(hint: one works, the other doesn't).

Here's the thing about water.

Is a multigenerational workforce an opportunity or a threat? It might be up to HR. Research is clear on this: it depends on how that age diversity is managed and the workplace culture that surrounds it. Really. That is the linchpin on all of this, which means it’s entirely up to your organization to do what it takes to turn what most see as frustration into an incredibly valuable human capital asset.

The phrase “milestones of adulthood” paints maturity as an objective concept anchored in the rites of passage of marrying, purchasing a home, and having children. Yes, for past generations, those have been common benchmarks that occur as one passes through life, but the article is based on what I consider a number of flawed premises. First, the assumption that not checking those boxes represents some personal failure and symbolizes a lack of maturity. Second, the assumption we are anchored to a static definition of growing up and adulthood.

My latest is a simple reframe, a tactic to help with our second Gentelligence practice, Adjusting the Lens. I try to avoid scripts, as there’s no one best way to lead or manage people, regardless of generation. But in the spirit of jumpstarting a smarter intergenerational conversation, I present a few Gentelligence phrases for you to try instead of judgment.

If you don’t want to hire Gen Z (that’s an entire generation made up of 69.3 million people in the United States alone) then I’m not sure what the talent strategy is here. Skip over 15 years of workforce? Is the plan to wait for the next generation because you don’t like this one?

The norms Gen Z is bringing to the workplace are a product of many interacting realities, not the least of which was a global pandemic that impacted education, development, and upended workplace practices everywhere. This is our first generation to begin their careers in a hybrid/remote/post-COVID/mid-AI world of work. Do they have things to learn and improve upon? Of course. Is name calling and alienating them a good way to build the trust needed to teach them? Again, no.

Here’s the most practical generational expertise I can offer: if you want collaboration and learning across generations, you must build a workplace culture that supports it.

Need a practical way to improve your generational communication in the workplace? Let me introduce one of my favorite tools: The 3rd Conversation. Enter the 3rd Conversation Here is how to use my 3rd Conversation tool to improve intergenerational communications. This involves using some of the Gentelligence Power Questions and the 4 Gentelligence Practices