MENLO PARK, Calif., and
LONDON, Jan. 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Employees who are
much younger than their managers report lower productivity than
those closer in age due to a lack of collaboration between
employees of different generations, according to new research from
the London School of Economics and Political
Science (LSE) in collaboration with global consulting firm,
Protiviti.
An external survey conducted by LSE of 1,450 employees in the
finance, technology and professional services industries in the UK
and USA, found that friction
between different generations was driving down productivity and
that firms need to develop intergenerationally inclusive work
practices. These include making it easier for each generation to
'fit in', developing and advancing people based on merit rather
than age, and committing to a generationally diverse workforce.
Key findings were:
- 25% of employees surveyed self-reported low productivity.
- Across generations, low levels of productivity are reported by
37% of Gen Z, 30% of Millennials, 22% of Gen X, and 14% of Baby
Boomers.
- Employees with larger age gaps with their managers report lower
productivity. Those with managers more than 12 years their senior
are nearly 1.5 times as likely to report low productivity.
- Generations agree on the skills that are most important to
productivity and career advancement. The top 3 skills being: active
listening, time-management and judgement and decision making.
An ageing global population means there is less 'younger talent'
in the pipeline in addition to increased generational diversity,
with large firms regularly having five generations working
together.
In firms that use intergenerationally inclusive work practices,
productivity was higher in younger generations, researchers found.
These practices include enabling colleagues of every generation to
have similar levels of voice when collaborating and advancing
employees based on merit regardless of their age. The proportion of
Gen Z employees reporting low productivity drops from 37% to 18%,
and from 30% to 13% for Millennials. Across the board, 87% of
employees reported high productivity levels in firms with
intergenerationally-inclusive work practices, compared to just 58%
of employees from firms without these practices. In addition,
employees working at intergenerationally inclusive workplaces are
twice as likely to be satisfied with their jobs and are less likely
to look for a new role.
These findings are especially salient as the OECD predicts that
the UK, US and the broader global economy will experience slow
growth in 2024, putting pressure on companies to boost
productivity.
Co-author of the research Dr Grace
Lordan, Founder and Director of The Inclusion Initiative at
LSE, who led the research, said: "I am not surprised that we
discovered a 'productivity manager age gap'. There is good evidence
that across generations individuals have different tastes and
preferences. So why do we expect them to work easily together? We
now have five generations working together in the workplace and the
skills that are required to manage these dynamics are not usually
being taught by firms. Our research shows that if we invest in
giving these skills to managers, and creating an
intergenerationally inclusive workplaces there are significant
productivity gains to be had."
The report, GENERATIONS, Unlocking the Productivity Potential
of a Multigenerational Workforce marks the first of a
multi-year research collaboration between The Inclusion Initiative
at the LSE and Protiviti to explore how firms can capture the
productivity potential that is available from getting colleagues of
different generations working better together. To participate in
future GENERATIONS research, take part in our Global Annual Survey
here.
Matt Duncan, Managing
Director, Protiviti Global Business Consulting, said:
"Protiviti is delighted to collaborate with The Inclusion
Initiative in becoming the inaugural founder of the Generations
Hub. GENERATIONS is an important study focusing on an
under-researched area of diversity in the workplace. Through this
research, we hope to support our clients in creating productive and
successful teams, taking proactive steps to improve organisational
effectiveness and drive long-term success across the
organisation."
Protiviti and LSE are hosting a virtual launch event on the
1 February that will explore the preliminary report findings.
Please register here.
For more information
Joanna Bale, LSE Senior Media
Relations Manager, j.m.bale@lse.ac.uk or 07884 736941
Taneesha Pawar, Prosek Partners,
pro-protivitiuk@prosek.com
Notes to editors
The authors of the research are:
Dr Daniel Jolles, Research
Officer in Behavioural Science, The Inclusion Initiative, LSE.
Dr Grace Lordan, Founder and
Director of The Inclusion Initiative at LSE, Associate Professor in
Behavioural Science, www.gracelordan.com/
The Inclusion Initiative at LSE
The Inclusion Initiative (TII) at LSE was founded by Dr
Grace Lordan to bring together a
multi-disciplinary team to understand how to measure and improve
inclusion and productivity within firms and at the team level:
www.lse.ac.uk/tii
About Protiviti
Protiviti (www.protiviti.com) is a global consulting firm that
delivers deep expertise, objective insights, a tailored approach
and unparalleled collaboration to help leaders confidently face the
future. Protiviti and its independent and locally owned member
firms provide clients with consulting and managed solutions in
finance, technology, operations, data, digital, legal, HR, risk and
internal audit through a network of more than 90 offices in over 25
countries.
Named to the 2023 Fortune 100 Best Companies to
Work For® list, Protiviti has served more
than 80 percent of Fortune 100 and nearly 80 percent of
Fortune 500 companies. The firm also works with government
agencies and smaller, growing companies, including those looking to
go public. Protiviti is a wholly owned subsidiary of Robert
Half Inc. (NYSE: RHI). Founded in 1948, Robert Half is a member of the S&P 500
index.
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