The Click and Clash of Generations

At the American Library Association (ALA) meeting in Toronto, a telling generational shift was apparent—under the table. The elegant Traditionalist librarian introducing the speakers wore a skirt, heels, and pantyhose. The Baby Boomer speaker wore a pantsuit, sandals, and no stockings. The Generation X librarian who participated in the panel discussion wore a short skirt and (horrors) flip-flops! Kaboom—a generational collision at its finest.

This sartorial gap provided fodder for highly entertaining discussions behind the scenes. Three generations of professionals, three very different senses of what is appropriate at work. With a fourth generation poised to enter the work force, the Millennials, the possibilities for generational clashes are endless. If only the complexity ended with the dress code. In today's libraries, generation gaps can spring up just about anywhere, from work ethic to rewards and from technology to time off. The way these gaps are bridged will have a lasting impact on our libraries' ability to function smoothly and serve patrons professionally. The way these issues are managed will profoundly affect the profession's ability to recruit and retain four very different generations of librarians for years to come. Understanding what makes each generation tick can help librarians reach across the generational divide to create stronger bonds, increase professionalism, and, ultimately, serve patrons better.

The Traditionalists learned early on that they could achieve amazing things by putting aside the needs of the individual and working toward the greater good of the institution. Together they beat back the Great Depression and won two world wars. Traditionalists are hard working, fiscally conservative, and patriotic, with great faith in American institutions. The organizational style for Traditionalists was modeled by the military—a command-and-control environment in which information trickles down from the top. It's no wonder some senior librarians are appalled by the casual communication style they see demonstrated by the younger generations, such as addressing a superior by first name or sending a thank you note via email.

This group and older Boomers are heading toward retirement. ALA predicts that 58 percent of professional librarians will retire by 2019. A 2000 LJ survey found that 40 percent intend to retire in the next nine years or less. Yet, interestingly, a BridgeWorks Generations™ survey conducted in 2001 found that 72 percent of Traditionalist respondents intend to continue working in some capacity after they formally retire. For some, this will mean part-time and/or volunteer work. For others it will mean paid employment. The sagging economy has made Traditionalists nervous about outliving their savings. Many feel they will need to continue working to make ends meet. As libraries face worker shortages in the years to come, members of the loyal, hard-working Traditionalist generation will continue to be desirable job candidates.

The 80 million Baby Boomers, born 1946–64, were shaped by the long economic expansion that followed the end of World War II. Traditionalist parents encouraged their Boomer offspring to believe they could do anything, from being an astronaut to becoming President. As a result, Boomers became idealistic and optimistic, convinced they could change the world.

Faced with 80 million cohorts at every turn, Boomers are also highly competitive. Boomers want rewards that showed they were getting ahead, whether it meant acquiring a master's degree to get a more prestigious, better-paying job in the library, or pushing for that next promotion. Boomers can get flummoxed by the attitude of some Xers who don't care about titles, or who aren't worried about what position they'll hold ten years from now. "When I was that age, I was doing everything I could to impress my boss," complained one senior librarian. "The Generation Xer in our group isn't even sure she's going to be a librarian ten years from now!"

One challenge facing managers and recruiters over the next ten years will be the prevalence of burnout among younger Boomers. Many are juggling busy careers with growing families and elders who increasingly need their help. Among more affluent Boomers, the temptation to retire early and tend to other needs will pull them away from the profession. Other Boomers may get restless and bored. While they may love the library, many will question their level of fulfillment and start looking for new directions. The preponderance of librarians today fall into the Boomer age group of 40 to 55-plus. As Boomers begin to retire in droves, libraries must consider ways to stem the tide. These librarians may require options for career renewal, new career paths, flexible schedules, or additional opportunities for training. Libraries that start paying attention now to how to retain this valuable and knowledgeable group will reap the rewards down the road.

The 46 million members of Generation X (born 1965–81) have been part of the full-time work force for some years now. Yet members of the older generations are still wondering where this generation came from and what they want.

At nearly half the size of the Boomer group, Generation Xers have been in demand in the job market nearly their entire working lives. During their school years, the number of graduates from library science programs decreased, and today many libraries are feeling the pinch. Not enough Xers to go around results in a talent gap among the younger set and an aging work force overall.

