In 2008, Penna and the CIPD’s members began to come to terms with the reality and impact of generational diversity, and started looking for ways to benefit from the skills and motivations of different generations. Penna and the CIPD decided to help them by gaining an indepth understanding of what individuals in the workplace want from their careers and what employers are doing to respond.
Coming out of this, the business case for managing generational diversity effectively is clear:
• Broader talent pools from which to recruit
• Creativity and innovation fostered from generational interaction
• The risk of not managing this diversity can be misunderstanding between members of the workforce, leading to conflict and disengagement.
To take advantage of the opportunities, employers must embrace generational diversity and ensure they have meaningful people strategies and practices in place. Penna and the CIPD's study aimed to add to the existing knowledge, help organisations to gain a greater understanding of their workforce and ultimately to improve business performance.
Click here to view the report.