In Monday’s Future Leader’s meeting there was one thing everybody agreed upon – no one wants to be stereotyped.
Assuming you know an individual’s work style and business ethic based on when they were born is a bad business practice. Embracing generational stereotypes builds a greater divide versus creating a cross-generational workforce. Even the simplest statements such as “(Millennials) have the attention span of a gnat” or Boomers and Gen X’ers “just want to keep it old school” sparked spirited debate across the three generations represented.
Out the gate, millennial Shannon Kohn Mayer of Continuum passionately rebutted the stereotype that Gen Y often makes decisions without research or regard to experience noting reality was the exact opposite. “We’re all about the data. (Millennials) bring a very data analytical mindset to the forefront,” said Kohn Mayer.
2015 ChannelChanger Samantha Ciaccia of Datto backed her views stating that although it can be intimidating being the youngest person in the room she takes pride in developing and sharing her growing expertise about the IT channel. Baby boomer and CompTIA 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award winner Mike Brogan encouraged millennials to listen, learn and speak their mind, and offered an opposing view for consideration. “Sometimes being the oldest person in the room is just as intimidating,” reflected Brogan.
Gen-X’er Ted Roller of GetChanneled advocated that at the end of the day “we simply need to find a way to better communicate with and learn from each other.” It was another point the room unanimously agreed on.
“There’s so much we can all learn from one another,” said Chris Phillips, community leader, CompTIA. “It’s awesome to see this community advocate for change, and work across the generations to gain a better understanding of how we can work together to reach common goals.”
Marie Rourke is Principal of White Fox PR.
