Gen Yers are coming into their own. Now making up the largest segment of the workforce at 80 million strong, many are new managers. With so many Baby Boomers holding off on retirement, these new Gen Y managers often must direct people their parents' age—and older. Vast differences in communication styles, job expectations, and management techniques mean that Gen Yers have much to learn when it comes to managing those of their parent's generation, including:
- How to respond to an older employee who believes his seniority guarantees a promotion and raise, even though his work performance has been below average
- What to do when a younger manager relies on e-mail, texting, and IMing to communicate with coworkers, and his older employee prefers face-to-face communication
- How to demonstrate leadership and gain respect from the employees who already have years of rich business experience in the workplace