As many are aware, the generations have aligned on the American workplace like the planets in some science fiction movie. However, this does not have to alert us to the doom of the known world as with so many of those movies. Now don’t get me wrong, I love a good “back in my day” story just as much as the next guy (topped off with a “sonny” is a true added value); but there are gold mines of information ready to be plucked from those stories which most Gen Y’ers (or millennials) just can’t put down their cell phones long enough to understand. #Imtalkingabout Xers! They get it, and better than that, they know how to communicate on both plains.
Here it comes, the “back in my day” story; when I first started working we used paper and pencils, I know what carbon paper is, we learned to type on a, wait for it, Typewriter! We were the beta group for video games and the products we have today in the workplace we called digital tools. Here is where it gets interesting. We speak both languages. Like the Tibetan Sherpa who can lead you through the mountains, we know what the boomers are talking about because we worked with that technology too.
Boomers are leaving the workplace in droves, as the workplace is slammed with a silver tsunami like none other. I mean have you looked at the openings for a city manager lately. Now there is an underserved area of employment, people just don’t look at that job as something they want to aspire to be. Along with countless management, people from finance to analyst it is getting easier for a great service like careers in government to keep their pages filled with opportunities.
One of the most valuable assets of an employee is their ability to lead and help disseminate information to the staff. More than most of the abilities we may have in our toolbox, this is one that is not sold clearly enough. Take for instance a job opportunity where the candidate is a Generation X person who is applying for a position in local government to eventually take the place of a Boomer who needs to pass on the torch and impart their hard earned wisdom on the next wave of upper middle management. Would you, as the hiring person, want a person who could communicate effectively with the source? I know I would and would welcome the opportunity not to have to hire again in a couple of months when the two just could not find middle ground.
Therefore, maybe it is time we X’ers check the multiple language box on the application. When asked you can say, “I am fluent in Boom and Y!” who knows maybe the answer back from across the table will be “Groovy.” Now wouldn’t that just be #Awesome!
