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Digital immigrants and digital natives increasingly face a generation gap in the workplace as well. In part, this stems from differing generational values related to concepts like “respect for authority,” “respect for the workplace,” what defines a “solid work ethic,” and “communal productivity.” Yet the bulk of this current workplace divide appears to stem from differing uses of and reliance upon new communications and documentation technologies.

Up until very recently, workplaces were usually populated by only two generations at a time. While these two generations may not have always liked or respected each other, they knew each other. There weren’t a lot of surprises. When the younger generation “misbehaved,” the older generation recognized what was going on and dealt with it effectively because, as parents, they had raised that younger generation. The older generation was usually able to push the right buttons to get the desired result from younger employees because they were the ones who installed the buttons. And when the older generation got cranky, the younger generation understood. They’d seen the same occasional crankiness in their parents and teachers while they were growing up, so they knew what it was all about and, more important, what to do to smooth things over.

Today, however, as people are remaining in the workforce longer, three and sometimes even four generations are working together in a typical business. The age and experience gap between a semi retired Silent Generation senior manager and a Gen Y worker bee can be immense. These two sets of individuals have vastly different cultural references, are motivated by different things, use the tools of the workplace differently, and, most important, communicate differently—not only in terms of the language they use but also in the ways they use it. Members of widely spaced, multiple generations may struggle to recognize, let alone understand, the older or younger person’s perspective because the generational unfamiliarity is simply too deep. Their generational norms are too far apart to fully understand each other or to communicate fluently with one another. For instance, to the Silent Generation the phrase “communication skills” by definition means the ability to speak eloquently and to write organized, grammatically correct formal documents. To the Gen Y worker that same phrase means fluency with email, texting, social media, smartphone apps, websites, and other recently developed communications technologies. Same phrase, vastly different interpretation—yet both will likely show up on a résumé.

Older and younger workers can often fail not only to recognize and acknowledge that a simple phrase might mean two completely different things, but also to accept the validity of the other generation’s workplace values and ethics. For instance, most older workers were educated and trained in what could be considered hierarchical or “top-down” work environments. Here, the boss is to be unquestionably respected, while workers do what they’re told without question. In such environments an older boss is much more likely to communicate by writing a formal memo than shouting across the room. Conversely, younger workers are more at home with a more collaborative model—with everyone contributing to the direction taken, giving, receiving, validating, and questioning everyone’s ideas and contributions. Furthermore, Gen Y workers tend to communicate in whatever way seems fastest—text messaging, emailing, or walking into a private office unannounced. This is an approach that people from older generations sometimes find offensive or disrespectful. These misunderstandings—and misunderstandings are exactly what they are—can cause a great deal of unintended and unnecessary intergenerational workplace tension. Furthermore, people from different generations are often motivated by different rewards in the workplace. Whereas older workers often look for praise, raises, and promotions, younger workers are typically more interested in extra time off and other “quality of life” perks. Neither generation’s attitude appears to be any better or worse than the other’s; they’re just different. Yet that difference creates conflict.

A major chasm appears to be forming in the workplace between digital natives and digital immigrants regarding all things technological. Some experts contend that baby boomers and Gen Ys, in particular, have increasingly clashing values and misaligned worldviews, and a 2011 poll by the Society for Human Resource Management found 47 percent of Gen Y workers felt older managers (boomers) were resistant to change, whereas 33 percent of boomers decried Gen Y’s informality, need for structure, and lack of respect for authority.¹³ Furthermore, the study found that 38 percent of older workers had concerns about younger employees’ “inappropriate use or excessive reliance on technology.” Conversely, 31 percent of younger workers thought their older managers had an “aversion to technology.”¹⁴ A study canvassing 3,800 Gen Y workers in fifteen countries further supported this conflict, finding Gen Y employees “have an expectation—not a hope—that they will be able to use their own mobile smartphones and tablets for work-related activities. In fact, that expectation [is] the driving force for a critical mass of users who maintain they would go or have gone against company policy in order to use their own mobile device for work. And, like it or not, organizations [emphasis added] will have to adapt.” This insistence by Gen Y on using their own technology can negatively impact both workplace environments and company security, but it is not likely to change. Gen Y is here to stay, and so is the technology that Gen Y loves. As the study concluded, “It is businesses rather than workers who must adapt.”¹⁵ In many ways, the BYOD (bring your own device) movement is similar to the early days of workplace computers, when employees suddenly wanted to toss aside paper in lieu of Lotus spreadsheets and Macs for desktop publishing. So IT departments adapted, and business moved forward, becoming more efficient in almost every way.

But how are digital immigrants to survive and successfully negotiate a workplace that doesn’t uniformly respect or appreciate their values? Read below for some clues.

Workplace Management For Digital Immigrants

•Take the time to learn about new technology, accepting that in many ways it offers potential improvement and in all ways it’s here to stay (until replaced by something even newer). Those who struggle with new technology are well served by pairing them with a “reverse mentor”—that is, a digital native to act as guide and interpreter.

•Allow, even encourage the coexistence of differing work ethics, recognizing that people from younger generations may be more interested than their older counterparts in achieving a healthy work-life balance—which often includes telecommuting and flexible hours. Consider the possibility that this doesn’t mean young people are lazy or unmotivated; it just means they approach work differently.

•Learn and accept the new forms of business communication, understanding that face-to-face communication (scheduled meetings) may not be in line with the much more immediate ways in which younger generations communicate—using IMs, texts, and Skype.

Unfortunately, today many older workers are not coping well with new and evolving technologies. In a recent Huffington Post article, human resources management consultant Dr. Linda Gravett states, “I’ve had so many Boomers say to me, I’m not going to learn how to text, I want to talk to someone face-to-face doggone it and I’m going to track them down till I find them. I say ... if you want to communicate with people across all age groups then learn how to text, learn how to instant message, get out of your comfort zone and your rigidity that every kind of communication must be either by letter or email or even face-to-face because that isn’t necessarily practical.”¹⁶