The Rise of Generation X: A Product of Fast Foods and Instant Satisfaction

Generation Xers were born during the time era of fast foods and instant satisfaction. From 1960 to the early part of 1980, was the sudden emergence of new technologies and every kid was somehow oriented with video games and computers. Thus the Xers lived to be techno literate and entrepreneurial. In addition to it, this era was a struggling economy with soaring divorce rates. Parents tend to separate and this made the Xers to assemble a new circle of family through their friends.

They were the most attention-deprived and one of those neglected kids for the long time that’s why they grew up to be self-reliant. Macalister (1994) claimed that Generation Xers are looking for the good-looking job. They want to work somewhere unique, interesting and different, not at a job which their friends might consider dull. They are multitasking and don’t want to be closely supervised. The background and family orientation of Baby Boomers and Xers are really different.

Boomers consider Xers to be indolent because of the latter’s easy going attitude (Filipczak, 1994).

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They tend to follow a certain line of authority and expects their hard work to pay off after a few years. For them, employees who don’t stick to their jobs are selfish and opportunists. This is contradicting to the Xers, who are flexible, spontaneous and known for their love for good job. From a Xers view, Coolidge (1997) claimed that Xers have watched their parents sacrifice for a company that sheds half its workers every five years.

For today’s young workers, doing the same does not make sense. Generation Xers feel the Baby Boomers spent too much time partying and messing up the world that they have inherited. Now, the Xers have to fix it, and they see the Boomers as being in their way. This has made them very cynical (Losyk, 1997). No matter how vintage or skillful an employee, the management should realize that they need potential workers in the organization thus there is a need for them to bridge the gap between the young and old.

They must make the young ones understand that they benefit from the rich experience of the older workforce. At the same time, the older ones need to grasp the idea of drive and change from the younger ones. These can be done if the management will establish a conducive and friendly workplace. As they say, “People are your organization’s most important asset. Ensuring that your workplace is where the brightest and best of each generation wants to be is your biggest competitive edge. ” Assign people based on their traits and qualifications.

Don’t give the young and talented jobs with little growth potential. Rotate people’s positions so they can enrich their experiences and understand the needs of other people and departments. Also provide training and development opportunities to all categories of employees to help them grow and maintain their loyalty. Use the results of fair and generally accepted appraisal methods to support all Human Resource policies and decisions. The basic key to resolve the generation gap is through understanding that each and every one is unique.

Respecting people’s feelings, time and space is always the right approach to take when working with others (Raz, 2000 http://). Nagle (2000 http://) stated that it is better if Baby Boomers and Generation Xers will be familiarize with each other’s background to fully understand their attitude and style. And, at the very best, understanding them may begin remove or at least lessen the conflict and hostility that exists between the generations Nagle (2000 http://) stated that it is better if Boomers and Generation Xers be familiarize with each other to have a better working relationship.

And, at the very best, understanding them may begin to remove or at least lessen the conflict and hostility that exists between the generations, hence will result to a beneficial environment not only to the organization but to the individuals as well.

References

Coolidge, S. D. (1997, July. 8). I’m new; when’s vacation?

Christian Science Monitor, 89(155), 1. Filipczak, B. (1994, April. ).

It’s just a job generation X at work. Training, 21-27. Losyk, B. (1997, May).

Generation X. Current, (392), 9-13. Macalister, K. (1994, May). The X generation. HR Magazine, 39(5), 66-70.Nagle, T. (2000, July. 24).

Coaching Generation X [On-line] http://www. coachingandmentoring. com/Articles/x’s. html Raz, T. (2000, July. 24).

Are You Talking About Me? [On-line] <http://www. myprimetime. com/work/life/content/intergenerational/index. shtml> Zemke, R. , Raines, C. , & Filipczak, B. (1999, November. ).

Generation Gaps in the classroom. Training, 48-54. Zemke, R. , Raines, C. & Filipczak, B. (2000).

Generations At Work Managing the Clash of Veterans, Boomers, Xers, and Nexters in Your Workplace.

New York: American Management Association.