Communication Styles in the Multi-Generational Workplace [Updated]

Generational Communication Style

What is your preferred communication style?

Would you prefer to:

• Write someone a letter
• Talk to someone in person
• Speak to them on the phone
• Write an e-mail
• Text them on your phone

Each generation has a preferred communication style that was developed a long time ago!

This does not mean that everyone within each generation communicates the same way, but there are clear generational patterns that directly correlate to the societal norms for when they grew up.

Let me pose the question – when someone moved out from their parent’s home, how did each generation communicate with friends and family back home?

Note: This post was originally published in November 2013 and was updated in December of 2018.

Greatest Generation (Born 1900-1924)

This was a period when you wrote letters.  They were probably written in cursive! If you find letters from this time you will find that they often were beautifully written. My father and mother are from this generation. My father communicated home when he was serving in World World II by letters.

Telephone communication was in its infancy and was expensive.

Their preferred communication style is written.

Silent Generation (Born 1925-1945)

The rise of the telephone and long-distance calling made keeping in touch with home much easier. They talked to their friends and family. Many of this generation came of age in the 1950s and 1960s when just aboutt every home had a phone. Long distance calling was quite expensive but calling your friends in your neighborhood for hours at a time became common.

Their prefer communication style is auditory.

Baby Boomers (Born 1946-1964)

This is my generation and we used the phone. When I went to college we used systems like calling home, letting it ring twice and then hanging up. This was a sign to our parents to call us and pay the long-distance phone charges. Like the silent generation, we liked to talk to our friends.

I am right in the middle of the baby generation, born in the middle of the 1950’s. My first job after college was working for IBM developing word processors. Being able to mass produce the written word was just in its infancy with word processors, the personal computer, and later email.

Our preferred communication style is auditory.

Generation X (Born 1965-1982)

This is the first generation that had e-mail and other forms of electronic communications. Generation X brought back the art of writing … well, kind of. They wrote but not like the Greatest Generation. No more pen and paper. Learning cursive penmanship was on the decline. Then came the rise of the personal computer, word processing software, personal printers and finally spell checkers.

This kind of writing was very different from that of the Greatest Generation.

Their preferred communication style is written… well, kind of.

Generation Y (Born 1983-2000)

The rise of electronic communications was complete with this generation. Texting or instant messaging became the preferred method of communications. Like Generation X, their preferred communication was writing, but now it was really different from the Greatest Generation.

Do not think of leaving a note written in cursive for a Gen Y! They may not be able to read it!

Their preferred communication style is written… well, kind of.

What is your preferred communication style? Does it match with your generational norms?

Cross-Generational Communications

This is where we get into trouble. What if you have an office full of multiple generations each with their own preferred communication style? What if you interacting with people of different generations in your job search?

Let’s play a game!

You come to work and you want to ask a colleague to lunch today. Their office/cubicle is a 5-minute walk from your office/cubicle. How do you approach them?

• Walk over and ask them face to face
• Call them on their phone
• Send them an e-mail
• Text them

What would you do if you were:

• 65 years old
• 55 years old
• 45 years old
• 35 years old
• 25 years old

Would you change your communication style if the person you are asking was much older or younger than you?

Hopefully, I have gotten you to think!

Can we adapt?  YES! For example, many Baby Boomers and Generation X have learned to text better so they can communicate with their children.

Here is the problem.

Teaching Generation Y to adapt their communication style once they get into the workplace.

This does not mean we all have to just text, e-mail or talk. We need to use mixed communication styles depending on who we want to communicate with.

As a professional trainer for most of my career, I learned that I needed to adapt to the learning style of my clients or students. Similarly, if you want to be understood and get your message across, you need to adapt your communication style to the preferred method of the listener.

As a Baby Boomer, I want my Generation Y employee to be able to clearly articulate in both oral and written forms (not texting). I may have to teach them that texting a baby boomer may not get them the results they want.

I have told many generation Y employees, that if they want their baby boomer boss to listen to them, they need to talk to them and quit texting.

Similarly, I may have to text my Generation Y employee when I need something from them! If you have not figured out, please do not leave a voicemail for a generation Y employee as they probably will not listen to it. Just go ahead and text them.

We all need to be able to adapt! There is no right communication style!

Does this have an effect on how you will interact with recruiters, hiring managers, and others in your job search?

What is your next step?

This is the second in this series on the Multi-Generational Workplace. Read the rest here Multi-Generational Workplace Series.