Begin this week’s discussion by taking a few minutes to reflect on the characteristics of your generation found on page 134 in the Makely text. Describe for your fellow students the needs and desires for the work environment related to your generation such as work schedule, dress code, amount of supervision, etc. After describing your generation, answer the following questions.
- Is the description of your generation in the Makely text congruent with what you have experienced in the real world? Does this list accurately describe you and your generation?
- How do the work environment needs and desires of your generation differ from others?
- Discuss a minimum of one stereotype attributed to your generation. Why is this stereotype inaccurate?
- How can cultural competence help coworkers from different generations find common ground in the work environment?
Submission:
- Initial post must be a minimum of 250 words and contain a minimum of 2 scholarly references (e.g. journals, textbooks, edu websites, etc.)
Discussion: The Characteristics of My Generation
As a millennial, one thing I must admit is that all the information, that has been shared in the Makely text is very relevant to all we have experienced in our real world. All the information that has been enlisted in this list is somewhere true and somewhere there is the need for some modifications in the perspectives. If taking the example of the lazy adjectives, our generation is labeled as the lazy ones, but this is not true in all aspects, and this perspective has to be changed. Our generations are highly associated with the discovery of new concepts, therefore to make them active instead of lazy, they should be offered the interesting activity. We feel motivated when we can find anything interesting and creative, otherwise, we show reluctance in our activity which leads to the building of lazy adjectives.
Our generation is indeed different a lot from the previous generations. Generation X is not much technology-versed as the generations we belong to. They show a much sincerer nature in their workplace and are much more rigid and less prone to adaptability. On the other hand, the generation we belong to shows the characteristics of a much more casual mentality towards their responsibilities. Although one thing that has to be admitted is that, the millennial generations are more flexible and more adaptive. Their creativity level is much higher in comparison to the other previous generations.
The workplace which will be best suited for this generation is diverse. The more will diversity in the workplace the more it will be beneficial for the success of the organization. A decentralized leadership dominant workplace will be better suitable for this generation, as we like to communicate with each other, share our perspectives, and always encourage creativity and innovations and the discovery of new stuff (Roberson, 2019, p.70).
The most important stereotype which is associated with the millennial generation is that they have a more casual approach to life. The reason behind this attitude is that they love to take on new challenges, and does not overthink much about the future difficulties in life. They particularly love to live in the present and enjoy every aspect of life, not fearing what’s going to happen in the future. Instead of living life the stress, they like to take on new risks and challenges and want to savor every aspect of life.
As I have mentioned earlier, the most important aspect of an organization is diversity. In any organization, there is a combination of employees from different generations which helps in the enrichment of the working culture (Mousa, Massoud & Ayoubi, 2020, p.25). Generation x people are not that well versed with technological advancements, but the new generations’ peers are more digitalized and technology prone. On the other hand, individuals belonging to the new generations are much more casual towards their life approaches but the individuals belonging to generations x are proved to show a much more hardworking and sincere nature. Both of them should learn the good from each other. They will act to complement each other for the betterment of any organization.
References:
Mousa, M., Massoud, H. K., & Ayoubi, R. M. (2020). Gender, diversity management perceptions, workplace happiness, and organizational citizenship behavior. Employee Relations: The International Journal.
Roberson, Q. M. (2019). Diversity in the workplace: A review, synthesis, and future research agenda. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 6, 69-88.
