Leadership challenges of a multigenerational workforce

*Throughout history, the ability of a society to survive has been predicated on that society's willingness to adapt to cultural changes between generations and its effectiveness in passing knowledge and experience from one generation to another. *For current and future leaders in healthcare, an understanding of this principle is critical with the advent of a 4 generation workforce and the pending retirement of over 40% of the current workforce over the next decade. *Knowledge of the characteristics of each generation and the variation between generations is only a beginning. The challenges are to lead--to navigate the conflicts between the values and priorities of the different composites of the workforce--and to orchestrate the transfer of knowledge and expertise from one generation of workers to another.