem out there somewhere,” Everett said.

The key to having a great workplace is finding the balance between the needs of the different generations and the needs of your business. Believe it or not, it is possible to incorporate the need of a fun and flexible workplace for the Millenials and Generation X, the need of teamwork and the opportunity to work extra hours for the Baby Boomers, and the need of work to be serious and procedural for the Traditionalists.

Learn your people, Everett said. There’s a lot of individuality in everyone and not everyone in each age group may conform to the tendencies that have been discussed here. There are contradictions between the age groups — Millenials want to have fun, but Traditionalists believe work isn’t supposed to be fun — but at the end of the day, everyone likes to have a good time.

“You need to find the balance of fun and work,” Everett said. “Some of the best stores I’ve seen are really fun places. Everyone knows what’s expected, they are trained well, they educate customers and they get the job done. You can goof off while you’re cleaning, but when a car comes in, it’s time to get to work.

“If you can create that balance, you are going to have a super crew.”

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