For every Wall Street protester, there is a young professional studying the Wall Street Journal. For every $400 SnapBack hat purchased someone is buying an interview suit and leather portfolio. For every tweet posted, there is a LinkedIn page updated.
As a significant percentage of the workforce begins to retire, there is an insatiable need to fill this gap with competent professionals. The stakeholders responsible for hiring and filling the gap, (Late Boomers and Gen X) are looking to capitalize on youth and technical savvy without sacrificing the values, ethics, depth, loyalty and dependability of past generations.
What is the best forum to bridge this gap and maximize the talents of both cultures?
I would start with job sharing (with occasional shift overlap) and/or mentoring.
values, ethics, depth, loyalty and dependability of past generations-Since i do not think these things can be taught, they need to be fleshed out in an experiential way with the individual being considered for the job. Forums that might bridge the gap would then include collaboration and case studies. Perhaps team building exercises. Activities that reveal not just intelligence or subject matter expertise, but emotional and moral IQ as well.