...Workforce Article Kimberly McHenry English 3000 Paper 1 Changes throughout the years specifically in the workforce have caused major concern to employers. In particular, the skills and knowledge that people are taking to the workforce after graduation are just not enough. This is the current debate between employers, are people really ready to go out into the workforce and work. It is imperative that our young people attain the basic skills and knowledge necessary to join this modern workforce. Without these skills and knowledge, employers have no choice but to hire less than average employees. Steve Gavatorta explains that one of the common issues he experiences in the workforce is the difference between three generations; Baby Boomers, Generation X’ers, and the Generation Y’ers. The three generation has a particular work ethic that eventually ends up being a challenge for all. In order to understand the differences between these generations one has to comprehend the characteristics each one demonstrates. Baby Boomers are born between 1946 and 1964. They have a very strong work ethic, goal oriented, highly competitive and independent. Generations X’ers are born between 1965 and 1980. They are considered to be proficient in technology, individualistic and value a work-life balance. The Generation Y’ers are born after 1980 and are very tech savvy, crave attention, team oriented and family-centric (Gavatorta, 2012, p.60) At this time, the retirement of the baby-boomers...
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...competent nursing workforce to care appropriately for patients. The purpose of this paper is to examine diversity in the workplace, its importance to nursing as a profession and its impact on the delivery of culturally competent nursing care. Importance of Diversity in the Workplace Huston (2014) reveals that age, gender, customs, religion, physical size, physical and mental capabilities, beliefs, culture, ethnicity, and skin color are all forms of diversity. Despite the shift in demography of today’s society, which reflects an increasingly culturally diverse population (Phillips and Malone, 2014), the majority of nurses in the workforce are white, middle-aged females (Mattson, 2009). Making the nursing workplace more heterogeneous, diverse and representative of the population (Phillips and Malone, 2014), helps to promote quality of care and decrease disparities in healthcare (Huston, 2014). Maier-Lorentz (2008) adds that diversity in the workplace fosters cultural competency, which is vital to the provision of holistic and optimal care to this diverse patient population. Summary of One Aspect of Diversity One aspect of Diversity in the workplace is Generational diversity. With the current aging nursing population averaging forty-years of age (Mason, Leavitt and Chaffee, 2014), the current nursing workforce is comprised of nurses from four different categorized generations that work together (Hendricks and Cope, 2013). The four generations (grouped according...
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... Introduction Learning and development are essential tools in talent management for the American workforce. The ability to learn and grow helps an organization recruit and retain top talent, as well as grow existing talent. These learning opportunities are presented to various individuals at various times. When new talent is hired, individuals with a variety knowledge, skills, and experiences are pulled together in one learning environment, a classroom, to learn the essential tasks required to perform their new role. These individuals are guided on their learning path by a facilitator. The facilitator’s role is to ensure knowledge transfer occurs to each individual in their classroom audience while maintaining an environment conducive to learning. Today’s classroom audience makes this responsibility even more challenging. The facilitator not only has to find the common denominator in knowledge, skills, and experiences; he/she also has to deliver the content simultaneously to a multi-generational audience. An audience with participants who has only heard of a typewriter or seen one in “historical” pictures to others who remember the major family purchase of a colored television and each generation in between. Therefore, the facilitator’s biggest challenge is transferring knowledge to this multi-generational audience that makes up today’s workforce. Today’s Workforce “Demographic trends in the United States have brought us to a unique place and time. Americans are...
