Baby Boomers Vs. Generation X

By Ann Fishman

Most of what’s been happening in America since the end of World War II is based on Baby Boomer values, attitudes and lifestyles.  Now, Generation X is threatening the "Me Generation" values with not only a transition of power but more: a fresh change of course.

Here's a capsule of these two very different generations.  Baby Boomers are the 79 million who were born between 1943 and 1960.  Fewer than 68 million are alive today…ranging in age from 47 to 64 years.  Generation X are the 93 million who were born between 1961 and 1981.  More than 83 million are alive today…ranging in age from 26 to 46.  [2000 Census]    

Baby Boomer values have been so pervasive in America for so long that most of us have adopted their value system.  Now, we are in for a shock.  Generation X is replacing Boomer values with their own values, attitudes and lifestyles.  By 2008, Gen X, with help from the next younger generation, will be able to outvote all older generations combined.  Everything we know, everything we're used to, everything we do in Boomer style won't work once Xers take over.  An example for meeting planners - Boomers thrive on motivational speakers; Xers want speeches that give them information they cannot find in a book or on the Internet.

Hold onto your hats – the generational clash will affect you in ways you never thought about: at home, in the school system, in the workplace, in the marketplace, in the voting booth, in the environment, in retirement, in health care, in international affairs…everywhere.

For the next four days, we’ll explore Gen X (26-46) and Gen Y (25 years and younger) values and exchange ideas about how to make meetings tick for them. 

Comments

[Joan Eisenstodt]

Ann - Thrilled you are writing about these issues this week. As an industry trying to appeal to all generations - in the workplace and even more at meetings - these discussions will help us understand more.

[Rhea]

Sounds interesting. I will stay tuned. But I always say that for every arch conservative baby boomer, you also have an ecologist. The baby boomer demographic is so enormous that the values ascribed to its members do not nearly represent everyone.

[Rob Carey]

It's crazy--I am 36 years old, so I am firmly a Generation Xer, and yet the young adults I see just coming into the workplace are, to me, from another planet.
And seeing that they are only 12-14 years younger than me, I can't imagine how folks older than me can relate to them.
It's going to be a period of great change for the meetings landscape over the next five years.

[Randy Moser]

Loved what I read. It’s amazing how often the media get this information wrong. Most generational theorist delineate generation x from the Baby Boomers in 1964, not 61, but even still there are more Xers and Yers right now than Boomers. I wonder when the corporations will understand that…

Randy

[David]

As a Gen-Xer, I am growing dismayed at the transition in the work place. For years I have had to deal with traditionalist / Baby boomer values and hierarchy. As I approach the point where I should be benefiting from the system I was raised under, the rules are changing. For instance here are some of the things I see changing.

- In my early years my boss could yell at me, threaten me, or make rude comments and my only recourse was to take it or quit. Now that I have people working for me I have to be on pins and needles afraid they might misinterpret what I say even if I am being nice.
- For years I have had to walk across an empty parking lot of reserved parking spaces. Now that I was just promoted to a level that I am supposed to get a parking space, they are planning to do away with reserved spaces.
- I have been told I would get an office at the next promotion but after three promotions they have continued to raise the bar and convert more offices into cube farms.
- I was told I needed more years of experience to compliment my abilities. But now the trend is to mentor and promote younger generation Y employees.
- We were told we got lower pay because we had great retirement benefits but now retirement benefits (as with Social Security) look like they will be wiped out by the Baby boomers.
- We worked nine to ten hour days as the norm with twelve hour days whenever needed. Now we have generation Y employees working for us and Baby Boomer bosses that regret not spending more time with their families asking we send the younger employees out the door after eight hours but still maintain the same productivity.

We also need to consider that the Baby Boomers will take a long time to vacate the upper management slots they are holding. Generation Xers will have a long wait to take over those slots and will be ready for retirement themselves by the time they do finally wrestle control from the baby boomers. And at that time there will be a massive wave of Generation Y employees on their tails trying to take over.

The relative size of the Generation X pool as compared to the Boomers and Yers will make it hard for Generation X to ever establish its own culture in many companies. While Innovation, hard work and drive for success have been received well by companies like Microsoft and SouthWest Airlines, many companies find these Generation X attributes to be non conducive to a “team environment”. At one time the Generation X employees had an ally in the Traditionalist who also had an aggressive pro work attitude but they are all but gone. Generation Xers who thrived on the ability to out perform their technology challenged older coworkers are now finding themselves rated on popularity and other social considerations. In a stereotypical example: In the 80s and 90’s the twenty something Generation Xer could write a software routine to do a job three or four times faster than their forty something coworker with great appreciation from the traditionalist boss. Now that boss has retired and the boomer is in charge. The Generation X worker is now getting rated on how well they are working with the newly hired Generation Y worker. The Generation X workers are being forced to give the new workers a level of equality that they had to work for. While Generation X workers are waiting for the Gen Yers to prove themselves, they are getting lower ratings on their performance appraisals for failing to adapt to the younger generations.

[steven davies]

Another interesting thing:
This is an absurd and sad view of the world, basically arguing that baby boomer are selfish if they don’t avoid consumption in old age and leave big inheritances for their kids. There also seems to be an underlying assumption that the only way to acquire a home is to inherit it.

[Max in WA]

To David -- I too am a Gen Xer. I was in a discussion with some boomers about Social Security last night and they all derided my views -- that people who are in should get their benefits, but I would love to be able to get out of the system if I could because for me, it is an expense with no expected return.

I don't know how to express the sense of futility I feel when trying to argue my side. The boomer group sees me as being inhuman and selfish. I see all through my life, problems that have spilled onto Gen X from boomers, and the fix coming only by the time Gen Y is approaching the same life points.

For example, I left a public service job because of the crushing weight of post-graduate student loans. Now, if a person enters public service in my line of work, there are student loan forgiveness programs. That would have been awfully nice some years back -- but that's the story of my life.

It's just one example, but it seems we're forever apt to get screwed. Personally, I'm thinking of leaving the country. The boomers have done nothing for me, won't listen to my concerns, and will be needing the SS/Medicare tax to triple from the 15% we have now. It's crushing enough. I just feel abused and unappreciated.

[Ms French Roast]

I am a Gen Xer. I have seen us work much harder and get promoted less than Gen Y. They are busy texting and dating at work, which our gen didn't do as much. We worked a lot more hours than they did and are married now. Don't kid yourself about who is doing all the actual work.