As the workplace of the United States continue to grow and change to accept in new members from the millennial generation as well as the generation to follow, managing generational differences in the workplace will be a key component of keeping workplaces throughout various industries strong as well as successful in the years to come. But it must also be noted that managing generational differences in the workplace is not always a simple thing to do, and that managing generational differences in the workplace will require a good deal of time as well as a constant effort to bridge the growing age divide between workers and employees employed by all industries, all throughout the country of the United States. From generational diversity in workplace activities to coaching millennials and bringing them up to speed quickly, managing generational differences in the workplace is certainly likely to be an ambitious task, but one that must be done nevertheless.

Part of the difficulty of managing generational differences in the multigenerational workforce is that there is more age diversity in the workplace than there ever has been before. In fact, there are now as many as five generations active all throughout the work force of the United States, from millennials to baby boomer and the generations between them and after them. This is actually the first time in our country’s history – or history in general – that this is happening, and it can lead to the need for managing generational differences in the workplace throughout workplaces in all parts of the United States. For one thing, as much as one quarter of the workforce is over the age of fifty five, technically considered to be a senior citizen, while more than thirty five percent of the current make up of the workforce of the United States (thirty seven percent, to be more exact) is made up solely of those who are part of the millennial generation. Managing different generations in the workplace has become all the more important because of this, but, fortunately, bridging that generation divide is likely to be not as difficult as many people would initially think, though managing generational differences in the workplace is still a hugely important part of fostering a positive work space. In part, this is because most of all generations from the millennials to the baby boomers have the same amount of investment in their workplace and work life, with most generations at about twenty five percent desire for making a positive impact in their work environment. Though this is not necessarily a high percentage, it shows that the generations might be of a more similar mindset than many might realize.

It must also be taken into account that when figuring out managing generational differences in the workplace, millennials might need more support than members of other generations. This is because those who are part of the millennial generation, born between the years of 1981 and 1996, thrive on getting feedback and base much of their performance related goals directly on the feedback that they receive in their work place environment or even, in some cases, outside of it. In fact, up to eighty percent of all those who are between the ages of eighteen and thirty four (all millennials, to put it into other words) would prefer to have much more frequent feedback as opposed to just one performance review per quarter (as it has traditionally tended to go). This near constant feedback can make it easier than ever before grow their performance continuously, something that the vast majority of millennial aged employees in the United States will be looking to do in the years to come as they cement their positions in their field of work.

There has been a lot of focus in recent years on managing generational differences in the workplace. This is because a wider variety of ages are working in the United States than ever before in our country’s – or the world’s – history, spanning a total of five generations and looking to incorporate even more as the next generation will begin to come of age for the first time.