Ep216 Porschia Parker-Griffin - Bridging the Generation Gap: Effective Leadership Strategies for Today's Multi-Generational Workplace

Porschia Parker-Griffin 0:00

Multi generational workplace issues can be an undercurrent when it comes to what's going on in an organization. Really encouraging a collaborative culture and communication style is really important.

Mike O'Neill 0:15

Welcome to get unstuck and on target, the weekly podcast that offers senior leaders insights and strategies to not only lead with confidence and vision, but also to achieve groundbreaking results. I'm your host, Mike O'Neil. I coach top level executives on the power of ethical leadership to forge teams to be as united as they are effective in each episode, join me for insightful conversations with leaders just like you providing practical advice to help you get unstuck and propel you and your company forward. Let's get started. As an executive coach, I help leaders turn complexity into clarity, especially when it comes to building strong, high performing teams, one challenge that comes up again and again, leading across generations. In this episode, I'm joined by Porsche Parker Griffin, an expert in multi generational leadership and organizational culture, we unpack what it really takes to engage and retain top talent across age groups without falling into stereotypes or guesswork. What stood out most the reminder that better leadership starts with better questions. How do your people want to communicate? How they want to collaborate, if you're leading a diverse team and you want to lead it more effectively, this conversation is for you. Let's get into it. My guest today is Portia Parker Griffin. She's the founder and CEO of fly high coaching Porsche helps organizations attract, engage and retain top talent through customized coaching, training and consulting. She holds a Master's in industrial and organizational psychology, along with certifications in MBTI Hogan and the energy leadership index. She brings both strategic insight and practical tools to the table. She's also been recognized as a LinkedIn top voice and career expert, and she hosts the popular career 101 podcast. I've invited Portia to join the podcast because this is a topic that she's very, very familiar with, and that is, we're going to be diving into the challenge that many leaders face, but they oftentimes don't feel fully prepared for, and that is managing a multi generational workforce. Welcome Portia,

Porschia Parker-Griffin 2:53

thank you for having me. Mike. I'm excited to talk about this multi generational workforce. You know

Mike O'Neill 2:59

what? Let's just jump right in. You know, manager today are managing teams that can span four, maybe even five generations. But why has this topic become such a hot topic, and what, in your opinion, is really at the root of the friction?

Porschia Parker-Griffin 3:20

That's a great question. I think the multi generational workforce is definitely a hot topic, and I think it's for good reason. I think now more than ever, leaders and companies really know that they need high levels of engagement from their employees to reach their goals and subsequently increase their profitability, right? The people inside of the organization matter. We see technology change so quickly. Nowadays. We see economies change. Industries change very quickly, and the people are sometimes what is consistent, and you need the people to run the business so in that, with all the change going on, you have more generations in the workforce, as you pointed out, than before. You know, the kind of idea of reaching retirement age and riding off into the sunset is not the same as it was, you know, 1020, 30 plus years ago, so you have more people continuing to work, and then you just have a more diverse group of generations in the workforce. So people are seeing that, and one of the things that I say a lot Mike is that multi generational workplace issues can be an undercurrent when it comes to what's going on in an organization.

Mike O'Neill 4:47

I'm confident in this conversation. Regular listeners know this is an unscripted conversation, but I know that we're going to be describing some common characteristics, if you would, and so I. Want to avoid the appearance that we're stereotyping generations per se. But there are, there are a lot of big myths out there, you know, I mean, you hear it, you know, boomers are resistance to change. You know, Gen Zs, they lack a work ethic. You know, millennials, they always needs praise. But what is, in your opinion, what's the biggest misconceptions that leaders need to unlearn?

