Editor's note: Generational differences in today’s real estate organizations have created friction and organizational disconnect that have negatively impacted business efforts. This article is the third in a four-part series intended to uncover the secrets of managing the different generations, to promote and nurture successful, generationally diverse real estate organizations.
campaign by a financial services company Ameriprise Financial, a division of American Express. The campaign is designed to do what most Baby Boomers just love: focus entirely on them and their needs. Perhaps you’ve seen the commercials, the print ads, their magazine placement pieces or even their website. In every medium, the message says loudly and inescapably, “Hey Boomers. We get you.”
Why is Ameriprise and just about every other major corporation in the country now using generational messaging to sell, market to and build relationships with specific generations of consumers? The answer lies in the power of generational dynamics, which at the very core reflects the use of age information to achieve specific goals, i.e. increased sales, improved marketing and even, yes I dare say, successful management.
In my last two articles in this series we looked at how managers in the real estate industry can join the legions of other organizations across the country in using generational information to improve management efforts, including recruiting, retention, morale and other management operations. In this article on Baby Boomers, we’ll look at applying generational information in the same way Ameriprise Financial has, only to different ends. We’ll look at how we can use what we know about Baby Boomers to better manage, motivate, inspire and empower this group of professionals that, at present, dominate most real estate offices in numbers and, quite often, in power and influence.
Baby Boomer Facts. Baby Boomers, otherwise known as “Boomers” and the “Me Generation,” are most often defined as being born between 1946 and 1964. Following this definition, Boomers are currently between the ages of 41 and 59. [Author’s note: yes, the math doesn’t lie: next year leading edge Boomers will turn 60 years old, not that any “self-respecting Boomer” will actually acknowledge these birthday events.]
There are approximately 78 million Boomers in the
Figure 1
Boomer Core Characteristics. As discussed in my first two articles on this issue, the key to managing any generational segment of your workforce is understanding the generationally rooted values and preferences of that group; that is, their core characteristics. In the same way that knowing and understanding real estate consumers allows us to serve them better, knowing your Baby Boomer professionals’ generationally-driven attitudes, values, demands and preferences will allow you to manage, train, motivate and lead them more effectively.
This effort begins with a consideration of just a few of the seminal events in Boomers’ lives:
w 1950’s – the development of television
w 1957 – the
w 1960 – the development of The Pill
w 1962 – Cuban Missile Crisis
w 1962 – John Glenn first American to orbit the Earth
w 1963 – MLK March on
w 1963 – JFK assassinated
w 1960’s – Vietnam War
w 1968 – MLK, RFK assassinated
w 1969 – First lunar landing,
In comparison to the seminal events of other generations, Boomer events were as impactful on a generation as any, reflecting national significance, nationwide effect and global implications. Indeed, given the “events of the day” and their staggering scope, it is no wonder that Baby Boomers then and now have been told, and continue to believe, that they can, individually and through organized movements, “change the world.”
Boomers were, of course, the first generation to watch their world change “live and in color” on television. They grew up witnessing the horrors of war and assassinations, all while wondering if and when a “final” world war would break out with the Russians. They celebrated tremendous firsts, landed a man on the moon, found new meaning in music and watched, further, as women gained new found control over their bodies.
Boomer formative years were, in a word, “worldly.” It quickly became apparent that Baby Boomers, all 78 million of them, would not confine themselves to influencing their own homes or even their own neighborhoods, but would, forever more, seek to impact and change their surroundings on national and even global levels. Boomers today continue to reflect these beliefs, as surveys continue to show strong desire amongst Boomers to influence their communities and “find meaning and purpose” in their work. Other Boomer core characteristics include the following:
Work. As the axiom goes, some folks “work to live,” while others “live to work.” With Boomers, the latter is true as Baby Boomers have always been, and still continue to be a generation that by and large “lives to
Today Boomers have added a bit of balance to their 80-hour weeks, as a post 9/11 re-emergence of family importance has shaped all generations. Boomers continue, however, to view their work not simply as “just a job,” but, moreover, a critical part of who they are and what they stand for. “You are what you do” remains a powerfully influential descriptor for this generation of workers.
Self. One of the strongest core characteristics of Boomers is how important they are to themselves. Ignoring for the moment the judgment and criticism that comes with “self-centeredness,” the fact remains that Boomers as a generation are quite self-centric. And why shouldn’t they be, by the way? For the better part of 4 decades (and counting)
Community. Although at first blush this Boomer characteristic might seem at odds to the previous one, the truth is that Boomers are increasingly looking for opportunities to influence and impact their communities. Indeed a recent study by the MetLife Foundation found that:
w 6 in 10 Baby Boomers are “especially interested” in jobs that improve the quality of life in their communities;
w Half of all Boomers want work that will “help others;” and
w 70 percent of women Boomers say it is “very important” that a job give them a “sense of purpose.”
Whatever the influence and reason behind this desire, employers, and especially real estate firms competing in a Boomer dominated labor market and industry, should be addressing this characteristic and finding ways to communicate a similar respect for community.
Boomer Management Solutions. With the above information in mind, managers can engineer and tailor efforts to improve management effectiveness, and to use new techniques to help drive company success. In order to better manage, train, lead and motivate your Boomers to the colle