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...population diversity in the workforce. There are currently four main generations dominating the workforce, they are made up of Silents, Baby Boomers, Generation X and Generation Y. It is expected that in the coming decades there will be further changes with emergence of newer generations, and slower removal of older generations from organizations as pension age increases. Understanding differences between the generations, and learning to adapt their management practices is critical to building a successful multigenerational workplace. I would like farther explain each generation’s attributes and their effects on the workforce. Silents are considered among the most loyal workers. They are highly dedicated and the most risk averse. Their values were shaped by the Great Depression, World War II, and the postwar boom years. Silents possess a strong commitment to teamwork and collaboration and have high regard for developing interpersonal communications skills. Silents now consist of the most affluent elderly population in U.S. history due to their willingness to conserve and save after recovering from the financial impact of the postwar era. Baby Boomers, born approximately between 1946 and 1964 were brought up in a healthy post war economy and have seen the world revolving around them as the largest generation of the century. Their lifestyle is to live for work and they often expect the same level of dedication and work ethics from the next generations. They are said to prefer face...
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...True False Globalisation may have both positive and negative implications for people working in organisations. True False Reduced job security and increased work intensification in Australia are partly caused by globalisation. True False 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Education is a primary category of surface-level diversity. True False Australian employees are more diverse today than a few decades ago on many deep-level categories but have actually reduced their diversity on most surface categories. True False 10. Research indicates that baby boomers and Generation-X employees bring the same values and expectations to the workplace. True False 11. Workforce diversity potentially improves decision making and team performance on complex tasks. True False 12. Surveys indicate that most Australian employees do not experience conflicting work–life balance. True False 13. Generation X and Generation Y expectations are causing employers to reduce hierarchy and commandand-control management. True False 14. Teams with diverse employees usually take longer to perform effectively. If this is so, explain why and the reasons for still using them....
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...now span four generations. A twenty-something hired this year can expect to find that they working with colleagues who are older than they are by fifty or more years. The reason for this is primarily due to labor shortages for trained personnel in many industries. In addition, many older workers are now delaying retirement due for economic or other reasons. Many of the baby boomer generation can now be expected to delay retirement into their seventies. (Randstad USA) As you will learn, an inter-generational workforce provides many opportunities and challenges. While generational differences can and do lead to frustration, conflicts and poor morale, they do not have to. This section of the handbook will help you to better understand effective methods for leading and working with intergenerational teams. You will see that the differences brought to the mix by different generations can lead to increased productivity, creativity and success. In addition, you will understand the programs and benefits offered to enhance and optimize the benefits of maintaining an inter-generational workforce. Defining the Generations In an article published in the Journal for Quality and Participation, Gesell provides the following definitions of the generations. The Silent Generation. Born between 1925 and 1945, this group values hard work, conformity, dedication, sacrifice and patience. They are comfortable with delayed recognition and reward. The Baby Boomer Generation. Born between...
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...in history. With four different generations actively in the workplace, the way people work together is more important than ever, as is the role of today’s manager. Many organizations have a wide range of employees within several different age groups, each with different work ethics and all must be managed in various ways. Today’s problem in the workplace is no longer the effects of downsizing, competition, stress or greed but rather the four generations of people working together and often colliding. (Hammill, 2005) These four generations; the Veterans, the Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y, make up today’s workforce and each bring different values, ideas, communication styles and ways of getting things done to their organization. (Hammill, 2005) This is the first time in American history that we have had a wide range of ages in the workplace. With such an assorted group of people working together, the traditional roles in the workplace have changed. “There were definite rules as to how the boss was treated and how younger workers treated older workers. No longer: Roles today are all over the place and the rules are being rewritten daily.” (Hammill, 2005, p.1) First, it is important to identify the different generations and who make them up. The Veterans were born between 1922-1945. This group is characterized as hard workers that respect authority and look at work as an obligation. (Hammill, 2005) The Veterans are the most directive of all four groups and adhere...
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...Over time, the multi-generational workforce will influence the organizational work ethic, perceptions of organizational hierarchy, work relationships and ways of managing change. The literature suggests that as a result of differing experiences and perspectives, strongly held attitudes and diverse motivators, there will be an impact on two specific areas of human resource policy and employee development: retention and motivation. To successfully retain and leverage talent of all generations, the following studies represent the growing foundation of evidence to make changes in company culture, HR policies, benefits and programs. No matter which generation, the work environment tends to either attract or repel individuals. An exploratory study examined dimensions of employee fit with work environments and the impact of employee job satisfaction and turnover intention among different generations. The findings suggest that employees in the Baby Boom generation value work relationships as a contributor to employee satisfaction, whereas for Generations X and Y, the work environment fit (potential for career growth, decision-making opportunities, autonomy and job challenge) is a primary retention factor. Work/life balance is a key commonality among the four generations. A recent study that explored generational effects on work-family conflict in the United States suggests that changes reflect family and career stage differences. For example, “family interfering with work” has...
