AN EBOOK BROUGHT TO

YOU BY:

THE SHIFT GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES AND THE IMPACT ON LEARNING

If you read the eBook, Cut that Cake and Pass the Trophy, Employee

Training Across Generations, you saw some fascinating information about

the demographics of the workplace and some stunning data that was current through July 2013. But like so many things in employee learning and

development, a lot changed since then.

We want to bring you up-to-date on the major shifts in demographics,

behaviors, and technology that reflect the ways in which various

generations approach learning and development.

If we want a truly effective and impactful employee development program,

we have to adapt, and adapt quickly, to reach each employee on his or

her own terms with content that is meaningful and relevant to their job

performance.

In this eBook we’ll outline emerging best practices to help your organization

bridge generational differences in learning preferences, approaches, and

attitudes.

The days of a one-size-fits-all employee development strategy are over. Organizations need development strategies that build agility, adaptability,

up-to-date leadership skills, and will prepare employees to assume job roles

in the future that might not exist today.

We’re going to see a lot of boomers retire starting next year and it’s going to cause major shifts in workplace demographics. In fact, 18% of boomers will retire within five years and 68% of HR professionals say that boomers retiring will have a major impact on the workforce. In 2014, millennials account for 36% of the American workforce too. One of the biggest problems companies will have is succession planning. They are going to have to train Gen X’ers and Gen Y’ers before their boomers retire or they will be in major trouble. On the flip side, new opportunities will be created for younger generations who are more loyal to their companies.

SOURCE: The Top 10 Workplace Trends for 2014, Forbes.com

5%

40%

22%

33%

Traditionalists (Born 1928-1945) Baby Boomers (Born 1946-1965)

Generation X (born 1965-1980) Millennials (Born 1980 - 2000)

GEN Z U.S. TOTAL LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION BY

GENERATION, 2012 Generation Z (age 16-20) – the

generation following Gen Y

Some 17% of respondents from Generation Z want to start a

business and hire others someday,

compared with 11% of respondents

from Generation Y, the survey

found.

Moreover, only 28% of Generation

Z say money would motivate them

to work harder and stay with their

employer longer, as opposed to

42% of Generation Y.

Generation Y (58%) has a stronger

desire for managers to allow them

to work independently than does

Generation Z (46%).

SOURCE: Worldwide Study from

Millennial Branding and Randstad

THE BABY BOOM GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES AND THE IMPACT ON LEARNING

One of the prevailing myths that haunt training and learning and

development (L&D) professionals is that Baby Boomers will not embrace

technology-based training. We can find a lot of articles that talk about “digital natives” and how Baby Boomers are slow to adopt and use new

technologies. We can even find sweeping generalizations that since Baby

Boomers grew up learning in traditional classrooms, that as a generation,

they prefer traditional classroom training at work, too. It’s too bad nobody

told the Baby Boomers about these generalizations, because the actual

data from the marketplace tells us a different story.

In an article from Forbes, titled “It's Stupid and Insulting to Pitch Baby

Boomers As Tech Novices,” author Jon Stein cites some compelling market

research data that tells a much different story. He notes that Bill Gates,

Steve Wozniak, and the late Steve Jobs are all Baby Boomers. Stein quotes another Boomer, PR executive, Larry Magid, who said,

“Many of us used CP/M, DOS or even Unix long before Macs and PCs had

graphical user interfaces. We were the ones who had to know how to use

escape codes to get our printers to work and sometimes wound up building

our own PCs.”

While Boomers represent only 25% of the total population, they spend 40% of

the dollars on technology each year.

Are Baby Boomers always first adopters? No. But as Stein points out, they

tend to be smart shoppers and buy and use technology with a purpose.

Almost exactly nine months after

World War II ended, “the cry of the baby was heard across the land,”

as historian Landon Jones later

described the trend.

More babies were born in 1946

than ever before: 3.4 million, 20

percent more than in 1945.

This was the beginning of the so-

called “baby boom.” In 1947,

another 3.8 million babies were born; 3.9 million were born in 1952;

and more than 4 million were born

every year from 1954 until 1964,

when the boom finally tapered off.

By then, there were 76.4 million “baby boomers” in the United

States. They made up almost 40

percent of the nation’s population.

SOURCE: History.com

DEVELOPING GENERATIONAL INTELLIGENCE GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES AND THE

IMPACT ON LEARNING

In a May 2014 article from PC World, Fred O’Conner points out that Boomers

grew up in a world where technology tools have made life more convenient

and easier in many ways.

