Want more consistently positive results from your multigenerational workforce?

Stop pretending like the employee/employer relationship is anything but transactional. 

Last week I had the great pleasure of hearing Dave Garrison speak about employee engagement at the MAPPS conference. He delivered excellent, data backed, insights into changing workforce dynamics, especially as they relate to generational differences.

While on the topic of effectively motivating your workforce, an aviation business owner commented something to the effect of:

 “It seems like everything is so transactional with the new generations.”

And she’s right, but this is nothing new.

The thing is, this realization can either be a liability or a great opportunity.

For aging owners locked into compensation programs of old, where salaries, stock options, benefits, and the like were carrots enough to motivate loyalty, advancement opportunities incentivized great work, and the threat of being fired was stick enough to motivate decent work for those not on a leadership track, the guise of “our team is our family” worked.

But my generation, and those who follow, have started to ask ourselves what really matters. And it’s not just money and careers. Don’t get me wrong, we want to achieve great things! 

Especially with awesome people.

But we recognize our value and aren’t satisfied with the “pay your dues” mentality all too often found in legacy institutions.

We want to be evaluated based on results, not style.

We need recognition and celebration of achievement.

We’re tired of perversely incentivized middle managers keeping teams down.

We want to live our lives, spend time with our families, and work for purpose not just a paycheck.

But most of all, we recognize that total compensation can be commensurate with the value we create, so we’re willing to take risks and make sacrifices to make this happen.

Embracing these realities is how you motivate a workforce to capitalize on opportunities, push productivity boundaries, and grow your business for you.  

Business leaders locked into old ways, who expect the status quo transactions of old to work in their favor, will find the shifting demands of new generations a liability.

But for those entrepreneurs willing to take the risk of erecting systems based on carefully balanced incentives structured around results instead of appearance, the future is bright.

The employer/employee relationship is transactional. 

So what are you willing to bring to the table to maximize the potential of your workforce?