Moira Tolan, professor of Business at Mount Saint Mary College, moderates the recent panel on intergenerational collaboration in the workforce. Panelist, left to right: Doug Hovey, President and Chief Executive Officer, Independent Living, Inc.; Dr. Robert Gervasi, President, Mount Saint Mary College; Dean DiMarzo, Assistant Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Mount Saint Mary College; Tim Murphy, Director of Adult Protective Services (retired), Orange County Government; Kathleen Carey, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson, JonCar Realty, Beacon, N.Y.; and Jonathan Miller, Principal Broker, JonCar Realty, Beacon, N.Y.
Mount Saint Mary College’s Center for Aging and Disability Policy (CADP) and the School of Business presented a panel discussion on Intergenerational Collaboration in the Workforce on Wednesday, October 16.
The conversation explored the successes and the challenges of different generations collaborating and navigating the workplace.
The panelists were:
- Dr. Robert Gervasi, President, Mount Saint Mary College
- Dean DiMarzo, Assistant Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Mount Saint Mary College
- Doug Hovey, President and Chief Executive Officer, Independent Living, Inc.
- Tim Murphy, Director of Adult Protective Services (retired), Orange County Government
- Jonathan Miller, Principal Broker, JonCar Realty, Beacon, N.Y.
- Kathleen Carey, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson, JonCar Realty, Beacon, N.Y.
One of the first and most important aspects of intergenerational collaboration is trust, Dr. Gervasi noted. Trust between employees of all ages is necessary for success in the workplace.
“The culture of an organization based on trust is critical,” he said. “As president, I rely on people who work with me to be honest with me. It’s got to start with honesty.”
Regardless of age, added Dr. Gervasi, employees focused on teamwork often get the best results.
“We’re all here, relative to the span of history, for a short time,” he said. “Why not do the best we can with the time we have?”
DiMarzo noted that, like in many other facets of the professional world, intergenerational collaboration requires good communication between parties.
“Don’t be concerned about saying that you don’t know how to do something,” he said. “Be ready to be open with your coworkers about that and open to learning about how to overcome those challenges.”
While some junior members of a team might be hesitant to share their thoughts with more seasoned colleagues, DiMarzo said that sharing new ideas is critical to improving an organization. Creating an office culture where ideas from all generations are welcome will help lead to success.
“Part of hiring new employees is looking for an injection of fresh ideas,” he said. “Bring those perspectives. Bring those fresh ideas.”
The panel was moderated by Moira Tolan, professor of Business; Lawrence Force, professor of Psychology, and Jeffrey Kahana, associate professor of History.
Force and Kahana are co-directors of the Mount’s Center on Aging and DIS-Ability Policy. Established in 2006, CADP promotes an interdisciplinary perspective dedicated to excellence in research and scholarship in the fields of gerontology and disability studies. CADP is also a national resource for the Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) and was recently named the 100th member organization of the national Independence Through Enhancement of Medicare and Medicaid (ITEM) Coalition.