ATM machines, cell phones, and computers all came into broad use during

their lifetimes. While this generation cannot be said to be “digital natives,”

technology is not some weird mysterious realm for most Baby Boomers. As

long as the technology in question serves a purpose and makes something

easier or more convenient, Boomers will be just as receptive to workplace

technology solutions as younger workers.

If there isn’t a major difference between the generations in terms of their

respective use or adoption of technology tools at work, are there

differences between generations that matter when we get down to employee learning and development?

While we’d like to believe the short answer to this question is, “No,” the

simple truth of the matter is there is NO simple answer. Employee training

and development can be complex.

Learning rarely flows in a linear straight line from lesson to comprehension to

application on the job. There are an endless variety of factors and influences

that shape the effect and impact of our efforts to train and educate

employees.

MAKE TRAINING AND MENTORING A PRIORITY.

Focus on generational perceptions

in the workplace and provide

advice to managers and

employees on how to adapt

communication, learning, and

engagement styles. SET CLEAR OBJECTIVES.

People aren’t mind readers –

regardless of generation. Make

sure that you sit down with each new employee and discuss

company culture, team norms,

and individual preferences, likes

and dislikes.

DEVELOPING GENERATIONAL INTELLIGENCE GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES AND THE

IMPACT ON LEARNING

Individual differences and preferences are probably far more important

than the differences we can attribute to generational issues. However, we

cannot nor should we ignore the unique challenges posed by the generational diversity of our modern workforces.

GENERATION Y brings a new way of thinking and doing things to the

workplace. GENERATION X – a sometimes overlooked generation (isn’t the middle child

always overlooked?) also brings a unique and interesting set of perspectives

and attitudes.

BABY BOOMERS won’t go away! And like everything else they’ve touched,

Boomers are reshaping the way we are thinking about retirement and the later stages of careers.

Blending the various and frequently competing needs and priorities of

employees in this ever changing and complex demographic mix creates

real challenges for employee learning and development professionals.

CONSIDER THE MEDIUM/METHODS FOR TRAINING.

Focus on how your employees are

accessing new knowledge and

information in their personal lives

and incorporate that into your

employee training. PROVIDE FEEDBACK EARLY AND OFTEN

Everyone appreciates feedback

and recognition. Millennials are

accustomed to frequent feedback. Boomers may feel that

continuous feedback is a form of

micromanaging. Focus on the

positive to keep feedback

constructive.

RETENTION WORK STYLE, CHANGE, AND PERSONAL CAREER MANAGEMENT

The various generation differences that are associated with the three

dominant generations in the workforce are well-documented and known.

The table below summarizes these broad generalizations across attitudes towards work style, change. and personal career management.

Statistics say that Millennial’s stay at the same job for about two years. Millennials’ constant movement

isn’t going to slow down anytime

soon. Rather than turning their

backs on young talent, thinking,

“They’re just going to leave

anyway!” employers need to

embrace this quality as a mark of

motivated and challenge-driven

employees and develop strategies

to engage these workers as much as possible.

SOURCE: How Much Should You

Invest in Young Talent,

CLOMedia.com

TRADITIONALISTS BOOMERS GEN XERS GEN YS

WORK STYLE Linear work style Structured

work style

Informal work

style

Fluid work

style

CHANGE = Something’s

wrong

Caution Potential

opportunity

Improvement

CAREER Build a legacy Build a

stellar

career

Build a

portable

career

Build parallel

careers

As interesting as these differences are, and as fun as these differences might

be to argue about and discuss, in the end, these are no more than sweeping

generalizations. It’s probably more helpful to think of employee learning and

training challenges a little bit differently.

Source: n-gen People Performance Inc. www.ngenperformance.com

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WORK STYLE, CHANGE, AND PERSONAL

CAREER MANAGEMENT

Let’s try looking at the generations based upon career needs and the

demands for development placed upon people by the relative stages of

their careers.

Entry level or early career professionals, no matter their age, will have more

in common in terms of what they need to learn than mid-career

professionals or end-of-career professionals. If we can understand more

clearly what employees need at each stage of their career, we might gain

a better insight into how to deliver meaningful development opportunities to

them at every step of the way.

