GenXers (46 million born between 1965-late ‘70s)

Independent, creative thinking, addiction to change and emphasis on family. They are less motivated by promises of overtime pay and more motivated by personal satisfaction with their jobs. They want to grow in their jobs and learn new skills.

GenYers (70 million born between 1977-2002)

Questioners who are much less likely to respond to traditional command-and-control management. They need autonomy on how to reach goals.

Both groups share some common characteristics and values, some to a greater degree and others to a lesser degree:

• Financial smarts
  Having witnessed financial insecurity resulting from layoffs and the dot-com bust, they are skeptical of Social Security and care about benefits like 401(k) retirement plans. 49% say retirement benefits are a very important factor in their job choices, and 70% contribute to their 401(k) plan.

• Work-life balance
  They are more interested in making their jobs accommodate their family and personal lives. They want flexibility and telecommuting options, so they are excellent candidates for sales positions.

• Change, change, change
  GenYers don't expect to stay in a job, or even a career, for too long — they've seen the scandals that imploded Enron and Arthur Andersen, and they are reluctant to pledge their loyalty to a company. They also don’t like long assignments; they are multitaskers, juggling e-mail on their BlackBerrys while talking on cell phones while surfing the net. They are adept at small assignments with tight deadlines. Belief in their self-worth prompts them to try changing the companies they work for. Xerox’s slogan, "Express Yourself," is an appeal to GenY's desire to develop solutions and change.

• Communication
  The annual review doesn’t cut it for GenYers, who have grown up getting constant feedback and recognition from teachers, parents and coaches and expect it from bosses in the workplace. They thrive on frequent, honest communication.

• Diversity
  1 out of 3 GenYers is a minority, so they appreciate workplace diversity for its learning opportunity.

• Socially Responsible
  Concerned about the environment.

I’ve matched some practical techniques for managing these groups based on motivators that Edge International, a professional services consulting firm, found in their study:

• Opportunities for advancement
  Offer lateral and rotational assignments. The old way of thinking was, "If you're not moving up, you're moving out." Not anymore. Instead, young employees see it as a way to get experience in different roles and responsibilities at their level.

• Professional growth
  They don’t leave the job as soon as the training ends; in fact, the more training they get and the more professional development that they see, the more likely they are to stay. Mentor and career development programs are valuable to them as are perks like tuition reimbursement.

• Achievement
  They want praise and want to know that they are contributing and how they fit into the big picture.

• Leadership
  Involve them in decision making. They are eager to be included in determining how work goals will be met. These previous latch-key kids grew up when the divorce rate was skyrocketing and learned independence at an early age, which they want to carry over into the work environment.

• Information
  Being a member of a team—Share information with them. Managers who horde information and don’t share will cause a big problem for this group.

All businesses, regardless of size, maturity or industry, must harness the needs and desires of Baby Boomers, Generation Xers and Generation Yers to maximize their unique contributions. The simple truth is that companies that fail to do so will be frustrated by results that do not meet corporate goals and objectives.