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...Generational Differences in the Workplace Composition II—Eng 102 Generational Differences in the Workplace The workplace of today involves interactions among people from four different generations often causing much conflict for leaders and organizations. Each generation represented has its own set of different values and beliefs. These differences can easily lead to conflicting barriers within the workplace. This can pose a significant problem for those in leadership. In order to combat this issue, leaders and organizations can effectively deal with these issues by offering different programs such as executive mentoring, town hall meetings, and leadership seminars for those in leadership. The workplace of today is composed of the intermingling of four different generations all working together towards a common goal. This combination of interactions can often cause much conflict for leaders and create challenges for organizations. Warner and Sandberg (2010) states, “people from different generations and age groups have rather different attitudes, values, beliefs and motivations from one another. These differences can easily lead to misunderstanding, miscommunication and even outright conflict in the workplace.” This can ultimately lead to a loss of productivity amongst fellow employees. The key to success for any leader or organization is learning to effectively deal with these challenges. Leaders and organizations must understand these...
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...Workplace Diversity: Communication between Management and Employees Workplace challenges come in many forms. One of those challenges is communication, whether verbal or nonverbal, between co-workers or between management and employees. Businesses currently are being affected by communication issues that are hindering production, satisfaction, and employee retention (Salahuddin, 2010). Communication is a vital key to effective and good management. Face-to-face communication is always the best way to talk to your employees but that may not always be possible, so a combination of verbal and nonverbal communication may be the best practice for your company (Chazanof, 1998). Too many companies rely solely on newsletters, bulletins, and flyers to communicate with their employees, making them feel less important to the company. Written communication is good but companies should also use face-to-face communication as well, use a combination of both. Written communication in the form of newsletters or flyers is a great tool when communicating with employees (Chazanof, 1998). Having your company put together a newsletter filled with company events, statistics, news, etc. Getting your employees involved, asking for volunteers to contribute information can help bridge that communication gap. Newsletters help inform your employees of company events as well as keep them connected and make them feel involved, all good ways to keep the communication waves flowing within your organization...
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...MGMT 591: Leadership and Organizational Behavior Course Project The Impact of the Lack of Generational Diversity within a Small Company 1.0 Introduction & Overview Edge Solutions, LLC is a majority woman-owned IT solutions provider delivering superior customer service and support for impactful IT solutions that meet our customers’ business challenges across the mid-Atlantic and Southeast. Edge’s corporate headquarters office is located at 7 Old Roswell Street, Alpharetta, Georgia. This company was founded in 2008 at the kitchen table of Julie & Michael Haley. Julie’s professional background is corporate and legislative law and Michael served as Vice President and General Manager for a Fortune 500 hardware distribution company. Within a very short time, Edge started receiving notary in IT industry and business awards and professional accreditations for its business growth, level of service and expertise. In June 2012, Edge was named the 3rd fasting growing company in the nation by Inc. 500/5000. And the URL for the online site is http://www.inc.com/inc5000/profile/edge-solutions. At Edge, our team is dedicated to delivering the right solution with specific expertise in data center management, server and storage virtualization, storage management, data protection information management, eCommerce procurement solutions as well as asset and services contract management to small and midsize businesses. I am Edge Solutions’ rising Chief Information Officer (managing...
