Baby Boomers and Millennial - Coursework Example

Relative effects of intrinsic and extrinsic motivational factors on baby boomers and millennial Submission: Introduction Today’s employers have two very different groups of employees to manage. Baby boomers are people who were born after the World War II between 1946 and 1964 (Hudson & Gonyea, 2012). Millennial Generation refers to the demographic group born in early 1980s to around 2000 (Gilbert, 2011). The oldest millennial generation members who are now approaching 30 are taking their place in the workplace. In the meantime, the oldest Baby Boomer generation members are entering career dusk laden with doubt. In the next ten years, the Millennial will be the leading demographic force in the United States while a majority of the Boomers will be past the retirement age. Every person would want to be motivated in one way or another. Employers must recognize the needs of both the millennial and baby boomers in order to come up with ways to motivate them. By identifying what motivates every group, and knowing their strengths, employers can create a state that profits both groups of workers. Millennial and Boomers motivations Both the Millennial and Boomers have different motivations. Some of the motivations of millennial include the need to achieve something significant at work and staying in one job so as to expand their skills. They are familiar with the dynamic of teamwork and like the appreciation that comes with a job well done. They also do not want the constant stress that their parents experience from long hours at the workplace (Gilbert, 2011). On the other hand, boomers take pride in what they have achieved such as building careers and starting families. They are a restless bunch that wants more in their careers and desire to convey their wisdom to the new generation. They also want to reduce their work lives and retire satisfied that they accomplished what they embarked to do (Hudson & Gonyea, 2012). How to motivate baby boomers Baby boomers comprise more than a quarter of the US workforce. It is essential that organizations must understand these employees and ways to connect with them. The following are some tips on the ways to motivate baby boomers as per Jurkiewicz and Brown (1998): Opportunities to mentor younger employees: Baby boomers seek meaning and balance and providing them with opportunities to teach younger generations will mean a lot to them. They will share their experiences and transfer knowledge to younger employees helping them build their skills. Encourage them to attend professional associations: Baby boomers enjoy to network with coworkers and maintaining a professional connection with other people. Providing challenges: These employees like to expand their abilities and involving themselves in projects that will gain them appreciation. Involve them in making decisions: These employees appreciate transparency and democracy, and their skills will be helpful when decisions are needed. Retirement opportunities: Many baby boomers push back retirement because of the hard economic times that have been there in the last few years. Organizations need to offer them a good send-off package to encourage them retire. How to motivate millennial There are strong similarities between millennial and the other generations concerning what they want in their place of work. However, these employees are different and there are various ways in which employers can motivate them (Downing, 2006). Helping them grow: Organizations must understand the ambitions of millennial. The managers need to put them on rotational assignments for them to have a vast experience. They must be challenged to develop new ways of how to do new things and to exercise creativity. Understanding them: It is critical to comprehend how to deal with generational disparities. The management of organizations must segment their workforce so as to understand what millennial want and how their needs are different from other employees. Allow them to learn: These employees require undergoing as much training as necessary. The organization must build and measure the usefulness of mentoring programs along with other learning programs. Training will ensure that millennial gain enough skills to make them proficient in their roles. Allow them to know their progress: Millennial requires feedback from their employers. Organizations must ensure that they give them honest feedback in a timely manner. They need to emphasize the positive contributions that millennial have done and also point out the issues they need to correct. Allow Millennial to advance faster: Millennial value results over tenure. They may get frustrated with the time taken to move up the career ladder. These employees want career progress much more quickly compared to the older generations. For the high achievers, it is important for the management to give them an opportunity to rise on the career ladder. A simple thing such as adding grades can be enough to motivate Millennial. Effects of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation Extrinsic motivation is practiced by many organizations to help improve performance. It may involve the giving of attractive compensations such as salary, insurance, and bonuses. Intrinsic motivation can be done by providing promotions, recognition, training, and development (Lunenburg, 2011). Praising employees for doing well is on of the best ways to do intrinsic motivation. It is a priceless tool used to motivate employees because they are motivated if what they do interest them. Employee motivation concerns very many leaders and managers of organizations. Employees who do not get motivation are not likely to spend most of their efforts on their jobs. They are likely to avoid their workplace and leave the organization if they get an opportunity. Employees who are motivated are likely to be unrelenting, imaginative and productive (Lunenburg, 2011). An employee who is motivated by the manager performs better in their roles. They even perform better if the manager acknowledges the role and provides clear instruction. An organization’s mission statement helps employees to understand the definition of success. Employees who are motivated perform better (Downing, 2006). When one gets a reward for a job well done, they will strive to perform better in the future to receive more rewards. Motivations help to retain employees by improving their loyalty to the organization (Lunenburg, 2011). When employees feel that an organization recognizes their efforts, they tend to decide to work for that organization for as long as possible. On the other hand, if an organization fails to motivate employees, they tend to look for the places where they will feel appreciated. Conclusion Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation plays a significant role in influencing the performance of baby boomers and millennial. Employers must find ways to motivate their employees as motivation help employees to increase productivity and be at places of work in a timely manner. Employees who are not motivated may look for other jobs where their efforts will be appreciated. References Downing, K. (2006). Next generation: What leaders need to know about the millennials. Leadership in Action, 26(3), 3-6. Gilbert, J. (2011). The Millennials: A new generation of employees, a new set of engagement policies. Ivey Business Journal, 75(5), 26-29. Hudson, B., & Gonyea, G. (2012). Baby boomers and the shifting political construction of old age. The Gerontologist, gnr129. Jurkiewicz, L., & Brown, G. (1998). Generational comparisons of public employee motivation. Review of public personnel administration, 18(4), 18-37. Lunenburg, C. (2011). Expectancy theory of motivation: motivating by altering expectations. International Journal of management, business, and administration, 15(1), 1-6. Read More