1. Resolving Cross Generational Sticking Points in the Workplace
5 min
Rob: Holds up a phone and begins to tell a story about how he saw young ladies walking the track at the YMCA on their phones….not listening to music….but texting. Another story about how a co-worker noticed a job candidates mom had accompanied him to an interview. And yet another on the many young engineers that I have seen come and go in my organization. What is this all about? Let’s explore if you will…..
Rob Kurtz, PMP
February 15, 2017

2. Get to Know Your Presenter – Rob Kurtz
1 Min
Getting To Know You:
Favorite Movie: Star Wars
Favorite Vacation Spot: Caribbean and Bahamas
Hobbies: Baseball, football, basketball, Playing Pokemon GO with my girls, model railroading
Favorite Book: Too many of them….Now Discover Your Strengths, Switch, From Good To Great, Speed of Trust
Favorite Music: Many types depending on my mood...Alternative Rock, Classic Rock, Country, Dance/Techno, Easy Listening, 70’s/80’s disco

3. Who are Millennials? 1. Narcissistic @#!$% who love selfies?
2. An overly plugged-in generation that exercises only through
Pokemon Go?
3. Someone who bucks the system, opting instead to mooch off Mom and Dad?
4. Someone born between 1981 to 2000-ish?
5 min
Let’s take a little quiz and see if we can’t define who and what millennials are. Millennials are
1, 2, 3, 4
You know, I’m not quite sure. Let’s see how the media defines this generation:

4. “The now generation has become the me generation
“The now generation has become the me generation.” Does that seem right? *Poll the audience*
Nope! That is what the NY Times wrote that about Baby Boomers in 1976
reference:

5. Ah, here we go.
“They have trouble making decisions.
They would rather hike the Himalayas than climb the corporate ladder.
They crave entertainment but their attention span is as short as one zap of a TV dial.”
Is that about right? Guess again! That’s what Time magazine said about my generation (Gen X) in   
Reference:

6. Ok here we go. Time magazine has called the millennials the me me me generation. Millennials are lazy, entitled narcissists who still live with their parents. There you have it. Time has branded this entire generation using phrases to describe every other generation in America. What’s interesting is that this is not a new concept...lamenting about youth and how they just don’t get it dates back to the days of Plato. Is possible that narcissism, entitlement, lack of real world experience is just a characteristic of youth of which they all grow out? Most likely… but there are some distinguishing differences about this generation and I am here to walk you through it.
At the Region 6 conference in New Orleans, I noticed 3 things:
This is a group of folks here to better themselves and their profession and they really care
Alicia was one of VERY few people representing her age group and
Every session she attended ended with questions, concerns or venting frustrations around working with Millennials.
She initially felt a bit alienated and questioned my participation with PMI. But then she and I got to talking recognized and opportunity to spread this message. Yes, there are frustrations. That is what happens with generations work together, but there is also an incredible amount of opportunity which is why I wanted to speak to you today.
So….I am going to walk you through
WHY you need to care about this
Defining characteristics and behaviors of millennials
Discussing some tips on how to overcome challenges between employees across generations in the work place
I won’t even presume to represent all millennial values. Please keep an open mind during this presentation. It is possible that you may disagree with how Millennials function, make decisions or how they act in the workplace, this session is intended for education to bridge that gap of understanding.

7. Why It Matters – By The Numbers
5 min on why this matters…
So why does all of this matter?
Bullet one: The millennial generation is the biggest in US history. Even bigger than they baby boom. They currently make up for 25% of the population in America. To put it in perspective, this is more than the entire country of Sweden, Greece, Chile, Australia, Belgium and Israel combined.  
Bullet two: American Millennials comprise over one trillion dollars in direct buying power. As they reach their prime working and spending years, their impact on the economy is going to be significant.
Bullet 3: 44.2 percent are a part of a minority race or ethnic group making them the most diverse generation thus far
Sources:
Bullet two:
Bullet one & three:
Bullet 4&5: Research study conducted by PwC – 4,364 graduates – 75 countries – Aug-Oct 2011 – all aged 31 years or younger

