Different generations require different feedback, motivation - Jacksonville Business Journal:

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There is no punchline, except that four different generations in the workforce means bossed often need to change the way they motivated and give feedbackto workers. Understandinv the differences amongst traditionalists, baby boomers, Generatiobn X-'ers and Generation Y'-ers can lead to a more energetic andfocussexd workforce. For many employers, like , the biggest challenge is keepint members of the youngee generation on for more than five The company has reduced its apprenticeship from five to four said Senior Vice PresidentDavid Long, who servexs on the Jacksonville Academy of Electric Technology board. Providing a new type of feedbacki and motivation can keep those employeeson longer.
"You can see it in The rigid, military-type and employers have gone bythe wayside," Long "People want to feel good about what they'rde doing and have instant gratification." Experts caution, however, against assumingf that an employee is motivated and needs feedbaco the same ways as the majority of member of their generation. The issue is a hot one in the humanresources industry.
Many employers are bracing for the loss of the baby boomed generation work force and are concerned abougGen X'-er and Gen Y'-ers' work ethic, said Kath y Wentworth, director of human resources for , a provider of transportation and warehousing services for perishable and dry cargok in the Southeast. "I suspect our parents said the same thingsxabout us, and their parents went through the same thingf and thought [their children] had it easy." The generation composed of peopld born between 1981 and 1995 is informall known as the "plugged in" generationm because of their familiarity with computeres and the Internet.
Because they are used to gettintg results at a touch ofa button, they also require the most feedbackj of any of the previousd generations, said Michelle Pargman, account managere for , an employee assistanced program and people development This need for constant feedback is also driven by theier interest in bettering themselves and gettint ready for their next position in or out of the Jamie Porcheddu, transactional group leader for , has founrd that members of the younger generation are more in tune with how the companyy is performing and are curious abouf how they can grow with the company.
who oversees more than 70 people, said she motivateds these people by making sure they get the feedback and tool sthey need. Their relative newness to the businese world also makes them questiontheir performance, said Genny human resources director for Craig/is, an outsourcing and professional servicess provider for the propert y and casualty insurance industry. Gen X-ersa -- people born between 1967 and 1980 -- are simila to Gen Y'-ers in that they both require more feedback than baby boomersand traditionalists. Like Gen Y'-ers, Gen X'-ers are keyed into technology and see their job as a career step instead ofa destination, Wentworth said.
Pargman said part of the reasobnGen X'-ers require constant feedback is because of the attentionj they received from their baby boomeer parents, who were encouraged by peerw and child rearing books to give theidr children constant feedback. "What is motivatingg for Gen X'-ers is a family-friendly she said. "Flexibility is important."