Royal Plaza on Scotts, which has won the the International Innovative Employers Award for being age-friendly, was recently mentioned again in the Straits Times on October 27.

This key client of LifeWorkz was cited in an insightful article entitled Redesigning a New Silver Workplace by Michael Frese, professor of management and organization at NUS Business School.

In case you missed that story, here is an excerpt:

Professor Frese's research findings, which have been published in the journal Psychology and Aging, affirm what we at LifeWorkz have been helping our clients to do --- engaging seniors (and the other generations) at work through innovative talent strategies.

Old is gold

At Royal Plaza on Scotts, older workers are not deemed as liabilities. In fact, they are valued for their meticulous attention to detail, attending to the small but important details where a younger and more impatient worker might be tempted to cut corners.

Details, of course, are the key differentiating factor when it comes to hospitality --- how the bedsheets are folded, the thoughtful touches in the bathroom, and so on. In this regard, the seniors at Royal Plaza are not only delivering their best, but mentoring a new generation of workers. Younger employees are paired with these veterans in various departments, including housekeeping, F&B and others.

Now, that's what I call Multi-Gen Strategies that make Business Sense!

But are you prepared to manage them?

Such strategic deployment of older workers is something that our society desperately needs.  In barely two year's time, in 2012, it will become mandatory for companies to offer to re-hire workers beyond 62. By then, the Government hopes to raise the employment rate for workers aged 55 to 64 in Singapore from the current 57 per cent to 65 per cent.

In essence, that means many baby boomers will postpone their retirement, or enter into a 'working retirement', which throws all our neat HR definitions out of the window.

At the same time, we have a totally new breed of Gen Ys entering the workplace at high speed, and climbing up to middle management in a few short years.

Are you ready for the new reality?

I don't mean in terms of policies and staff handbooks, although all that is important.

Are your managers ready to manage such a multi-generational workforce?

What this means for you and I…

Managers need to be equipped with an understanding what makes each generation tick --- to grasp the motivations of each generation, and use this understanding to optimize the contributions of the team.

This entails:

• Managing the generations differently - and yet be perceived as being fair. (Can it be done? How? Come find out!)
• Anticipating cross-generational tensions, and resolve pro-actively them before they become full-blown conflicts.
• Harnessing the strengths of each generation and get everyone to do their best work collaboratively.

A tall order? Yes, indeed. But here's the good news: You can do something about your learning curve and make it less steep.

Of course, you can choose to learn it 'the hard way'…

Sure, you can let your managers learn by trial and error, with each error shedding tiny shreds of light on the art of managing a multi-generational team.

Or, you can shave 10 years off their learning curve by letting them take advantage of the research, the case studies and the experience of other multi-generational managers!

Solve your management headaches even before they arise!

With four generations co-existing in today's workplace, many conflicts will be generational in nature.

There is a great need to upgrade all our managers to be in line with the reality of the new workforce.

To be armed with Gen Y and Multi-Gen Strategies is to avert management headaches and arrest conflicts even before they arise!

Now, how much is that worth?

As any people manager knows – it's priceless!

Priceless solutions. Get it at the early bird rate – now!
Cheryl

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Invite Cheryl Liew-Chng to speak at your organization!

Need a speaker for your company event? Need cutting-edge training for your staff? With the LifeWorkz team, there is never a dull moment! Contact LifeWorkz today!

All our programmes can be conducted in-house and customized for your organization.

Or you can send your staff for an open or 'public' programme when it is available.

Either way, email us today at Solutions@LifeWorkz.org to indicate your interest!