Porschia Parker-Griffin 5:26

Ooh, that could be a whole podcast episode. Mike, and you make a great point, there are a lot of generational stereotypes out there. And you know, as I'm talking today, I think that the bigger picture is to understand that there are commonalities among people in the same generation. And of course, everyone is a unique individual at the same time, and so some of the preferences and similarities are usually kind of consistent among a generation in a group. So holding that duality at the same time as we have that conversation is really important. So thank you for pointing that out. I really think that one of the biggest overarching takeaways from stereotypes that people get when it comes to generations is they're not like us. They don't understand me, right? And the specifics of that can change. So to your point, you know a lot of boomers, a stereotype is that they are resistant to change, right? And also perhaps judgmental of other people and other groups, kind of blindly trusting organizations and established processes, right? Not necessarily true of every Boomer, but a lot of boomers have had, perhaps that experience, and it appears that way from other generations, right? So I think you know the big picture is that, you know, the unlearning that could go on is thinking that people are so different from you because they're in a different generation, and that because they are, they don't understand you. And I find that that's not necessarily true

Mike O'Neill 7:20

in terms of your work with clients, there's multiple paths we could take. One of the thoughts I had is we could talk about the different communication styles of the generations, and specifically, I'm referring to the people who are listening or leaders to this podcast. These are leaders, and kind of asking, all right, what do I do to be a more effective leader? I noted kind of communication styles, and then, to some extent, what might very well be described as almost motivational strategies. How might I adapt that would appeal to what extent are those things that leaders, we leaders, should be concerned about.

Porschia Parker-Griffin 8:05

You are very astute, Mike, because communication styles and preferences are one of the top things that we see working with organizations, but also that was highlighted in a study. So LinkedIn does a global talent trends study, and a few years ago, they were talking about the multi generational workforce, and they really highlighted three top challenges, and communication style was one of the three. So I see that in organizations. I'm sure you've seen that. And you know, that was seen when they surveyed, I think it was 1000s, maybe around 7000 people. So what can you do about the communication to your point as a leader, I think some of the big picture things that most organizations can really focus on, having a more collaborative culture, right, that encourages communication at all levels, and really promote an environment where everyone can contribute. So I think this is very important to think about when it comes to the multi generational piece, because a lot of generations necessarily didn't have the same outlook on work and on the structure and hierarchy of work. So that idea of what's collaborative and what's not collaborative can be very different between generations. So for example, a lot of baby boomers were used to a more hierarchical environment, kind of top down communication, perhaps not the bottom up communication, the, you know, Secretary or administrative assistant didn't necessarily talk to the leaders and the executive team, you know, in a kind of open and honest way. I. Um, however, a lot of other generations, and when I say a lot, I mean millennials and Gen Z, or specifically, they believe that that communication should be happening pretty much all the time. It should be consistent, and it should go bottom up, right, so everyone should be able to collaborate in that way. So that's just an example, but really encouraging a collaborative culture and communication style is really important.

Mike O'Neill 10:31

So let's go with that. Collaboration and communication. We'll stick with those two. C's. What could you offer our viewers and listeners. It doesn't matter which one you choose, collaboration or communication, but what might be some practical things that you would suggest that leaders be mindful of when it comes to being mindful of adapting to generations without stereotyping?

Porschia Parker-Griffin 11:01

Great question. So there's a lot of overlap between communication and collaboration. So I think some of these suggestions can kind of work in both scenarios. The first thing I recommend that people do is ask others about their preferred method of communication, instead of just assuming right based on their age or other factors. While we know you know that you know some generations primarily might have a preference, asking is really important, also really discussing communication and personality preferences as well, openly and honestly amongst you know your colleagues or your entire team is is something else that I think is really important to zero in on. And from what I've seen with most organizations, they don't have those conversations, right? There's a lot of times either a culture on a team or a culture within an organization, and everyone just kind of runs with whatever that culture is, right, good, bad or indifferent. And so no one steps back to kind of ask these sorts of questions, which can have a really big impact on a lot of areas of a business or a team.

