Ceridian Encourages Employers to Address the Needs and Differences of All Generations in the Workplace
Human resource management solutions company provides strategies to employers to address the human capital challenges and maximize the opportunities in a multigenerational workforce.
Minneapolis, MN (PRWEB) August 1, 2005
Ceridian (www. myceridian. com), a leader in human resource management solutions that maximize the value of people, encourages employers to evaluate their organization's level of “generational competence”TM to determine how well they can adapt and develop to meet the needs that make up the needs and differences of the four generations of workers now employed in today’s U. S. workforce.
Organizations throughout the world are in the midst of a significant demographic change - the aging of their workforces. Lower birth rates over the past four decades have resulted in a "baby bust." The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) 2004-2005 Workforce Forecast estimates that in the U. S. about 22 million new wage and salary jobs will be created in the next decade, while just 17 million people will be entering the workforce. This demographic shift, combined with dramatic changes in organizational structures, information flow and career paths, has pushed workers of different ages into roles of close collaboration and, in many cases, turned aged-based hierarchies upside down.
“While today’s workplace has made great progress in recognizing and embracing differences, until now age has rarely been part of the diversity agenda. Development of a company’s generational competence will become a major factor to help organizations achieve the full contribution of their most talented employees,” said Diane Piktialis, Ph. D. director of work-life services for Ceridian, and lead author of a white paper entitled, “Maximizing Human Capital Assets through generational competence” recently published by Ceridian. The full contents of this white paper can be accessed online at www…[human capital management].
For the first time in history, many organizations have workforces that comprise four distinct generations: Matures (ages 60-78), Baby Boomers (ages 41-59), Generation X (ages 28 – 40), and Generation Y (age 27 and younger). Matures and Baby Boomers make up well over half the American workforce. Generations X and Y comprise approximately 44 percent of the labor market, according to the Department of Labor.
According to CeridianÂ’s research on generational competence strategies, members of each generation bring distinct sets of values, attitudes and behaviors to the workplace, largely as a result of the era in which they grew up. The four generations in the workplace today come to work with different expectations, assumptions, priorities, and approaches to work and communication. If these differences are ignored, they can grow into a source of misunderstanding and conflict, but when appropriately addressed, they create opportunities for collaboration and synergy among the different generations of workers.
“An organization’s viability depends on its ability to hire, retain—and gain the full contribution of—the most talented employees across the generations,” said Piktialis. By instituting human capital management processes, designing benefits and employee effectiveness services, and tailoring talent management to address the needs and earn the engagement of employees of different generations, an organization is taking steps toward generational competence.”
To ultimately seize the opportunities of a multigenerational workforce and achieve generational competence, Ceridian encourages employers to understand and build awareness of generational differences; study how different generations interact, use products and access services within the enterprise; leverage generational understanding to identify market opportunities and to improve marketing, product development, customer service and management practices; and design projects to provide opportunities for cross-generational collaboration.”
Ceridian was the nation’s first provider of fully integrated EAP, work-life and wellness services. Today, Ceridian’s EAP and work-life services are utilized by more than 25,000 organizations worldwide of all sizes in virtually every industry. In 2003, the company received the ‘Business of the Year Award for Exemplary Business Programs’ from the American Society on Aging and in 2004 and 2005 it won the ‘Caregiver Friendly Award.’ Ceridian also recently gained accreditation from Council on Accreditation for Children and Family Services, an international, independent, not-for-profit accrediting body of social and behavioral healthcare services. The Mature Market Resource Center also awarded Ceridian the 2004 World Wide Web Mature Media Award in recognition of its innovations in elder care and retirement planning educational services.
About Ceridian
Ceridian is changing the world of work by enabling companies to be free to succeed in their core business through its suite of innovative human resource management solutions that include payroll and compensation, staffing, compliance, HR administration and employee effectiveness. Ceridian Corporation (NYSE: CEN) is an information services company serving businesses and employees in the United States, Canada and Europe. For more information about CeridianÂ’s comprehensive array of human resource solutions, visit www. myceridian. com or call (800) 729-7655.
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