BOSTON–The reason change often doesn’t occur inside organizations is the same reason products and services don’t sell as expected—because people simply can’t see the world through someone else’s eyes, according to one expert. A Filene Center of Excellence has set out to help change that.
Speaking to Filene’s Spark Conference here, Dr. Kim Lear, the Filene Fellow who is heading up the organization’s Next Generation of Member Growth Center of Excellence, said very often the inability to see the world the way other see it comes down to when one was born.
“What I find particularly interesting about the credit union space is we also have to do this fine balance in preparing for new numbers, for a new generation, without alienating the current members,” said Lear, who also heads up the research firm Inlay Insights. “So, that will also be part of this Center--finding that balance and making sure that we're meeting the needs of everyone while still being really prepared for the future.”
The Generations
Lear walked her audience through some of the attributes and behaviors of four generations of consumers.
She also noted that some people fall into more than one generation, so-called “Cuspers.” These are people who “sit between two demographics. They see both sides and do a lot of translating and mediating. They are generationally bilingual.”
Before plunging into each of the four demographic groups Lear also stressed that “dates are just a starting place.”
The Importance of Teenage Years
“What we actually looking at is events and conditions from our formulative years, and in sociology that’s roughly our teenage years to young adulthood,” Lear explained. “What happens at that time has a lasting impact on how we view things…We study how these shared experiences result in behavioral patterns and consumer trends…We're looking at broader macro-trends. We're looking at demographic shifts and evolving cultural norms.
“We're trying to understand why we can do something today and it's totally acceptable but if we did it 20 years ago it would have been terrible,” Lear continued. “As we go through this we're not trying to capture this one person, we're trying to capture the story of a shared society and how it moves over time. What that means is we're trying to get a diverse group of people to row the boat in the same direction. We’re trying to meet the needs of a diverse member base.”
The Baby Boomers: 1946-1964
What is unique about Baby Boomers, according to Lear, is that it’s rare for one generation to really see the fruits of their labors—that’s usually only visible in subsequent generations. But not so with Baby Boomers, Lear said, noting the generation set out to change the world in many ways, and often did so. Boomers are also a generation that was largely driven by optimism about their future, she added.
Two Views of NASA
When Baby Boomers are asked about their first memories, many will use NASA as an example and cite its successes in exploring space and landing on the moon during the 1960s. The result was a belief that the “sky’s the limit and anything is possible,” Lear shared.
In contrast, Lear said, when Gen Xers are asked about their memory of NASA, it’s the Challenger explosion. “Gen Xers will tell you if you can’t trust the geniuses at NASA, who can you trust?”
Also fueling the optimism of Baby Boomers, Lear explained, is the fact most grew up in an era of a booming stock market, with the average Boomer earning 400% more than their fathers at the same age.
“One of the things we look at is the economic conditions when you enter the labor market, which has lasting impacts on how you view things,” Lear told the meeting.
And even though 10,000 Baby Boomers are turning 65 every day, Lear said many remain “young in spirit, young at heart.”
Old Dogs, New Tricks
She added it’s a generation that proves “you can teach an old dog a new trick,” as Baby Boomers have readily embraced technology.
“When we look at (Filene) centers focused on AI, new member growth, etc., there is a misconception we are focused on those things because we are just trying to get 22-year-olds,” Lear said. “But the aspirations and expectations of everyone has changed. It’s not just about getting the youngest members, it’s about keeping the engagement of younger members.”
Generation X, 1965-1979
The biggest development effecting Generation X was the emergence of 24 hour media, such as MTV, and the 24-hour news cycle, such as CNN, according to Lear.
It’s also a generation in which one can see a “real rise in skepticism.”
“Gen Xers are an unforgiving segment,” Lear said. “When we look at their brand consistency, their brand loyalty, we find that if you lie to them, if you cross them, it's hard to bring them back into the fold. We see some aversions to traditional sales tactics."
Generation X also lived through an era when the institution of marriage was called into question, as the U.S. divorce rate doubled and many children returned from school each day to empty homes.
‘Fierce Independence’
“They let themselves off the school bus, let themselves in the door, put their own food in the microwave, and organized their own time,” said Lear. “One of the trends that we still see is this streak of fierce independence in the workplace. Even now, I'll ask in focus groups ‘What is your ideal way to work?,’ and in some Gen X focus group we still hear things like, ‘Tell me what you want, where you want it, when you want it, how you want it. I'm going to go away and hopefully you are about to go away.’"
Gen Xers who are now in management have had to confront a new generation who arrived at work thinking everything would be collaborative and “We’re going to work in a treehouse and write on a whiteboard,” which has created some conflicts, she noted.
Three traits that define Generation X, Lear said, are:
- Skeptical
- Independent
- Entrepreneurial
The Biggest Effect
“The skepticism is the piece that has the biggest effect on communication, so that will be our landing pad,” Lear said. “What does this mean for you? Part of what we're going to look at is the way that skepticism has transformed trust.”
The different communication styles, including “radical candor, extreme transparency, and a direct, unfiltered” approach, is an issue the new Filene Center will be studying, according to Lear.
“When it comes to bridging this COVID gap, one of the things leaders have to do is to help young employees get their ideas into the right wrapping paper,” Lear advised.
Millennials, 1980-1995
The Millennial generation was born at the dawn of the era of social media, noted Lear, who said the generation is idealistic and optimistic because those platforms really served as agents for the youth experience.
“There was this explosion of creativity at that time, particularly coming from creators of color who would bypass traditional gatekeepers and go build out their own audiences,” said Lear.
Millennials were the first to experiment with collective leverage and to leverage that ability to influence and be influenced.
On the other side, it was also a generation affected by violent events, such as the Columbine school shootings.
“We’re looking at the impact of 82 million young people coming through who are working with you, not against you,” said Lear, noting Millennials were raised with the idea their voice matters and they should speak up, which can be misinterpreted in some workplaces.
What’s Being Overlooked
“A lot of times when people talk about the future of anything, the future of the marketplace, they overlook changes in the domestic sphere,” said Lear. “You can't get any type of predictive understanding if we don't understand how families change. So, that is part of what we look at in the Center, as well, and what that means for members, their needs, their expectations and the way that these generations interplay with one another.”
Some trends with Millennials the Center will explore, according to Lear, include that they are:
- Collaborative
- Empowered
- Networked
- Risk Averse
- In search of meeting
Generation Z, 1996-2010
Generation Z’s youthful experience has largely been effected by COVID, including college students who moved back home and then stayed there. Lear said Gen Z’s formulative moments are still underway.
There are two trends with Gen Z Lear said credit unions should give attention:
- The first is the “interesting” relationship between Gen X parents and Gen Z kids, which is unusually close. The two generations are highly influential over each other, a dynamic that can affect the workplace and decision-making.
- The second is the “well-being revolution” across numerous aspects of life. That also includes the workplace, where many Gen Z members are asking themselves what they are willing to sacrifice for their job.
The Last Trend
Another trend to be aware of with Gen Z is “optimization,” according to Lear, who explained that this generation has replaced the obsession with convenience with the obsession with optimization.
“To make something optimal is to make it as perfect and useful as possible,” said Lear. “A stationary bike was convenient, but a Peleton was optimal. The last, best experience we have anywhere becomes the minimum expectation for the next experience anywhere. There is an incredible low tolerance for suboptimal experiences.”