8. Why It Matters – By The Numbers
Rob: Rob will initiate dialog with the audience.  Transitions will be included to reveal the percentages on click.
“Who here knows the percentage of Millennials that will be in the workplace in just 4 short years (2020)?
50%        (PwC, “Millennials at work, Reshaping the Workplace” 2011)
“Who here knows the percentage of Millennials that will be in the workplace in 14 years (2030)?
75%        (Sean Kelly - CEO of SnackNation)
Our experienced colleagues will be retiring and a new age of workers will be in the market place before we know it!
Adapting:  The world is changing and we must adapt!
Blockbuster – For our international friends, was a video rental store in the US.   A $5B company in 2004……BANKRUPT in  Why?  They didn’t ADAPT!
Source:
Borders – Bookstore chain that competed with Barnes and Noble and Amazon.  A $3.5B company in 2007…….BANKRUPT in  Why?  They didn’t ADAPT!
Bottom Line:  Our chapters will need to learn how to communicate with, connect with, and engage this generation or they will find other professions and PMI membership will decline
Despite stereotypes of being entitled, selfish, unmotivated, and pampered, this group has been shaped by the world in which they grew up - they yearn for growth and your mentorship
Talking about Millennials in the abstract is not something we can do anymore. It’s time to take action and evaluate your business and chapter practices now or else you run the risk of becoming obsolete or alienating the next generation of workers.
Now let’s take a look at defining this generation so we can gain a better understanding…
2020
2030

9. Defining Millennials 5 Min on defining Millennials
Just for generational reference in case you aren’t sure which generation you belong to:
Baby Boomers are often defined as those born between
Gen X is often defined as those born between
Millennials are generally covering the age range of those born between
These groups are flexible and typically experts will say that if you are on the border you can fall into which ever group you identify with the most.
Urban Dictionary: How to Reach Your Millennial Membership

10. Defining Millennials
Every generation has major events that curated who they are today. These events we are about to discuss likely had a significant impact on everyone in this room but they occurred during millennials most formative years and therefore helped to shape their understanding of the world around them.
Major events that shaped who they are:
Helicopter Parents – A term coined to describe overly protective and involved parents. yes, helicopter parents. We received participation trophies, constant feedback and encouragement, a toy in every happy meal. It’s no wonder that young adults crave constant feedback and expect to excel and everything they do
Rob will elaborate on this for 1 minute to tell story about parents needing to get our of their car to walk their kids across street to their car
Age of constant sharing, visuals of perfection and achievement – The “Instagram affect” phenomenon creating a lot of pressure for these people who are pressured to be prefect and to “do all the things”
Technology everywhere – constantly plugged in, consuming 12 hours of a media a day
Rob will elaborate on this for 1 min “PwC 2011 study” – 78% under age 30 say technology makes them more productive
Instant gratification: They don’t have to wait or be patient for most everything
World Events
Columbine High school shooting 1999
September 11 World Trade Center attack – 2001 – mass shootings, terrorist attacks, war. This generation wants to live now, and take every moment to it’s fullest because they don’t know if they will get another.
Massachusetts becomes first state to legalize gay marriage
The Great Recession - Slowest job recovery since the great Depression – this has made a thrifty generation that’s less likely to commit to big purchases like cars or homes, and unfaithful to jobs
Occupy Wall Street

11. Defining Millennials
One of the key differentiators for this generation is their value set. As you can see from this chart:
Millennials value happiness, passion, diversity, sharing and discovery more than older generations
While this might seem a youthful value set that would shift as they get older it has persistently been highly rated across the millennial age spectrum signifying that this is not a stage they will grow out of.
Older generations value justice, integrity, family, practicality and duty above all else
While this might seem a youthful value set that would shift as they get older it has persistently been highly rated across the millennial age spectrum signifying that this is not a stage they will grow out of.
Urban Dictionary: How to Reach Your Millennial Membership

