Generations at Work: Managing the Clash of Veterans, Boomers, Xers, and Nexters in Your Workplace - Hardcover

Zemke, Ron; Raines, Claire; Filipczak, Bob

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0814404804 ISBN 13: 9780814404805

Publisher: Amacom Books, 2000

Synopsis

Profiles the four distinct generations in the modern workplace and offers advice for managing effectively in an age-diverse workplace

About this title

Book Description:

Veterans...Baby Boomers...GenXers ...Nexters. Mix them all together, and what do you get? Sometimes disaster! Here are fresh insights and practical solutions for easing the inevitable conflicts of today's age- and values-diverse workplace, where people just don't see work (or life) the same way.

"They have no work ethic."

"So I told my boss, 'If you're looking for loyalty, get a dog."

"I will not attend meetings that start after 5."

There's a serious new problem in the workplace, and it has nothing to do with downsizing, change, foreign competition, pointy-haired bosses, cubicle envy, or greed. Instead, it's the problem of distinct generations--the Veterans, the Baby Boomers, the GenXers, and (coming soon) the Nexters--crossing paths and sometimes colliding.

So how can you manage this motley group with their conflicting work ethics, dissimilar values, and idiosyncratic styles? How do you get them to stop snarling at each other? How do you motivate them to work together?

Generations at Work is the first book to clearly outline each group's primary characteristics, and to explain the seminal events and cultural icons that shaped their attitudes and values. But it doesn't just provide an astute sociological portrait. The book also offers practical, sound solutions for avoiding (or remedying) the most common mistakes of managing in today's cross-generational workplace.

Readers will find profiles of companies with effective strategies for smoothing generational conflict...a true-to-life case study of a manager caught in the crossfire...and 21 key questions and answers for solving cross-gen problems.

For anyone struggling to manage a workforce with different ways of working, talking, and thinking, Generations at Work both explains the gulf that separates the generations and offers insightful solutions for creating workplace harmony.

From the Back Cover:

In our age-diverse workplace of conflicting work ethics, dissimilar values, and idiosyncratic styles, this groundbreaking book supplies fresh, insightful strategies for understanding--and overcoming--generational differences.

"The sounds you hea--young people voicing their frustrations with the over-the-hill gang, seasoned executives disparaging the impatience of the kiddie corps--are the sounds of generations colliding. This book teaches you and your company how to reach across the generation gap, and into the new world of business and work." --William C. Taylor, Founding Editor, Fast Company

"A quick, insightful read...full of humor and practical tactics that can be applied to daily situations immediately." --Deidra Wager, Executive Vice PresidentRetail, Starbucks Coffee Company

"Generations at Work provides creative insights and solutions to issues of recruitment and motivation of the workforce, one of the biggest challenges in our industry today. It is clear that there is a new face to workforce diversity which organizations must recognize and respond to if they are to be successful in the new millennium. Generations at Work will give you a tremendous advantage."--Neil Gulsvig, Senior Vice President, Organizational Development and Training, Beverly Enterprises

"This is truly one of the most unique times in the history of the American workforce. With four different generations converging upon one place, everyone needs to be equipped with practical ways to deal with all the differences. Generations at Work is a great tool to get you up to speed on this important issue. Ron Zemke, Claire Raines, and Bob Filipczak offer simple and practical hands-on advice to turn the promise of this diverse workforce into success for your organization." --Ken Blanchard, co-author, The One-Minute Manager

"With the aging of America, every workplace will soon be coming to grips with the challenge of managing 'age diversity.' In Generations at Work, the authors do a wonderful job of clarifying the needs and values of all working generations while offering invaluable guidance on how to maximize productivity among them." --Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D., author, Age Wave and Age Power, President, Age Wave LLC

"Generational conflict in the workplace isn't new and it isn't going to go away. Generations at Work sorts through the stereotypes and delineates the strengths and weaknesses of Veterans, Boomers, Xers, and Nexters. This book provides the practical advice managers need to turn conflict into harmony." --Susan Mitchell, author, American Generations: Who They Are, How They Live, What They Think

"The definitive guide to understanding what makes other generations tick. An on-target blend of theory and practice." --Bradley Richardson, author, JobSmarts for TwentySomethings

"The best book out there on generations in the workplace--a book not just to be read, but put into practice." --Neil Howe, historian and coauthor, The Fourth Turning and Generations

About this edition

• Publisher: Amacom Books
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0814404804
• ISBN 13: 9780814404805
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 280