For instance, in the Great Recession, many Baby Boomers saw their middle-

management careers derailed. For millions of them, a prolonged period of

unemployment, underemployment, or withdrawal from the workforce altogether means that these individuals might need early career

development in a new field or profession. However, this early career

development must be delivered with some eye towards how a diverse

workforce might absorb information and then apply the content most

effectively.

We’ll explore the learning and development needs across three career

stages:

EARLY CAREER/ENTRY LEVEL MID-CAREER OR EXPERIENCED EMPLOYEES LATE CAREER EMPLOYEES

WAYS TO GET EMPLOYEES TO CARE ABOUT THEIR

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

1. Make professional growth

personal

2. Create opportunities for

mentorship

3. Be candid about your own

growth

4. Make growth part of the

weekly conversation

5. Let staff share experiences

Source: Fastcompany.com

5

ONBOARDING

EARLY CAREER / ENTRY LEVEL

The 70-20-10 theory says that we learn most of what we need to perform our

jobs outside formal training. We gain 70% of our knowledge and skill through

“informal learning,” 20% through “social learning”, and 10% through formal training. While this theory may be an accurate reflection across a large

sample of workers, the reality is that we learn differently based upon our

needs and our relative stage of mastery of the subject matter at issue.

For entry level employees, or employees who are at an entry level of

mastery, we believe the 70-20-10 theory is just about inverted.

Think of the learning challenges for this broad category of employees:

Learn new or unfamiliar subject matter

Develop a base or foundational level of skills, abilities and knowledge Put newly learned skills and knowledge into a useful context

Understand how to apply the new skills and knowledge

Reinforce the learning with access to refresher content and opportunities

to apply learning safely

All of these challenges are most appropriately met with access to more “formalized” learning. Classroom sessions, online training courses, and

sometimes even outside workshops can help develop the foundational skills

entry level employees will need to master before they reach a level of

productivity that yields economic benefits to the organization.

Onboarding, also known as organizational socialization, refers to the mechanism through which new employees acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and behaviors to become effective organizational members and insiders. SOURCE: Bauer, T.N. and Erdogan, B.

APA Handbook Of Industrial And Organizational Psychology

ONBOARDING

EARLY CAREER / ENTRY LEVEL

Once the foundational base for further development and learning is set,

reinforced, and secure, these employees will rapidly enhance their

development in other ways.

With a context in hand, self-study and actual application of new skills to

“live” work responsibilities turn into ongoing employee learning and growth.

Social learning will become more and more important and observable

behaviors will make more sense. Q&A with other employees, supervisors, and

outside resources will be more relevant and impactful, because the

employee has a context and foundation for connecting this type of learning

and interaction with job performance.

This stage of career development is where a variety of potential differences among employees regarding learning styles, information choices, behaviors,

and use of technology can and should influence the way learning is

delivered.

DEMOGRAPHIC CONSIDERATIONS

What does this segment of employee population look like?

New to work world (Gen Y)?

Transition employees – moving from one job role to new one?

(Multi-generational)?

According to an Aberdeen Benchmark Report, EFFECTIVE ONBOARDING improves…

RETENTION RATES

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

TIME TO PRODUCTIVITY

52%

53%

60%

MILLENNIALS

EARLY CAREER / ENTRY LEVEL

Business experience

Do employees have good basic understanding of how businesses operate – business acumen?

Are employees in transition from one industry to new one?

Are employees in transition from one business discipline to a new

one, e.g. Sales to Operations or HR?

BEHAVIORAL CONSIDERATIONS

Normal use of technology for information gathering

Do the employees routinely use mobile devices to access

information on the Internet?

Do employees bring smart phones and tablets of their own to

work?

Learning away from work

How do employees normally take in new information away from

work?

What are the learning preferences of the employees?

WHEN ASKED: What benefits would you value most over the next five years other than salary?

1/3 chose training and

development as their first-choice

benefit other than salary.

SOURCE: Price Waterhouse Cooper

EARLY CAREER / ENTRY LEVEL: Learning Plan Outline

ONBOARDING

We usually associate onboarding exclusively with newly hired employees. However, in a very real sense, employees,

managers, or any person assuming a new role or taking on a brand new job is “onboarding” for this new role. During this

phase of development, a learning plan might look like this:

WEEK 1

Introduction To Job Role • Explanation of key responsibilities (What will success look like in this job?)

