The UMKC commitment to workforce development goes well beyond educating individual young professionals. UMKC TalentLink convened a panel of experts in St. Joseph for a discussion of how those recent graduates interact with older generations in the workplace.
The Bridging Generations in the Workplace Conference offered helpful workshop tools and takeaways to help managers lead and work with multigenerational workforces. The April 11 conference was held at the Stoney Creek Hotel.
The idea for the conference grew out of 2021 UM System Extension and Engagement Week programming. A statewide working group identified multigenerational communication as a significant workforce development issue.
Presenters included Erin Blocher, assistant teaching professor of management at the UMKC Henry W. Bloch School of Management; EAG Advertising and Marketing Chief Marketing Officer Jeff Randolph; and Christel Gollnick, founder Roots and Rounds, a nonprofit focused on respectful and inclusive communication across different age groups.
In workshops on Intergenerational Awareness, Communication and Employer Brand Strategy, presenters said coworkers from different generations in a shared workplace possess different communication styles, expectations, levels of experience, expertise and perspectives. They shared strategies for bridging differences while working toward a common goal by adapting to the ways different people work with others.