Cross-Generational Leadership: Collaborating and Communicating in a New World

From webcasting and text messaging to chat rooms and blogs, there has probably never been more diversity in the ways in which we can communicate and collaborate at work. New technologies and the rise of social networking have provided new platforms and created new opportunities for expanding our reach and getting things done. Our President-elect used technology to reach out to a broader group of Americans, bringing millions of new voters into the electoral process. Businesses have the same opportunity to expand their reach and increase the impact of their internal communication.

Especially in today’s economy, the option of having a meeting online without flying people around the globe is appealing. And, in a tip of the hat to work life balance, these meetings can be conducted at any time from home or work. When used in the workplace, these new tools can dramatically increase our efficiency and reach. But, if used exclusively, they can limit participation and feedback — exactly the opposite of what the tools are intended to do. As you may have noticed, not everyone is comfortable using these new technologies and, no matter how much of a fan you are, technology will never be a substitute for face-to-face interaction. Some of the things that are very important to how we communicate — body language, tone, eye contact — are lost or greatly diminished in email or video conferencing.

The shift toward a more virtual office climate for a global workforce and a focus on bottom-line cost containment are just two reasons why organizations have evolved to using technology and tools for communications. But that is not the only reason. The preference for different modes of communication is generational. The Baby Boomers prefer face-to-face, high touch meetings. Gen Xers and Ys, are much more virtual and, in fact, don’t see the value in "high touch" collaboration. Rather they have been wired from an early age and often prefer to communicate via email or text messages. And as the Boomers are moving on, the Gen Xers and Ys are beginning to influence communication modes more and more.

I experience this shift every week. One example was a recent speaking engagement at a University where the audience represented both students and Alumni. I took some advice from someone in the Y Generation and decided to poll the audience, not by asking the audience to raise their hand (as I had done in the past) but rather by sending a text message. It was amazing to see the extraordinary number of responses and level of engagement I was able to create based on this new way of collaborating.

In contrast, I spoke at a forum of senior executives who represented the Boomer Generation just a week later and the format was face-to-face with back and forth sharing of ideas and perspectives in a more round-table group discussion format that went on for 3 hours. I think both sessions worked in terms of encouraging participation and collaboration because the communication mode was adapted to the audience.

In another twenty years, these differences will not be as apparent. But today, we have a unique chasm between "old school" communication and new school technology. Neither is right or wrong — and each has its advantages and disadvantages. I encourage people not to forget that effective communications is creating the greatest connectivity between one individual or several. It’s building the "right" bridge of communications to meet people where they are. The challenge is to blend the different forms of communication in a way that excludes no one and encourages as many ideas as possible. Not only will individual team members feel valued and have more buy-in, but the entire team will be richer and more successful for having had the benefit of everyone’s thinking.

Here are some tips for managing cross-generational communication at work:

• Understand your audience. Who are they? How do they prefer to communicate? Do they respond best to electronic or face-to-face communication?
• Understand your goals. What is the best medium to have the greatest impact on what you want to achieve?
• Beware of over emailing and text messaging. While email and text messaging can be efficient, they are not always effective. How many times have you wished you hadn’t hit the send button? How many times have you received an email or text message and wondered what was really being said? When you need to have a difficult conversation or you need to have a conversation with a relationship that is important to you, the best way to communicate is to make the effort to walk to their office or meet them for coffee to have that face-to-face conversation. This approach avoids sending and receiving misconstrued messages, and having to deal with repairing important relationships.
• Know when to use the different forms of communication. The most successful organizations will blend electronic and in-person interaction. Financial conditions will require less travel, more technology. Utilize these tools when it makes the most sense — when a meeting is more pragmatic, for example. When conveying visionary messages or those that might be more sensitive or emotional in nature, turn off the technology and place the priority on in-person interaction.
• Lead by example. By blending the different forms of communication successfully, you will send an important message to the members of your team and even help them become more comfortable with their least preferred communication methods. The Boomer generation needs to embrace technology. Gen Xers and Ys need to get away from their computer screens and learn the value of face-to-face communication. For each of these generations, change will be hard and is something they will naturally resist. Showing that you value both new and old forms of communication will encourage members of your team to do so as well.

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