Highly independent, entrepreneurial, and comfortable with change, this group entered the work world with a healthy degree of skepticism. Not deluded by the idea that employers would keep them around for a lifetime, Xers took charge of their careers early on and have been willing to leave a job if their needs weren't being met. One of the critical challenges facing libraries will be making sure that the few Xers they've attracted are going to stay. Xers will put pressure on libraries to provide more well-thought-out and varied career paths, more opportunities for mentoring and education, and more options to champion change. As one Xer librarian put it, "I'm proud and excited to be a librarian. Don't always tell me what we can't do or why we can't do it. Tell me what we can do, and I'll make it happen!"

The Millennials are starting to enter the library. They provide new challenges for recruiters and managers. We know that this generation is globally concerned, diverse, cyberliterate, media savvy, and environmentally conscious. Their work style is highly collaborative, in contrast to the more independent Xers. This generation will put even greater pressure on libraries to use technology to its fullest. Millennials are multitaskers who are likely to experience multiple careers in their lifetimes, possibly with the same employer. Managers of Millennials will be kept busy attending to their needs for lifelong learning.

Surveys of Millennials have uncovered a consistent theme that bodes well for libraries hoping to employ them: they are looking for work that has meaning. The Millennials have been raised by Boomer parents who encouraged them to find careers that will not just provide steady employment but will enable them to give back. This is a pragmatic generation that sees the world through less skeptical eyes than Generation X. Millennials are willing to judge institutions on their merit. But they can only come to work in libraries if they know about them. Professional librarians must do everything in their power to ensure that Millennials are well informed about careers in the library world so they don't overlook this meaningful profession.

Given the wide span in ages at work and the challenges of redefining the role of libraries in the 21st century, librarians need every generation to build bridges so the profession continues to thrive. In this effort, it helps to follow one of leadership guru Stephen Covey's admonitions: "Seek first to understand, then to be understood." When the generations collide, it doesn't usually mean someone is wrong. Often, they're just different.

A Baby Boomer gave this example: "I don't think a 25-year-old has any idea of the sacrifices I made to get this job and to be successful. They don't understand the pressures I am under every day with two kids in college and a mother with Alzheimer's. Plus, with budget cuts at the library I'm faced with laying off people I've worked with for years. If they think I'm a stressed-out mess, they're right!" Younger librarians can do a world of good by learning what the lives and careers of their coworkers are really like—before they criticize Boomers for being workaholics or Traditionalists for being adverse to change.

A Traditionalist commented that her biggest gripe with the younger generation is how little they know about the history of the library. "They don't seem interested in all that has gone before to make this institution what it is," she said. Generation Xers can earn the undying gratitude of the older generations by taking time to get acquainted with the legacies and achievements that shape their workplace.

Traditionalists can do their part by treating younger coworkers with respect. "I know I look like I'm 12 years old," explained a frustrated Gen Xer, "but I'm a professional librarian with a master's degree and five years of experience. I would appreciate being included in important meetings and being asked my opinion on how we run the library."

"My boss sees me as hyper and kind of insecure because I'm always asking for feedback," explained a 28-year-old librarian. "But our library is undergoing drastic change right now. I can handle anything as long as my boss lets me know what's going on and where I stand."

Raised with instant access to information, Generation Xers are accustomed to frequent, immediate feedback. But they don't always get it. In our Generations survey, 30 percent of Xers said they receive their phone bill more often than they get relevant feedback on the job. That's a huge source of frustration. In fact, in a recent retention survey of large law firms, the top reason Gen X associates gave for leaving the firm was lack of feedback. One of the best retention tools to use with Generation X employees is honest communication, often.

Traditionalists, however, raised with the attitude that "no news is good news" aren't always comfortable with the Xers' more "in-your-face" style. Boomers, faced with 80 million peers competing for the same jobs, learned to handle feedback very formally, with yearly reviews and plenty of documentation in the file. Communication that's always "off the cuff" can be frustrating. When all these styles come together, it's easy to see how misunderstandings arise.

