A manager calls a meeting. His global company is launching an enhanced customer service program in the U.S. and the 50 other countries the company serves.

As he looks at the audience of professionals he has recently inherited, he is disturbed to see several people texting and members of one of his teams continuously looking down and failing to make eye contact with him, while it is clear that members of another team fail to ask any questions. He wonders if they are even interested.

Holding his temper and trying to establish better rapport, he sits on the table in front of the room, crosses his legs and tries to make the meeting more informal. Several other team members frown and look extremely uncomfortable. “Is it something I am saying?” he wonders.

Up front, some older employees take notes. To the rear, a number of younger employees look at their watches and reach for the Blackberries.

Is this some kind of revolution?

What actually is happening in this room, admittedly overly dramatically, to make a point, is that a multigenerational multicultural group of employees is reacting to the dynamics of the meeting and the naivety of the manager.

Some want to write down relevant information. Some feel the meeting is wasting their time. Others are expressing cultural upbringing the manager clearly does not understand.

His take may be that most of this staff is somehow resistant and resentful of him, disinterested in what he has to say and perhaps not worthy of the responsibilities he needs to assign to them.

He is anxious. He is trying to control his temper. He is also totally unaware of the perceptions, interests, needs and cultural norms of the individuals who comprise his group. And he is totally unaware that his own conduct is contributing to the discomfort of the group.

What we have here is a failure of leadership brought on by a failure to communicate.

As the business world becomes more global and the four generations that now comprise our companies become more culturally diverse, the failings of leadership become more exaggerated. Management today simply can not be what it was 20, ten or even five years ago.

Understanding individual differences and strengths and capitalizing on the vast skills that a diverse group can represent is the essence of new management.

Engaging people to accept an idea and enthusiastically make it their own is what will generate productivity, competitiveness and customer service for both the immediate and distant future.

Recruiting and retaining people who can drive the company to new heights is essential.

Training of managers top-down on multigenerational multicultural leadership and communication issues is no longer a concept. It is a survival mechanism.

For HR managers, like their cohorts who specialize in diversity and inclusion, this may be the greatest opportunity they will ever have to contribute measurably to their company’s success.

Bob Hoberman
President – Executive Search and Training Services
RW Consulting Group and
The RW Consortium