• Identification of key performance metrics (How will employee and other

stakeholders know when they are successful?) • Identification of foundational skill, knowledge and ability gaps between the

current state of job mastery and the desired state of job mastery – with a

clear focus on ability to PERFORM the job successfully

Learning Resources • ILT (classroom sessions if appropriate)

• Online courses to fill in gaps (assigned with early due dates)

WEEKS 2-8

Continuation of formal

learning to fill knowledge

gaps.

• Online resources and training videos

• Meetings with peers

• Books, articles, and other resource material

Manager Support and

Involvement

• Coaching

• Regular meetings for Q&A

• Team/staff meetings

Social Learning Tools and

Resources

Ready access to knowledge and information shared by other employees

through enterprise social networks, wikis, or internal share sites.

EARLY CAREER / ENTRY LEVEL: Learning Plan Outline

2+ MONTHS AND CONTINUING

Assessment of Progress and

Identification of

Performance Gaps

• Compare current level of performance to desired level of performance

Access to Performance Support Resources

• Short video • Refresher training

Manager Reinforcement of

Improvement and Coaching

• There is a structure for accountability, action, and outcomes. The manager

and employee stay tightly focused on achieving goals using this structure.

DOWNLOAD THE EXCEL FILE

DEVELOPING STRENGTHS

MID-CAREER OR EXPERIENCED EMPLOYEES

For employees at more advanced stages of their careers, learning

development challenges and opportunities take on a different dimension

and challenges. Let’s start with an important assumption. The employees we will discuss are at or above current performance expectations.

It’s easy to get caught up in working to bring employees “up-to-speed” or to

provide some sort of corrective training. In fact, this type of training

sometimes dominates the time, energy and attention of L&D professionals

and managers alike. But step back and look at your employee population a

bit more strategically.

If we group employees, broadly, into three groups – top performers (“A”

players), solid performers (“B” players) and under performers (“C” and

below players); which category or categories of employee holds the greatest potential for improved business results with further learning and

development? (Hint – it’s not the “C” players!)

When we focus on trying to “raise the floor” on employee performance and

development, the best results we can hope to achieve – usually – is to raise

performance just up to acceptable levels. Success, therefore, isn’t about business benefit gains. On the other hand, if our “B” players can grow into

“A” players, we can see real business performance gains.

And if we can enhance the success of current “A” players, we set the stage

for dramatic and powerful gains measured by business benefits.

Managers have unique

opportunities in their daily

interactions with employees to

EMPOWER THEM TO DISCOVER AND DEVELOP THEIR STRENGTHS, and

they have the ability to position

employees in roles where they can

do what they do best every day…

…employees who feel engaged at

work and who are able to use their

strengths in their jobs are more

PRODUCTIVE AND PROFITABLE AND

HAVE HIGHER QUALITY WORK.

SOURCE: Gallup Study, 2013 State

of the American Workplace

PERFORMANCE SUPPORT

MID-CAREER OR EXPERIENCED EMPLOYEES

The learning challenges for your “A” and “B” mid-career employees are

likely to be:

Delivery of content at the moment of need

Providing learning resources to augment already developed skills and

knowledge (more self-directed development with access to a wide

variety of learning content and resources)

Individual development plans linked to the specific learning needs of

each employee

To successfully meet these challenges, organizations need more strategic

focus on performance and business benefits, higher levels of creativity and

agility, and up-to-date technology tools.

Remember, we are suggesting a strategic focus on learning and

development opportunities with the biggest potential business payoff. Your

best employees are your most engaged, curious, productive, and

possessing the highest capacity for growth in your organization.

These employees are the ones who will lead your organization into a more successful and sustainable model for growth.

Unlike entry-level employees, you will not need to structure as much

“training” for these employees. L&D professionals must learn to facilitate the

learning and development of these employees.

PURPOSE:

Applying a skill, solving problems or

changing performance practices

WHEN IT IS NEEDED:

On the job when the new skill

needs to be applied AVAILABLITY FOR EMPLOYEE:

On-demand. Only a short amount

to refer to the resource and apply

on the job

GOAL:

Finish day-to-day work or a project

Short video works great for

performance support. The

BizLibrary Collection includes

thousands of short videos on

important topic areas like computer skills, leadership,

manager and supervisor, customer

service and more! Try it out for free.

CONTINUOUS LEARNING

MID-CAREER OR EXPERIENCED EMPLOYEES

This stage of career development is where most organizations face the most

complex demographic challenges. This population of employees will likely

include Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers. Be prepared to be challenged, and make sure your L&D program is agile and adaptable. DEMOGRAPHIC CONSIDERATIONS

What does this segment of employee population look like?

