Intergenerational Collaboration: Shared work values that show up differently

Intergenerational teams often experience friction at work— and research and media about intergenerational collaboration tends to reinforce and/or exacerbate common stereotypes and assumptions about older and younger generations. This research took a different approach. We hypothesized that these four generations actually have similar work values—but demonstrate those value differently through their behaviors. We also anticipated that when other’s behaviors match our beliefs about how a work value should be demonstrated, collaboration occurs. But when those behaviors do not match our beliefs, friction occurs. We conducted qualitative interviews with four generations of teammates working together, and what we found is fascinating.