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...situations daily. One of these types of situations occurs due to the fact that there are four generations present for the first time in America’s History. Generational differences can affect many aspects at work. In order to be able to work in such a diversified environment, management needs to identify the most effective methods for identifying potential conflicts and the best practice for resolution of the conflict. In order to grasp the most accurate and respectable feedback for each generation, a little background on each of the four generations characteristics is needed. The first generation, the traditionalist (born prior to 1946), are typically either retired or at retirement age but choose to continue working for various reasons. Traditionalist, also known as veterans or the silent generation, are typically hard working and loyal but are technologically challenged in most areas. Veterans tend to prefer class room style education and face-to-face contact for communication. They have been raised to pride themselves on their commitments and promises. Traditionalist would prefer to shake hands on a deal and honor the word of the other person. The next generation, Baby Boomers (born approximately between 1946 – 1964) incorporate the largest numbers in the workforce. Boomers have a strong work ethic which involved working long hours in the office to rise to the top. This generation makes...
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...Internal and External Factors MGT/230 Internal and External Factors The four functions of management are planning, organizing, leading and controlling. First, planning helps a company accomplish strategic goals. Second, organizing makes a company or business more productive. Third, leading includes communicating and encouraging employees and getting to know them on an interpersonal level. Fourth, controlling is used to change an organization and help it grow. All four functions are essential to management and can be influenced by internal and external factors. Internal factors consist of culture, employee relation, rules and other things within the business. External factors consist of competitors, customers, and laws outside the company. Globalization, technology, innovation, diversity and ethics are crucial in every part of management. In this paper, I will explain how the four functions and internal and external factors affect Apple. I will also give a concrete example of how the four functions are influenced by globalization, technology, innovation, diversity, and ethics. Globalization is an external factor because it consists of things outside of the business walls. Globalization connects businesses around the world (Dictionary.com). Globalization allows businesses of any kind or size here in the United States to connect with the foreign business. Globalization changes the way managers plan. They now must consider a global market to get the best and cheapest product...
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...BIN MOHD. NOR Submission Date: 15 May 2014 Due Date: 19 May 2014 Word Count: 3859 Content | Page | 1.0 Executive Summary | 1 | 2.0 Background of Study | 2-6 | 3.0 Problem Statement | 6-8 | 4.0 Research Question | 8 | 5.0 Objectives of Study | 8 | 6.0 Literature Review | 8-9 | 7.0 Discussion | 9-12 | 8.0 Recommendation | 12-15 | 9.0 Conclusion | 15 | 10.0 References | 16 | 11.0 Appendix 1 – Organizational Chart | | 1.0 Executive Summary The purpose of this paper is to study the differences and similarities of four generations of FELDA workers and the implication of it to the organization’s competitiveness. FELDA has been chosen for the study because it is a unique organization involved widely in business as well as community development in 319 Felda Settlements. With a total employee of 3,990 people working locally and overseas it is truly a challenging task for the management to keep pace with the diversity in the workplace. As we want to have an effective relationship with other human beings, we must at least know them well as a single individual. Each of us has our unique background, personal characteristic, preferences, and style. The knowledge of generational information is tremendously significant in...
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... With different generations of leaders, come different communication skills and views towards the use of technology in communication. Additionally, the technology and Information age requires that more communication be executed through the use writing. In this regard, being an adept writer has become a requirement as compared to a skill on a resume. First-rate leaders in today’s workforce should possess both exemplary oral and written communication skills regardless of the generation they originate from. Leadership and Communication Without question, the way a leader communicates differs based on generation. From the Traditionalist, whose time in the workforce is fading, to the Millennials (Gen Yers), who have just begun to enter the workforce, there brings a generation gap of over six decades. I think it is impossible to conclude that communication would remain constant over this timespan. The values, ethics and economic situations of the time period a person hails from all influence how a person communicates as a leader. According to (Houck, 2011), in regards to communication across generations, he states: * Baby Boomers – are considered politically correct, love meetings * Gen Xers – are informal, abrupt, prefer structured meetings that are brief and to the point * Gen Yers – are eager to please, inclusive, prefer meetings that are conversational and interactive Even with the wide range of communication styles between generations, performance has...
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