Multi-generational will likely rule the day

Promoted or being considered for promotion – as employees

grow into more and more complex roles, the development needs

will change

Learning approach and attitudes

It’s hard to be a top performer and NOT be dedicated to

continuous learning and improvement, but HOW have these

employees learned and improved?

Change attitudes – are these employees effective or ineffective

with change?

With each generation entering the

workplace, a greater emphasis is

placed on continual development

as these new employees know that they are unlikely to stay more than

a few years; it’s about what they

can develop and acquire to take

to the next stop in the career

journey. We know that effective

leaders are one of the most

important influences on levels of

engagement.

SOURCE: Rebecca Ray, Employee

Engagement in a VUCA World (research report), New York: The

Conference Board, 2011.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCE

MID-CAREER OR EXPERIENCED EMPLOYEES

BEHAVIORAL CONSIDERATIONS

Normal use of technology for information gathering

Do employees routinely use mobile devices to access information

on the Internet?

Do employees bring smart phones and tablets of their own to

work?

Learning away from work

How do employees normally take in new information away from

work?

What are the learning preferences of the employees?

FUTURE NEEDS

What important jobs or job roles will drive success in one year? Two years? Three years? The odds are you do not know and will not be able to

anticipate.

Are there employees in this segment that have the capacity to LEARN NEW

Jobs?

VIDEO COURSE TITLE:

Cutting Edge Communication:

Using Goals to GROW

Duration 10 min.

Code SVL_066109_NQ

Define goals and consider reality,

obstacles, options and a way

forward. Serena presents the

GROW model to a skeptical Carol

and Marcus. She says that GROW helped her become vice president

at Cutting Edge.

SOCIAL LEARNING

MID-CAREER OR EXPERIENCED EMPLOYEES

One of the best things about learning and development for your top

employees is that most of them rose to the top of your employee population

by learning and improving.

Motivation is usually not an issue. Likewise, because these employees are

frequently your most agile, adaptable, and adept learners, an out-of-date

approach to learning will not work.

Organizations must be committed to delivering learning resources to these

employees using the best tools available, and L&D professionals have to

embrace a new role as learning facilitators to engage this population of

important employees.

No matter what industry you’re in, things

are changing fast. New technologies and

products are coming to market faster than

ever before. Job roles are in demand that

didn’t even exist 3 or 4 years ago.

Are you, as an organization, prepared to

meet these new demands?

The BizLibrary Collection includes more than 3,000 desktop and IT videos

that are short, relevant, reliable and on-demand.

“Social learning isn’t a

replacement for training and

employee development. But it can

accomplish what traditional

approaches often cannot. For

instance, this new technology-

enabled approach can

supplement instruction with

collaboration and co-creation

and, in so doing, blur the boundary

between the instructor and the

instructed and enhance the

experience of all.”

SOURCE : The New Social Learning,

by Tony Bingham and Marcia

Conner

To download a free

chapter from the

book, click here.

MID-CAREER: Learning Plan Outline

FOCUS ON PERFORMANCE

It might seem a little contradictory to focus on improving the performance of already top performing employees. However,

this is precisely the strategic focus your program for these employees must relentlessly maintain. Employees that are already

doing well, must have confidence that your efforts to help them are relevant to their needs and will help them achieve even

higher levels of performance. So, here’s an outline for development that will help you achieve that goal:

Analyze performance gaps

What organizational objective(s) will each employee’s performance support?

For each objective, what are the key behaviors that will produce the results needed? (What does successful

performance look like for this employee?)

What is the difference between the current level of performance and the desired level of performance?

Identify the key job responsibilities AND critical competencies to reach the desired level of

performance.

Success in nearly every job role requires the effective application of a small set of critical competencies – what

are they for each employee?

How do the key competencies support the most important job responsibilities and behaviors that will truly drive

results?

MID-CAREER: Learning Plan Outline

Learning resources tailored to each employees’ needs and workplace requirements

One-size-fits-all learning for top performers will not work. Using the performance gaps and key supporting

behaviors and competencies as your guide, target learning resources to the right employees at the right time.

