A new study has found that teams with large age gaps are less productive, which could become a growing issue for organizations as older workers are remaining in the workforce longer.
A report published by the London School of Economics and Protiviti reveals that employees feel less productive when there’s a significant age difference with their managers. Employees with managers who are over 12 years older than them are 1.5 times more likely to report lower productivity levels. This suggests that there are potential barriers between generations that are negatively impacting productivity and collaboration.
The study surveyed 1,450 professionals across finance, technology, and professional services industries in the U.K. and U.S., and it reveals that 37% of Gen Z, 30% of Millennials, 22% of Gen X, and 14% of Baby Boomers experience low productivity. Overall, 25% of all the employees surveyed reported low productivity.
However, this percentage drops to 13% of employees who are in firms with “intergenerationally inclusive work practices,” according to the study. These practices focus on creating an inclusive environment for individuals across different age groups — ensuring career development and advancement opportunities are age-agnostic, showing commitment to hiring and keeping a workforce diverse in age, and managing employees effectively across generational lines. This disparity establishes the notion that generational differences are likely to be a key factor in workplace efficiency.
Organizations that focus on age inclusivity are seeing productivity gains — especially among younger employees. These practices impacted the participating generations in the following way:
- Gen Z – those reporting low productivity dropped from 37% to 18%
- Millennials – 30% to 13%
- Gen X – 22% to 13%
- Baby Boomers – 14% to 7%
Across generations, skills including active listening, time management, judgement and decision making were agreed upon as the most important to benefit productivity and career advancement. This consensus suggests there is a potential pathway to address the productivity challenges posed by age gaps. The data indicates that investing in skills to manage different generations can lead to more collaborative work environments.
