I think there’s an untapped opportunity that UK businesses don’t know how, or haven’t yet managed, to take advantage of.
In UK manufacturing we have an aging workforce, with the majority of employees being over 40 years old, and 20% of them nearing retirement. Yet the industry has 85,000 unfilled positions.
Most organisations today can expect to have four generations working side by side, from Baby Boomers with decades of experience, to Gen Z, who are in the earliest days of their careers. The generations have hugely different life experiences which are reflected in different attitudes to work, different values, and different perspectives. So how can the industry attract the bright young things, whilst retaining the valuable and experienced talent that’s already there?
What people are telling me is that they are trying to figure out how to bridge the generation gap. I don’t think a bridge is the answer. I think they should actually embrace it.
But what do I mean?
I believe there are three things that are crucial to embracing the gap:
1. Trust: build a high-trust environment of mutual respect across age groups and business hierarchies. This starts with establishing a shared language that focusses on core values that everyone can support, then understanding the differences and similarities of working side by side across the generations and addressing the unique points of view.
2. Common Objectives: link team goals to short-term business objectives making them specific, relevant and highly visible for everyone. This way people understand where the business is going, and how each individual contributes to the overall business success.
3. Open Communication: encourage diverse contributions and help people to share their unique skills and experiences. Help them to create habits around learning, listening, giving constructive feedback, and celebrating success. Most importantly – help people feel listened to.
So, as the older generations retire, and the younger generations replace them as the wise old heads, they’ll appreciate the value of a multi-generational workforce, working together to give our manufacturing industry the chance of sustainable success.
What are the areas in your business that would be helped by embracing the gap?
Greig Walker
Director
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