How to Gain Competitive Advantage Through Collaboration Between Different Generations

Collaboration between different generations helps drive the innovation process and create competitive advantage

Active collaboration between different generations helps drive the innovation process within a business

Now widespread in every context, collaboration means surrounding yourself and working with the right people to achieve common goals. Good collaboration should be seen as a synergistic and strategic relationship that produces higher quality, facilitates project execution, improves team efficiency, creates better work environments, and helps organizations grow.

By collaborating, people pool skills, knowledge, information, and resources to achieve a common goal. The result of successful collaboration is achieving something that didn’t exist before: solving a problem, a new idea, better products, an increase in know-how.

Analyzing the concept of innovation, active collaboration between different generations leads to certain winning results. In fact, each generation has its own set of skills and experiences, and it is precisely through the synergy of these two different energies — on one side, the experience of the older generation, and on the other, the fresh vision of the young — that innovative solutions or new ideas are born.

Companies that take into account the trends of young talents have the advantage of being able to relate across multiple generational levels, thus achieving greater innovation capacity.

There are many benefits to working with an inclusive culture. Numbers confirm this: according to a 2018 Randstad Workmonitor study, 86% of global workers prefer to work in a multigenerational team, citing innovation and creativity as reasons. There are good opportunities to hire across generations; for example, Americans over 65 are employed at higher rates than those in their 50s, and over 250,000 Americans over 85 are actively working.

We at Beetroot strongly believe in collaboration between different generations, which is why we created a list of tips to foster collaboration, encourage inclusion, and maximize results.

1. Age is not an issue

If you are interviewing, don’t let age influence you, avoid generational jokes like "I was doing this job before you were born.” Always try to make the person in front of you comfortable, show respect regardless of age or years of experience, and try to find common ground with the person you are interacting with.

2. Being annoying has no age

Annoying behavior from a colleague does not depend on age but personality. Don’t think that a certain attitude can’t change because of age. Instead of accepting the behavior by linking it to a generational stereotype, you could work to understand what might be more appropriate for the annoying colleague, suggesting inclusive solutions.

3. Use multiple communication tools

When collaborating with different generations, consider different ways to communicate your message: some people respond to social media; some prefer podcasts or YouTube, while others prefer reading online or receiving direct mail. “It’s not about ‘Oh, this person is 50, so send them something by mail,’ it’s about recognizing that not everyone wants to receive information the same way you do.”

Using multiple communication tools is helpful to promote an inclusive culture

4. Create a strong onboarding program

The advantage of multigenerational collaboration is breaking the “we’ve always done it this way” mindset. To achieve this, communication is key. You can’t assume that everyone knows how to use all the tools like G-Suite, Slack, or Trello. Do your best to integrate newcomers into the group and teach them how things work within the company. Showing examples of success like email templates, sales coaching, or shadowing an expert is essential to help people connect with the rest of the team. The important thing is not to single someone out as too old or too young to do something.

5. A good generational mix in your personal life

Most people, in their personal life, do not interact with anyone 10 years younger or older than themselves, except relatives. It is important to have a good generational mix in your life to have a broader perspective. Interacting with someone older or younger will give you a perspective that can push you to understand what is missing or how to solve a problem.

Today, collaboration is the foundation for achieving goals, growing businesses, and generating innovation: join Beetcommunity, sign up for our Facebook group Beetcommunity | Connected Professionals, and start building your network with professionals of every generational bracket.