12. Millennials – In the Work Place
What Millennials values most in the work place.
This chart is from the most recent Deloitte global survey on Millennials. Remember that their top values in life were: happiness, passion, sharing, discovering and diversity. With that in mind, this chart notes what matters most to young professionals in the workplace. Number one is a work life balance. I was networking with another PM and I asked if their employer was flexible and they joked “sure, we can work any 17 hours a day we want.” I think I physically cringed. Young Professionals are seeking out those companies that have unlimited vacation policies, that have employee incentives for trips or opportunities for them to unwind. While we can’t all be google offering infinity pools and high end café’s, there are things we can do to all improve the quality of life at work
HOWEVER: One of the biggest points is that there seems to be low loyalty to companies and many plan on leaving their jobs in the near future according to a recent survey from Deloitte. Part of this could be because there is no more corporate ladder, there is a corporate Lattice. Young professionals don’t know what growth and success look like for them at their current job. If we don’t know where we are headed, we will leave. Only 28% of Millennials feel that their employers are making full use of their skills
Reference:
Chart reference: What Millennials value most in an employer:

13. Generational Sticking Points
20 min for Activity
Each table take 5 minutes to discuss experiences with Millennials in your chapters or work places. Identify a common theme, select a person to narrow that theme down to 1-3 sentences. We will ask a few tables to then share their experiences.
Nominate 1 person per table to briefly discuss the experience
We will write these experiences on the flip chart and talk about them
**After 5 minutes, we will reveal the next slide (Sticking Points) then walk through some experiences and compare

14. Generational Sticking Points
Suggest polling audience to see if anyone has a story to tell involving one or more of these sticking points and facilitate the audience by walking through a couple of examples
Twelve Sticking points - A book by Haydn Shaw outlines the 12 things that Generationally, we disagree on the most:
Run through all 12.
Story one: Headphones story.
Sticking points are often seen as problems to be solved versus opportunities to be leveraged. I'm sure some of the questions that many of our chapters have asked include things like "How do we get younger members to join? How do we get them to attend and better yet, volunteer? How do we deal with the tensions between generations when younger members try to jump in but don't want to do things the way they have always been done? We learn to speak each other's languages.
The most common phrase when referring to another generation is “They don’t get it” but that irony is that when we say that, we don’t get it either. We need to move past recognizing these as generational differences, rather they are catalysts for deeper understanding and appreciation to make teams stronger.
So how do we move past the gripe sessions of venting about other generations and re-focus on coming together?

15. Generational Sticking Points
10 minutes
Shaw presents a 3-5 steps approach. Most of the time the first 3 can resolve the problem. When the first three don’t work due to a business necessity, you must utilize the last two:
Acknowledge - Talk about generational differences (this is where we typically stay)
Appreciate – Focus on the “why” not the “what” and the common needs
Flex –agree on how to accommodate different approaches
Leverage – maximize the strengths of each generation
Resolve – determine which option will yield the best results (when flexing isn’t enough)
In the example when the headphones, the young adult couldn’t focus because they said their Boomer coworkers chatter too much. If we reacted on the acknowledge point, the boomer “Paul” could complain and management would create a policy of no headphones at work. If we move on the appreciate phase, we talk to Melissa. Why do you wear headphones? Melissa responds “Because Paul chatters too much at work and I can’t focus. If he has something to say to me, it would be more efficient for him to just me”
Flex – mgmt. recognizes the need for communication to flow openly and the need for people to focus. This could be resolved through flexing. But not all problems can be solved by flexing and that is when you need to understand business necessity in order to make the best decision.  A business necessity is anything that will make you lose your foot, customer, money or funding. What if you work in a factory and hearing alarms or your co-workers is essential to safety? Headphones should probably be banned. What if you work at a call center and your younger co-workers want to wear flip flops. Does wearing flip flops have a business necessity impact or is it just a generational preference? Confusing a generational preference for a business necessity makes organizations inflexible, it can also cost them money.
When flexing, you need to understand if the sticking point is a BUSINESS NECESSITY or a GENERATIONAL PREFERENCE.
Leverage- lean on their strengths to help advise to policy or advancing the company (millennials are typically great in this area to recommend technological upgrades and efficiency for companies)
Resolve- make a final decision, create policy based on a mixed age committee but only when necessary

16. Rob Kurtz, PMP
Vice President of Membership
(618)
“We are passionate about helping others grow in their careers so together we can accomplish amazing results!”