The Employees' Perspective Matters in the Multi-Generational Workforce

With different duties, responsibilities, and relationships with the organization, chances are that the employees' perspective differs from yours. Add that to cultural differences, and it starts to get easy to focus on what sets you apart rather than what brings you together.

All of the perspectives on your team matter. To really own that truth as a leader, it can help to start looking at things from a different perspective yourself.

When you get down to it, everyone is looking for a way to do their job. As a leader, part of your job is to navigate organizational complexities, such as generational diversity, and show everyone that way.

Focusing on Moving Forward With a Clear Vision

When you see conflicting sets of seemingly hardwired perspectives, predilections, and opinions in your organization, it's easy to look at it as a challenge. This is definitely the perspective of many leaders regarding general diversity on their teams.

I often find that refining vision helps situations like these. Vision is your single most powerful tool to re-orient employee perspective. Vision helps people see things as employees first and baby boomers, generation-Xers, or millennials second.

Using All the Clubs in Your Bag

Vision helps people think as employees first, but you want them to keep the generational diversity that makes them unique. The way I see it, leading a multi-generational workforce is a lot like going out onto the golf course with a full set of clubs.

Each perspective is a different way to deal with the course ahead of you. In other words, each one is a different club in your bag. Depending on the shot you have to make, any one of them could be the right choice.

Some might have the capacity to drive your organization forward and accelerate its success. Some might have the adaptability to apply corrections when you face a tough challenge. Some might have the magic touch that helps you close a deal. 

In golf and in leadership, it pays to bring a full bag. You never know exactly what (or whom) you need until the need arises.

Getting Access to the Perspectives on Your Team

A common issue that I see in multigenerational organizations is not a lack of diversity, but instead a lack of involvement and representation. Even if you have all of these different clubs in your bag — even if there are different perspectives on your team that could be useful to you — they don't do you any good until you incorporate them into your practice.

Specifically, practice listening to and understanding employee perspectives. One way to start is by involving people of multiple generations in decision-making processes and considering the different opinions they bring.

Make the Best Decision, Wherever the Ball Lands

After some practice, you should start to be able to predict and seek out key perspectives depending on the challenge your organization faces. It will look as natural as a pro golfer choosing the right club for a shot — but you'll know how much work you put into it.

Do you know what your employees’ perspectives are in your business?