Mike O'Neill 12:25

What I'm hearing thus far Porsche is you're encouraging us to understand that there are potential patterns that could be assigned to given generations, but you really pointed out very keenly, and that is but don't assume that that applies to the employee that is right in front of you. And what I love about what you said, it's just practical. How do you prefer to communicate? For us to communicate? How do you prefer us to collaborate? Put it back on them. And that's a great way to not only learn more about who you're working with, but how you might need to tailor We are five years past the pandemic. The world, however, has forever changed. Let's talk a little bit about hybrid work. Most organizations are kind of struggling with return to work or enabling hybrid. But for those who have taken, let's say, a hybrid approach, the employees may be in the office part of the time. They may be working remotely part of the time. In what way might these generational considerations be need to be taken to account when you're doing work as a team and it's hybrid, so we're talking about communication collaboration in a hybrid environment.

Porschia Parker-Griffin 13:54

Yeah, great question. So before I jump into that, I do want to talk a little bit about the generational trends in terms of what they've seen with the outlook on hybrid and remote work, good generally they have seen, when they've looked into it, that baby boomers and older Gen Xers tend to prefer more of the in office environment. They speculate that that's for quite a few reasons, and generally millennials, Gen Z ers and some of the younger Gen Xers tend to prefer a more hybrid environment, or a remote environment. So they have looked at that in terms of preferences now when it comes to how to thrive in in that hybrid environment or remote environment, or just ever changing right environment that we're in, to take it back to communication. In consistent communication is very important. It's also prioritized by a lot of younger generations. So millennials and Gen Zers, so they like organizations that encourage transparency and accessibility of management and executives. They want to know how they're doing. They want that feedback. And another kind of stereotype about millennials is that they always, you know, wanted praise, and they were always kind of looking for feedback. So on the other hand, a lot of boomers were more used to that annual performance review. That's when you hear about it, that's when you get your feedback, you take it, you process it, and you keep going, right? And so that is a very different kind of experience in terms of consistent communication or hearing about your feedback, hearing about, I should say, your performance, once a year. So in a hybrid remote environment, that communication has to be very quick a lot of times, right? So people are using some type of instant messaging service, Slack, emails, phone zoom, video. So it you know that communication could happen in a lot of different ways. It could be formal in terms of a standing meeting, or it could be informal in terms of, Hey Mike, let's just jump on a quick call, or let's just jump on a quick video meeting. So I think that that is one of the most important aspects to a hybrid or a remote environment to help it be successful.

Mike O'Neill 16:44

So if our listeners are leading a multi generational team, you're encouraging us to one. Don't buy into stereotypes, but be aware of what they might be. But to be sure, by simply asking, how do you prefer for us to interact? How would you like us to collaborate, our relationship as me, as your as your leader, what would be things that are important to you? So you're asking us to give consideration to that personalization, and part of that would be asking, you know, how do they want to be communicated with? But irrespective of the means you're saying that consistency is very important. Exactly. We've been talking about this multi generational challenge for a while we have studied it, we have attempted to kind of learn what those things are. Where have, in your opinion, where have we made progress?

Porschia Parker-Griffin 17:54

I think that we have made progress when it comes to one just understanding that there are differences, and starting the conversation to your point. So asking is important, and I think really getting to the root of how some of the you know, suggestions, changes, initiatives that might be started as a result of conversations, how they affect an organization's culture as a whole. And I think that that is really, really important at a high level for organizations, because that's going to impact employee retention, employee engagement, which some people aren't super familiar with engagement, but that's how enthusiastic you know Someone is about their work, in their workplace, their role, and all of this really leads to the bottom line. So sometimes Mike and I know that you have a really strong background in HR, I think sometimes when people hear these conversations, they think, Okay, this is a feel good conversation, right? You know, people will feel good after it, but does it really translate into ROI? Does it translate into a really meaningful business metric? And it does, you know, in that way, I know

Mike O'Neill 19:38

that was maybe a little bit tough question to ask, where we made progress, because it may be we've not made sufficient progress. My question is more along the lines of, people can sometimes just throw up their hands and say, it's just too complicated. I'm not able to mess with that. And I'm just trying to encourage our listeners that the more you're willing to invest. Interested in learning about the employees you lead, the better you are likely to be able to lead them more effectively, because you've done some of the things, if not all, the things that Porsche you're encouraging us as leaders to do, what might be some other things you would like to make sure that we know about when it comes about this multi generational challenge,

