Checklist: Accommodating a Multigenerational Workforce

By Nai Kanell
Director of Marketing
SpaceIQ

In today’s workplace, the age range of your staff may span 50 years—up-and-coming Millennials to veteran Baby Boomers. There are five distinct generations to accommodate, each with its own outlook on work and the workplace. Giving each group the tools to succeed and a workplace where they feel comfortable isn’t easy. To help you conquer what may seem like a Herculean task, SpaceIQ created the following.

Multigenerational workforce checklist as a roadmap:

• Step 1—Identify the generations present within your company and determine the breakdown of your workforce across each of these age groups.
  • The Silent Generation, born before 1946
  • Baby Boomers, born between 1946 and 1964
  • Gen-Xers, born between 1965 and 1980
  • Millennials, born between 1981 and 1996
  • Gen-Z, born after 1996
• Step 2—Gauge the variables you have control over and set standards for them. Try to be inclusive of all factors impacting a worker’s ability to do their best work in the right environment.
  • Working hours
  • Workspace types
  • Technical considerations
  • Management oversight
  • Task allocation and delegation
  • Praise and criticism
• Step 3—Listen to the needs of employees and their feedback, then share that feedback with the people who can make meaningful change. Collect information on key metrics such as:
  • Workplace cost per employee
  • Workplace Net Promoter Score (NPS)
  • Office space vs. employees
  • Occupancy
  • Employee friction
  • Real estate portfolio efficiency
  • Real estate agility
  • Service quality
• Step 4—Set the standards for your workplace (inclusive of all generations) and adapt your over time to support your ever-changing workforce:
  • Explore activity-based workspaces for different work habits
  • Make necessary desk accommodations specific to generational needs
  • Deploy technologies and training inclusive of all workers
  • Manage employees individually based on their reception to authority
  • Delegate tasks each generational worker is comfortable with and capable of
  • Define appropriate working hours and strategies to accommodate generations

Managing a multigenerational workplace takes a top-down approach. You’ll need to identify the generations present, understand their needs, set standards, and gauge your capacity for change. Recognizing staff diversity will help you empathize with their work environment expectations. Understanding generational needs and wants builds trust and confidence, which in turn incentivizes employees to do their best work.

Read more on the Multi-Generational Workplace and how to achieve success across generations.