The Infamous Generation Gaps - Do they really exist?

 

I was privileged to attend PMI Seminars World 2018 in Orlando this week. I was very pleased with Jack Duggal's Next Generation PMO course, which covered much in 3 days. I look forward to attending his Next Generation Leadership course tomorrow. 

But what I was most pleased with is that the Next Generation PMO course attracted ... well... people from generations other than the one to which I belong. In fact, not only were there a few of these delightful individuals attending, but there was also an actual presentation that prompted me to write this blog. It was "Mixing and Matching Generations" by Carlene Szostak of C Squared Inc.

I found out that I am still in the Baby Boomer generation (no surprise there, even though a survey I filled in recently said I was a millenniel, probably because I "cut the cable" years ago and do a lot of texting, Whatsapping, and social media). 

I also found that there is now a Generation Z (pronounced Zed if you are from Canada or the UK, Zee if you are from the U.S.) Generation Z is apparently the newest generation. Suddenly those who try to put people into boxes had discovered that the world will continue, and we will have many future generations. I expect the next one will be called Generation AA, or Z1, or Z+, or some other arbitrary name. 

I found myself wondering why we have this urge to place people into categories, boxes, named generations. Does this help? Ostensibly, we will be able to understand one another better once we find out which box we are in, compared to the box into which one of our fellow human beings has been thrust,

Okay, call me old school. You would have every right to do so, given the generation that bears the name of my group of trusty old people. But really, does it actually serve a useful purpose? I have to say I was very happy to see that our course had a mix of generations. And do you know what? We all communicated with one another perfectly well. There was no texting between group members at the same table, and there was no domination by stodgy old Baby Boomers who were overpowering the tender Millenniels, Gen Xers or Gen Yers (Gen Zers are too young).  We all got along perfectly well. No one got up and left at exactly the start of lunch hour, or exactly at the end of the day as some other generations are alleged to do.

"So what is the purpose of this rant?", you might ask, if you have suffered through this blog post so far.

I have to confess it has something to do with the fact that people are people. Some are experienced by putting in many years of work. Others are experienced by putting in many varied hours of intelligent work, but far fewer years. We must recognize that what is important are the outputs and outcomes of what a person does, not how long they have been working. That some with 40 years of experience have 40 years of experience, while others who have 40 years of experience doing the same thing their entire career have maybe 10 years worth of experience. That there are those with 5 years of experience who have the equivalent of those 40 years, because they "get it". I expect Malcolm Gladwell would have something to say about the diminishing value of work experience after the fabled 10,000 hours of experience has been attained.

So let us recognize what people contribute to an organization, not how long their posterior has been forming a shallow hollow in a comfortable seat.

All the more reason for Gen X, Y, Millenniels (and Zs) to get with the program. Invest in learning about Project Management, seek the mentorship and coaching of a person from a previous generation and get those 40 years of experience in 5 years, which happens to just about line up with 10,000 hours. 

If you are a member of one of these generations, get yourself to PMIEF.org and look for university, college and  professional development scholarships. Maybe you will be fortunate enough to attend a fabulous Jack Duggal course at a PMI Seminars World, courtesy of PMIEF. 

Succeed, grow and prosper, my young friends. You can do anything and be anyone. The world is yours for the taking because, well, who else is there?