Porschia Parker-Griffin 20:26

yeah, so when they've done research, they've noticed that there are certain things that really help organizations When it comes to, you know, improving collaboration, productivity, performance of employees in all generations. And some of those things are, you know, for example, offering mentoring and coaching, right, as opposed to an authoritarian management style. Also really highlighting professional growth opportunities so the employees can see themselves and others like progressing and improving within an organization. I mentioned the consistent feedback, as opposed to, you know, only hearing about your performance once a year. Also, transparency is a really big topic across generations. So having that transparency within an organization, so that everyone can see you know what's going on and what difference a company is making, and incorporating those aspects into an organization's culture can really help when it comes to improving performance of all employees.

Mike O'Neill 21:48

You mentioned mentoring a few minutes ago, and I would think a lot of people would think of mentor. It would be someone older mentoring someone younger. But those roles could be reversed. Can they not absolutely

Porschia Parker-Griffin 22:02

reverse? Mentoring can be extremely helpful, and they have quite a few case studies of that. Mike, you know, having someone of a younger generation mentor someone of an older generation, and it could be on a variety of topics. It could be on technology. It could be on, you know, just other aspects that those in a different generation might not know as much about.

Mike O'Neill 22:36

You mentioned that if you were to do that, it would require the leader to kind of check the ego a little bit. But you used the word transparency a few minutes ago by just being open, you know, and that is, I'll, I'll use this for example. Let's say it's technology. If technology is kind of overwhelming you as a leader and you want to involve someone who who kind of gets that little bit better. It really is a situation where you are showing vulnerability to even knowledge that you're struggling with that. But when you begin interacting with this employee, they're going to see you with a new set of light, and in turn, you're going to see that employee in new ways, and so it really works in such a way that it can build rapport. I think I want to go back to something that you kind of touched on very, very briefly, and I want to go back to the hybrid work environment for a moment. Is it's complicated enough, but when you add the challenges of managing across generations, I've been reading more and more that what has led to a move to employees wanting to go back to work, not because they like the commute, not because they like The cubicle world, but what they have been finding is, if they're not physically there, they might not feel seen. They might not feel that what they're contributing is recognized, and that in practical terms, if I want to get promoted, they've concluded I need to be there. Speak to that. Have you seen that?

Porschia Parker-Griffin 24:24

Yes, in some instances, absolutely. And it is about visibility to your point. So people wonder, right if they are remote or hybrid, so just not in the office all the time, are their contributions being seen? Are their contributions being recognized? Yeah, that that is one of the top reasons why they have seen that people do want to be in the office, if that's their if that's their choice.

Mike O'Neill 24:57

No, you've worked with clients. You. Across industries, across size of organizations. But you do want to share a moment where this notion of unstuck comes in, where a leader or a organization kind of got stuck, particularly around this theme of a generationally diverse team. Can you think of an example where maybe you've helped either individual or a team kind of work through those issues?