Learning Technology Tools • Learning management platform – delivery of online learning resources to

employees with a minimal level of workplace disruption

• Mobile access to content – don’t try and dictate the time and place for

learning. Give employees the broadest possible access to content they

need. • Social learning tools enhance the whole organization’s IQ by allowing

employees to capture and share common experiences and expertise

DOWNLOAD THE EXCEL FILE

KNOWLEDGE RETENTION

LATE CAREER EMPLOYEES

Employees in the late stages of their careers are frequently ignored in most

strategic learning plans, with the notable exception of executive

development programs. Ignoring the broader learning needs of this segment of your employee population is risky.

The majority of employees in this segment are Baby Boomers, and the most

important thing about this demographic fact isn’t due to generational

differences. The key business reason to pay close attention to the

development needs of these employees is that this segment of your

employee population has the most experience and deepest level of

knowledge about your company, your industry, the market, and probably

your competitors.

These employees may not need to acquire new skills or knowledge, although in this rapidly changing environment, you have to keep this need

in mind, too. The more pressing learning and development challenges

impacting these employees and your organization are:

Capturing, preserving and organizing the collective knowledge of

your most experienced employees

Helping these employees cope with life changes and the

demographic changes in the workplace

Providing learning resources targeted specifically to each

employee’s needs

of human resources executives

and line of business managers

surveyed rated ‘Capturing and

transferring knowledge from those

who have it to those who need it’

as a top workforce-related challenge.

SOURCE: The HR Executive’s

Agenda: Driving Business Execution

and Employee Engagement, the

Aberdeen Group

61%

RECOMMENDED RESOURCE

LATE CAREER EMPLOYEES

As we mentioned earlier, Baby Boomers are lot more comfortable with

technology than the “conventional wisdom” tells us. So don’t hesitate to

make use of technology tools to reach these valuable employees. The key to success with technology tools for Baby Boomers is that the tool must

clearly improve some aspect of their life, or in this case, workplace.

Learning technology should make learning and improving knowledge much

easier, especially if you deliver content on mobile devices, too.

Ultimately, your efforts to engage and develop these employees requires a

determined commitment to achieving strategic goals. These are generally

employees who’ve been either with your organization a while or in the work

world for years, and sometimes multiple decades. They don’t need “feel

good” training and content. They need actionable information they can apply to solve immediate problems. Make sure your learning efforts directed

at these employees makes a clear connection between the content and

relevant workplace goals for each employee.

This stage of most peoples’ career marks a time of significant personal and

professional transformations. At home, many Boomers are confronting some of the most challenging situations of their lives – caring for elderly parents,

empty nesting (and that isn’t as easy as it sounds), financial insecurity about

their own retirement, etc.

VIDEO COURSE TITLE:

What to Say When: When

Generations Clash

Duration 6 min.

Code SVL_017128

This video is part of our "What to

Say When" Mentoring series. The

modern workplace features staff

members representing a wide

range of ages. And the work style of millennials can differ greatly and

sometimes annoy your more

established team members.

SOCIAL LEARNING

LATE CAREER EMPLOYEES

They are also working in many organizations where youth is valued and

experience and attained wisdom is downplayed. The interesting twist in all

of this, however, shows up in research about the levels of engagement among employees by demographic segment. Late career employees

generally show among the very highest overall levels of engagement. So in

spite of the myriad of changes, uncertainty and challenges faced by many

of these employees, as a group, they remain very engaged in what they are

doing for a living.

Here are questions that should be considered as learning programs for these

employees are designed:

LEARNING APPROACH AND ATTITUDES

Many Baby Boomers have seen it all when it comes to the “best practices” of

the moment in employee training. Are they jaded and skeptical? Are your

employees open to new chances to learn?

Most Boomers are open to technology-based training, but you have to

make sure the tools work to remove barriers to learning and make access easy and simple.

Through social networking, learners

can share knowledge and work

experience, ask and reply to

questions and provide feedback, enabling them to relate formal

learning programs back to the

work environment. Not only can

organizations push training out to

their learners, through social

networking learners can pull

related and desirable information

from their colleagues and peers

when they need it and when they

are most receptive to it. These

technology-enabled relationships can enhance learners’ knowledge

and work performance while

increasing organizational

efficiencies and overall business

performance.

SOURCE: Is Social Networking

Good for learning, CLOmedia.com

RECOMMENDED RESOURCE

LATE CAREER EMPLOYEES

INDIVIDUAL PLANS

It’s easy to group employees into demographic segments, but it’s a mistake to assume every Baby Boomer wants or needs the same things when it

comes to ongoing learning.

