Rod Holmes

Conflict Management and Generation Gaps Conflict is normal in the workplace, but it could happen more often between two people of opposing generations. Understanding how to manage conflict across the generations will help to reduce the confrontation and perhaps avoid them in the future. This module will teach you the following:  Younger bosses managing older workers  Avoid turnover with a retention plan  Breaking down the stereotypes Let us begin with our first topic of younger bosses managing older workers. Younger Bosses Managing Older Workers Managing older employees could be a source for conflict. Older employers may feel they should be in charge or that you lack experience. The key to avoiding conflict with an older employee is to demonstrate respect and showing them that they are valued. Use the ACE technique in avoiding conflict with your older employees. ACE stands for the following process:  Acknowledge your older employee’s experience and the value they bring to the team. Older employees may feel as if they are no longer valuable because of their age. Show them you value them by reflecting on their achievements and contributions to the team.  Caring for your older employee comes in many ways. Become interested with their personal life or hobbies. Take note of special things that took place in their lives. Show interest in their family and listen to them when they talk and mirror back what they have said to show you were listening.  Exchange ideas and ask for input from your older employees on issues and demonstrate that you value their opinions and solutions. Implement good ideas and give them recognition. When you implement their ideas, your older employee will be more willing to take in your ideas. Create a give-and-take environment between you and your older employee. Avoid Turnovers with a Retention Plan Avoiding turnover is easier when you are prepared. If you let turnover surprise you, then you are not paying attention to your environment. Whenever you are speaking with your employees, always attempt to gauge their level of engagement with their job and try to determine any issues before it is too late. A retention plan should be made for each of your employees. You can make it as specific or general based on your needs. Here are some things to consider when creating a retention plan for your employees based on generational traits:  Determine what values this person has based on their generational trait. Think of things that could be a motivating factor like schedule flexibility, incentives and recognition.  Prepare several focused questions that may lead to underlying issues. For example, you may ask questions about the reasons why they are dissatisfied with their job. Be frank with your employees and tell them that you want to keep them and will set up a follow up meeting to discuss possible solutions.  Ask questions about their personal goals and career milestones and see how you can help them achieve them.  Be ready to become an advocate for your employee. This means that you may need to do some research or speak with key people in human resources to help find more solutions.  Work with your human resource contact to develop a retention plan. They can give you solutions that are aligned with your company’s policies. Breaking Down the Stereotypes Stereotypes are formed when there is lack of information from the other side. Stereotypes are difficult to break because the thought process is difficult to detect. The best way to address stereotypes is to get your team involved in activities that helps build the team and places them in a situation that challenges all the participants. For example, you can have your team take on a project that you team never done before. Perhaps you can engage your team with a friendly competition with another group of department where the focus is on the team. Many activities can challenge your team. When your team is challenged, their best traits will come through. You may encounter resistance at first, but your job is to coach them through it. Once you are done with your activity, hold a debrief meeting to spotlight the team and their achievement. Share commonalities that span the entire team. Finally, relate those commonalities to work related activities like project work, etc. Embrace the Hot Zone When dealing with generation gap issues, there is a hot zone that you must recognize and address. The hot zone is an area you know there is conflict. It could be between two employees or groups within your team. Take a moment and jot some of these ideas down:  First, you must acknowledge the hot zone exists. Ignoring it could result to more widespread hot zones.  Next, you should engage the hot zone as soon as possible and provide feedback to all the parties involved.  Set expectations with your employees on how to handle future conflicts.  Hold one-on-one coaching with each employee involved in the hot zone and have him or her come up with ideas on how to make things better avoiding hot zone issues. Treat Each Other as a Peer Treating each other as peers requires some key behaviors that demonstrate this characteristic. It is not enough to tell your employees to treat each other as peers. They need a guideline and coaching in order to achieve this. The CARE model is a good way to start this process and they should be coached at the individual level. CARE stands for the following behaviors:  Collaborate. Your team should be exposed to an environment where ideas are exchanged and at times challenged. Set ground rules in your meetings on how to handle disagreements. Encourage other points of view. Make sure all participants are involved. Be fair in your assessments and use objective means to determine the best ideas.  Acknowledge. Teach your team to acknowledge each other’s value. In addition, teach them how to deliver the feedback. Do not assume they know how to do this. Remember that feedback is behavior-based.  Respect. Teach your team how to show respect to each other by using proper greetings and posture towards each other. Set the expectation that derogatory remarks about age are not tolerated by anyone.  Equal. Teach your team that all members of the team are equal in value and contribution they bring. Age is not a factor. Create a Succession Plan A succession plan is a map of the career path for your employee. When you create a succession plan, you give that employee something to focus on in terms of a career goal. When they are focused on a plan, they will be less susceptible to conflict because they are doing what it takes to achieve the goals of this plan. Building a succession plan takes time. It requires you to know the personal goals of your employee and their gaps. You also have to be committed to their succession plan. If you do not show commitment, your employee will disengage and may become frustrated and confrontational. Here are some tips to creating a succession plan:  Determine a clear career goal  Make sure it is a real goal  Make sure it is attainable  Make sure it is time driven  Consult with your human resources department to determine what their requirements are  Consult with the head of the department if the career path takes them to another area  Determine any educational requirements and provide guidance  Set up a mentor program with someone currently doing what they want to achieve  Track their progress  Meet with them periodically to specifically discuss their progress on their succession plan