Porschia Parker-Griffin 25:29

Yes, Mike and I will tell you about it. And this was actually our very first client, and this organization really helped me see that the multi generational aspect of the conversation is an undercurrent to what's going on. So this was an architecture and design firm, and the founder was a Gen Xer, and he and this was, you know, years ago now, prior to Gen Z, really, I think having the presence that they have now in the workforce and millennials were kind of seen as the the youngest generation out there, predominantly. And he this, this leader, after a workshop, he pulled me into a conference room, and he just started venting like and he started venting about one of his millennial employees who had gone on glass door and just given the organization a So, so rating. Um, they didn't say, Oh, the organization was bad, but they said, you know, oh, it's just kind of, you know, average. And I listened to one of your recent episodes with Katie Wagner, and that employer branding aspect is very important. And this owner had realized that this so so average rating out there on glass door was actually preventing them from hiring some of the candidates that they wanted, and he couldn't fathom why this employee that he saw regularly had never mentioned any of this to him, to their direct manager, but they felt comfortable putting this online, yes, and so that was the disconnect. And he said, you know, Portia, but how? How can she just put this online about us and not talk to us about it? And then that was my like, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. Moment Like, where I realized, you know, the preferences in communication style for a lot of millennials is different than the preference and communication style of a lot of Gen Xers, right? And he had other boomers on his leadership team. So that was just, I think, a very poignant example of communication to what we've been talking about when it comes to the different generations, but a challenge, right? And so in terms of working through that challenge, you know, we help them to do a few different things for our clients. You know, we customize solutions. We like to do organizational assessments. So, you know, surveys, what I call stakeholder interviews, we look at, you know, materials that they have. We look at training materials. We look at a lot of information to really come to some suggestions about culture, employee engagement and a lot of times leadership. Those are usually some of the three core pillars in our organizational assessment. But I think that that was a good example of a generational difference about communication that actually had a lasting impact in a lot of different ways than you would assume just someone putting up a review online.

Mike O'Neill 28:56

You know, Porsche, I love to kind of get your final takeaways. So assume for a moment that a leader is listening and they're feeling some sense of misalignment, or there's some breakdown in communication between generations. What would be one step that you would recommend that they take now? Oh,

Porschia Parker-Griffin 29:20

I think a good first step is to start a conversation. And I know we talked about this before, but who you start that conversation with, I think, is the is the big point here. So starting that conversation, it might not be to go directly to that employee, like in that example, I was saying it might be to go to another leader on the leadership team and ask them, you know, have they seen something similar? It might be to ask, you know, an executive coach like you, you know, have they noticed anything? It might be to, you know, start a conversation with an organizational Consulting. Farm like ours, but I think the first step is to start a conversation. Because what happens a lot of times, Mike is people ignore it, and it really snowballs. And it snowballs in a lot of different ways. So if you're seeing things and you're getting indicators, I think it's it's really important to start that conversation.

Mike O'Neill 30:23

I'm going to give credit to those folks who are regular listening subscribers. What we have found you use the word engagement. We're very fortunate. We have a high engagement level. And what does that mean? It means they start listening to an episode and they hear it to the end. So for those who have done just that to listen to this episode, and I asked the question, where should they start? You've already invested a half hour of your time as a leader to learn more from Porsche. That's a great way of doing that, you know. And closing, you know, I want to invite our listeners if this episode kind of hits close to home, here is your move. Think about one conversation that you've been putting off with a team member from a different generation, as Portia just said, take one step this week to bridge that gap. You know, I see this often in my work, managing across generations. It's not a passing concern, it's a critical leadership skill. Whether you turn to someone like Portia or you take steps internally, what matters is start the conversation. You know Porsche before we go. Where can listeners connect with you? Learn more about you and about your organization? Fly high coaching,

Porschia Parker-Griffin 31:44

Well, Mike, I think that the best place is our website, and that is fly F, l, y, dash, hi, H, I, G, H, coaching.com, we have a lot of information up there. You mentioned the podcast before, but we've got information on, you know, organizational consulting and how to start some of these conversations. I'm

Mike O'Neill 32:04

also going to point out you are very active on LinkedIn. I love your post. I enjoy reading. I oftentimes will like and comment on your posts because they're very substantive. So we will include not only your website link, but also your your LinkedIn profile for those who want to reach out that way as well. Thank you, Porsche. Thank you again, and for everyone who's tuning in, whether you're watching or listening, I hope this episode has helped you get unstuck and on target. Thank you for joining us for this episode of get unstuck and on target. I hope you gain insights to help you lead with confidence and drive your organization forward. Remember, at bench builders, we're committed to your success, your leadership excellence and your strategic growth. If you've enjoyed our conversation today, please leave a review, rate and subscribe to keep up with our latest episodes. This show really grows when listeners like you share it with others. Who do you know, who needs to hear what we talked about today? Until next time, I encourage you to stay focused on the target and continue to break new ground on your leadership path.

Speaker 1 33:32

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