Can you make a clear link between job needs and the learning content you

have available?

Your most experienced employees hold a lot of invaluable information in

their collective memories. They have also seen a lot of training fads come

and go, and they’ve likely seen the full spectrum of training content from

superb to just plain lousy. Accept that many Baby Boomers may approach

new training initiatives skeptically. You can win their trust and support by developing learning plans that account for the different and unique needs

of employees closer to the end of their careers than to the beginning.

VIDEO COURSE TITLE:

What to Say When: When

Generations Clash

Duration 6 min.

Code SVL_017128

This video is part of our "What to

Say When" Mentoring series. The

modern workplace features staff

members representing a wide

range of ages. And the work style of millennials can differ greatly and

sometimes annoy your more

established team members.

LATE CAREER: Learning Plan Outline

FOCUS ON INDIVIDUAL NEEDS

Not until Gen Y has any generation had such a profound cultural and social impact. Boomers changed just about

everything they touched, and they are now changing the ways we look at the later stages of our careers. Many Boomers are working longer, some by choice and some out of necessity. Boomers tend to be far more active socially and physically

than prior generations at this stage in their lives.

The challenge for L&D professionals is how to engage with a generation of people who have dominated workplaces, the

culture and social landscape for so long. So, here’s an outline for development that will help you reach these employees

and meet their current and ongoing training and learning needs:

Analyze performance gaps

What organizational objective(s) will each employee’s performance support?

For each objective, what are the key behaviors that will produce the results needed? (What does successful

performance look like for this employee?)

Identification of key performance metrics (How will employee and other stakeholders know when they are

successful?)

What is the difference between the current level of performance and the desired level of performance?

LATE CAREER: Learning Plan Outline

Learning resources tailored to each employees’ needs and workplace requirements

Learning Technology Tools • Learning management platform – delivery of online learning resources to

employees with a minimal level of workplace disruption

• Mobile access to content – don’t try and dictate the time and place for

learning. Give employees the broadest possible access to content they need.

• Social learning tools enhance the whole organization’s IQ by allowing

employees to capture and share common experiences and expertise

DOWNLOAD THE EXCEL FILE

THE CAREER JOURNEY AND LEARNING ACROSS GENERATIONS

In the end, generational differences are fun to talk

about and explore. But the generalizations and

many of the assumptions many of us make about the importance of the differences don’t hold up

when we have to design, develop, and then

deliver employee learning and development that

works.

People tend to be more alike than different across

generations.

The differences that matter come down to the

things that separate high performing employees

from those that do not fulfill their potential or are disengaged.

Learning and development initiatives need to stay

focused on improving organizational performance

and the capacity for change and improvement. In

this highly competitive and complex marketplace, organizations need agility, adaptability, and the

capacity for improvement to succeed.

This marketplace demands a new and different

approach to learning characterized by:

Facilitated learning – not directed learning.

Mobile access to content for BOTH learning and

performance support Developing skills for jobs that might not exist

today

A relentless focus on performance improvement

Critical alignment with strategic objectives

We won’t build learning programs like this by

adhering to outdated methodologies,

preconceptions about people based upon some

label determined by age, gender, or any other

artificial factor.

We have to evolve our learning efforts to meet the

evolving needs of all of our key employees – early

career, mid-career, late career, and high

performers no matter their career stage.

An evolved approach means we look at technology as a key component of learning, we

ignore any wasted effort on “feel good” training,

and we focus exclusively on improving the

performance and capacity to grow in each and

every employee.

THE BIZLIBRARY COLLECTION INCLUDES:

BIZLIBRARY IS A LEADING PROVIDER OF ONLINE EMPLOYEE TRAINING AND ELEARNING SOLUTIONS. The award-winning content collection contains thousands of online

employee training videos covering every business training topic, including

communication skills, leadership and management, sales and customer

service, compliance training, desktop computer skills, and more.

BizLibrary’s LMS (Learning Management System) and social learning

technology platform help HR and Learning Leaders improve and manage

employee learning.

7,000+ Video and

eLearning Courses Employees find everything they

need in our growing library. 50+ new courses added monthly.

25 Topic Areas A wide range of business and

professional topics are available,

including communication,

leadership, management,

compliance, customer service,

computer skills, and so much more.

Unlimited Access Employees learn what they want,

when they want, from our entire

course library. No limits!

www.bizlibrary.com/free-trial