Essay Sample on Intergenerational Change

Introduction

The interaction between members of different generations has been an interesting topic globally. This concept has been termed as intergenerationality where members of different generations interact thereby depicting certain characteristics. Therefore, various scholars have assessed the topic particularly with a focus on organizational impact. From the discussion and the readings, it is evident that different generations in the workplace impact on the values, expectations, and other perspectives of the organization which has an impact on the success of every organization. The discussion points out correctly that successful organizations must have strategies in place that ensure the interests of every generation are taken into consideration (Bolman & Deal, 2017). However, it should be noted that there are no rules that exist that depict when a particular generation starts and when it ends. Therefore, there are no clear gaps between generations. This implies that although the discussion tends to focus on the organizational impact on intergenerational change, no specific metric should be followed for the organizations to categorize employees. The readings do not emphasize this fact when discussing the intergenerational change and its organizational impact although it is an important emphasis. Without highlighting this, readers may not have a clear understanding of generational issues.

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Despite the information gaps regarding categorization of the generations, the existence of different characteristics of groups of people necessitates organizations to be conscious of such traits and consider them when making decisions. Therefore, it is important to consider the differences regarding the tools and procedures that affect the methods of work and hence the organizational outcome. For example, the discussion by Durkin (2008) point an important fact about employee retention. It should be noted that all organizations in the modern world seek to retain their best talents. However, this cannot be done without satisfying them. Therefore, the organizations must consider their employees' interests as well as character traits. It should be noted that some people may leave the organization if they are under-utilized. However, the readings fail to point out other personal issues that may affect an employee other than his/ her generation. It should be noted that employees are people with individual life concerns that can be detrimental to success. For example, personal experiences and upbringing may affect a person regarding his/ her interactions with colleagues. Some people are introverts while others are extraverts considering how they have been brought up. Such individual traits come to play in their jobs. Therefore, while generational factors may affect an organization, it is important to the point that some important behaviors are affected by individual traits as opposed to his/ her generation.

Although the birth year cutoffs have been widely debated, it is evident that certain characteristics are evident even in a learning environment. In school, I noted that students of different classes tend to depict different traits, some of which can be associated with one's generation. For example, it is notable that generational differences in the classroom play a vital role in learning and influences a person's learning styles. One style cannot be used successfully for all sorts of people. In this regard, instructors need to develop imaginative activities that can facilitate better learning. Some people depict a teacher-centric trait while others are better off left alone. This illustration coincides with explanations in the reading where Reynolds, Bush, and Geist (2008) emphasize the significance of addressing generations individually to get the best out of them. However, it is important to illustrate that one's career is his creation. In the reading by the lecturer, it is emphasized that an individual plays a role in defining his goals (Kaye & Jordan-Evans, 2003). Therefore, although traits may be inborn, most of them are acquired and shaped the person. People should not generalize behavior on generations but should also take into account individual traits.

References

Bolman, L., & Deal, T. (2017). Reframing organizations. New Jersey, NJ: John Willey & Sons, Inc.

Durkin, D. (2008). Youth movement. Communication World, 23-25.

Kaye, B., & Jordan-Evans, S. (2003). Love it, don't leave it: 26 ways to get what you want at work. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.

Reynolds, L., Bush, E., & Geist, R. (2008). The Gen Y imperative. Communication World, 19-22.