One Traditionalist was furious with an Xer who sent her an email summarizing what was wrong with a particular department in the library. She felt that such a conversation should have taken place face-to-face and behind closed doors. Leaders with multiple generations of librarians on their staffs should discuss the feedback process with employees to establish the best ways to provide appropriate (formal and informal) feedback to one another. Staffs that can agree on how feedback should be conducted tend to develop a higher trust level and experience less frustration.

Xer librarians love what they do, and they want to get ahead. Jessica Albano of the University of Washington Libraries, who wore the flip-flops at that Toronto meeting, got a big laugh when she told a mostly Boomer and Traditionalist audience, "Don't think that I'm out to get your job…at least this year!"

Our Generations survey found that one of the top reasons Xers said they had left a job in the past was that "they weren't making an impact." With a nod to the line from Woody Allen's Annie Hall, Xers are like sharks; if they don't keep moving forward, they die. Generation Xers want to improve processes, to automate functions, to make things run better. They want, naturally, to use what they learned in school to the library's best advantage. And they want to keep learning. The opportunity to attend training is a huge motivator and perk to Xers. According to Olivia Madison, Iowa State University Library, employees are encouraged to attend training if it's related to their job at all. This includes access to a two-year certificate program in supervisory skills. While the program is expensive, it has proven to be a great development opportunity for Xers who want to feel they are adding valuable bullets to their résumés.

On the flip side, in managing their career paths, Xers may need to practice some patience. One Boomer manager fought for months to get a promotion approved for a talented Gen Xer who deserved it but had only been on the job a year. When the process took too long, the Xer resigned. "If she had been a little more patient, or demonstrated any understanding of what I had to go through to make this happen, I would have felt a lot better," her boss remarked. Rome was not built in a day, and neither were library systems. Xers should recognize the huge role they can play as change agents. With charm, persistence, and a little patience, they will make a positive and lasting difference in the way libraries are run.

Boomers are entering a challenging life phase and will need to tap into the library's flexible work options if they are to stay gainfully employed and sane. Idealistic and competitive as they are, Boomers hate admitting they are burned out and can't do it all. Libraries have much to offer in terms of alternative schedules, flex time, part time, personal time, and more. But Boomers need support from Xers and Traditionalists in taking advantage of these options.

When one Boomer went to her Traditionalist male boss and asked for a leave of absence to take care of personal matters, he didn't understand why she couldn't just deal with these things in her free time. "He had always had a stay-at-home wife," she explained. "He can't understand what my life is like as a single parent." When she went to her Gen X coworker for a little sympathy, the Xer was equally unhelpful. "If you're that burned out, why don't you just go home early…that's what I do!" It seems the generations can help their Boomer cohorts most simply by supporting them in reshaping their work lives. They might have to be encouraged to delegate, to go home a little earlier, or to say no once in a while.

Traditionalists can further their careers by a willingness to bridge the technology gap, not just the generation gap. One university librarian said her Traditionalist employees regularly engage in work-arounds—rather than embrace new technologies that are put in place they simply bypass new systems and continue doing things the way they've always been done. For example, in her library, the Traditionalists were still maintaining a paper list of periodicals. That wouldn't have been so bad, except that to get the paper list, someone had to print it off the computer. For better or for worse, technology will keep changing. Traditionalists who care about libraries will put aside their fears and dive into the training they need to stay current.

The above examples are just a few of what I call ClashPoints that can create challenges between the generations. They also create opportunities. Understanding how someone from another generation sees the world can make generations click by tapping into their deepest loyalty and commitment. It can make the world of work more meaningful for everyone concerned.

Only by supporting one another will librarians bridge the generational divide and lead their libraries successfully into the future. The biggest benefit of generational cohesion will be felt by patrons. We envision a scene at the reference desk one day in the near future. A Traditionalist librarian is there in her skirt and heels side by side with a Boomer in a pantsuit, an Xer in jeans and flip-flops, and a Millennial in cargos and Danko clogs. They are laughing, bustling, relating, and serving patrons as diverse as the librarians themselves. Everyone coming together because they need, and love, the library.