Leading Across Generations: Building Inclusive Workplaces in a Multigenerational Era
Laura Hopper, Dominique Roche, and Erica Armstrong
Walk into any workplace today and you’ll find something unique in our history: four generations (sometimes even five) working side by side. From Baby Boomers to Gen Z, our teams represent not only different stages of life, but also distinct cultural touchpoints, technological fluencies, and workplace expectations.
Why does this matter? Because how we navigate these differences will determine whether our workplaces become sources of friction or engines of innovation and belonging.
Why Talk About Multigenerational Workforces?
Our brains are hardwired to group and categorize as a way of making sense of the world. One way our brains do this in the workplace is by thinking in terms of generations. While no label perfectly captures the diversity of individuals, generational lenses can give us clues about how people’s formative experiences shape their expectations, needs, and preferences.
Today, we know that diversity on teams, including generational diversity, is increasing. Research shows that as diversity increases, performance may dip before it rises again. The turning point comes when teams achieve not just diversity, but true inclusion and heterogeneity, where differences become assets rather than obstacles. The acknowledgement and awareness that ageism is likely to take place in workplaces that are generationally diverse is also an important step in moving overcoming challenges.
The key is empathy: understanding how others see the world and valuing those perspectives as much as our own. As historian and workplace researcher Dr. Eliza Filby (Articles — Eliza Filby) has observed, employees are more likely to empathize with colleagues of different races, genders, or political views than they are with people from a different generation. Bridging this gap requires intention and authenticity.
How Work Is Changing
The challenge of leading across generations is amplified by the transformation of work itself. The last few decades, and especially the pandemic, reshaped expectations of when, where, and how we work.
- New arrangements: Flexible schedules, shortened workweeks, hybrid models, and remote work are now part of the mainstream.
- Shifting expectations post-COVID: Boomers and Gen X often express a stronger pull toward in-person collaboration, citing the loss of informal interactions, though many still embraced remote work positively. Millennials and Gen Z place high value on flexibility and mental health supports, but also report feeling social isolation without connection to colleagues. Across all generations, the pandemic highlighted the universal need for clarity, belonging, and purpose.
- More diverse teams: Not just in age, but in culture, lived experience, values, and personality, requiring leaders to adapt to multiple perspectives at once.
- Blurred boundaries: The lines between home and work are increasingly fluid, with technology enabling constant connectivity.
- Technology leaps: Rapid innovation requires constant adaptation, often led by younger digital natives but affecting everyone.
- Values alignment: Employees increasingly want work that reflects their personal values and purpose.
- Nonlinear careers: Traditional ladders are giving way to lattices, career pivots, retraining, and fluid role shifts are now expected.
Taken together, these shifts underscore that work is no longer one-size-fits-all. People’s responses vary depending on generation, life stage, and personal priorities, making empathy and adaptability critical leadership skills.
Understanding the Generations
Generations are often defined by the events, technologies, and cultural shifts experienced during the formative ages of 12 to 24. Consider how Boomers grew up getting news once a day from newspapers or TV, versus Gen Z, who receive instant updates in the palm of their hands. The difference in expectations around speed, access, and communication is enormous.
Baby Boomers (1946–1965)
- Shaped by post-war growth, the Civil Rights movement, and early recessions.
- Value stability, hierarchy, and professionalism.
- Bring deep institutional knowledge but may need support with rapid tech changes.
- Recognition tied to tenure and loyalty.
Gen X (1965–1980)
- The “latch-key kids” of dual-income households and early PCs.
- Independent, adaptable, and pragmatic.
- Appreciate autonomy and accountability; steady but less vocal advocates for change.
- Often in senior roles, with high retention risk as they near retirement.
Millennials (1981–1996)
- Came of age during 9/11, the internet boom, and the 2008 financial crisis.
- Purpose-driven, feedback-seeking, and tech-forward.
- Expect flexibility, growth opportunities, and inclusive cultures.
- Entered the pandemic as the next leaders and emerged feeling overlooked.
Gen Z (1997–2012)
- Digital natives shaped by social media, climate change, and global uncertainty.
- Expect authenticity, equity, and transparency from leaders.
- Prioritize mental health and wellness alongside meaningful work.
- Seek real-time feedback, growth, and modern tools.
Beyond Generations: The Kaleidoscope of Work
While generations help us understand broad patterns, they don’t tell us everything about the people on our teams. The Kaleidoscope Career Model (Mainiero & Sullivan, 2006) reminds us that people, regardless of age, value three things, though in different measures at different times:
- Authenticity: Alignment between values and work.
- Balance: Integration between personal and professional life.
- Challenge: Stimulating work with autonomy and responsibility.
What matters most shifts with life stage, personal values, and career goals.
Lessons for Leaders
So, how can leaders harness the power of generational diversity while avoiding the pitfalls of oversimplification?
- See the person, not the label. Generations are helpful starting points, not boxes. Take time to learn what each team member values: authenticity, balance, challenge, or something else.
- Foster connection. Build empathy across differences by encouraging people to share their experiences, skills, and perspectives.
- Adapt your communication. Use multiple modes (face-to-face, digital, visual, written) recognizing that preferences differ.
- Enable knowledge transfer. Create opportunities for colleagues to share strengths, whether that’s someone’s institutional memory or another’s fluency with AI tools.
- Create belonging. Inclusion isn’t just about representation; it’s about helping people feel seen, valued, and understood.
The Bottom Line
The workforce has never been more diverse, by generation, background, and worldview. That diversity is powerful if leaders know how to unlock it. The opportunity is not just to “manage” a multigenerational team but to leverage it, turning differences into an engine of creativity, resilience, and advantage.
The future of work isn’t just multigenerational. It’s multi-everything. And the leaders who thrive will be the ones who know how to turn empathy into action.
Want to read more?
Forge Your Own Career Path With the Kaleidoscopic Career Model
Even millennials are becoming victims of ageism as Gen Z take over the office
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Kirkman, B. L., Cordery, J., Mathieu, J. E., Rosen, B., & Kukenberger, M. (2013). Global organizational communities of practice: The effects of nationality diversity, psychological safety, and media richness on community performance. Human Relations, 66(3), 333-362. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726712464076