Currently, in companies across various sectors, it’s increasingly common to have teams composed of members of different ages, which can have its advantages and disadvantages. However, sometimes this age difference can create distance between people, and it’s up to leadership to address this issue, which often starts when the leader themselves can’t handle all generations.
It’s understandable that a leader of a certain age may have more ‘affinity’ with people close to their own age group, but this shouldn’t become a reason for differentiation. For example, if I’m an older leader, will I only consider what older employees say and ignore the younger ones? The same applies to younger leaders who don’t listen to older employees.
We know that being a good leader isn’t an easy task and doesn’t happen overnight—it’s part of a process and can take time. The manager placed in this position needs to be prepared and willing to improve every day, refining their approach to develop appropriate conduct for the role they occupy. Often, this means abandoning behaviors that no longer make sense.
After all, a good leader requires essential skills developed over time, such as active listening, being fair and impartial in daily decisions, learning to delegate tasks, and ensuring employees feel they have a safe space in the workplace to share ideas, express doubts, and even offer constructive criticism.
The truth is, acting this way is already a significant challenge for many, and it becomes even greater when the team includes people of various age groups. Why could this be a challenge? When we have people of different ages, we need to adapt our communication and approach so each group can correctly understand the message being conveyed.
I see many negative comments about Generation Z, for example, people aged 14 to 28. But are they really the ‘managers’ nightmare,’ as they’re often labeled in articles I’ve read, or are leaders simply not knowing how to handle them? Because when we have people from other generations working alongside us, proper guidance is essential.
In this sense, I believe OKRs—Objectives and Key Results—can help leaders be effective for all generations. If we’re seeking ambitious results through goals, age shouldn’t matter as long as hypotheses and data are presented, allowing us to identify which are validated and true and which aren’t.
This way, the tool promotes teamwork and encourages every employee to perform their role as effectively as possible, making it easier for people of different age groups to work together to deliver better results, forming a stronger multigenerational team.
