Recently, my Planit mentee shared a LinkedIn post noting that, for the first time in history, there are five generations in the workplace together. She’s a Millennial. I’m a Gen Xer. And my immediate reaction was, That’s rad! Five generations!
Then I sat with it for a hot second.
I’m 52 years old. Working alongside four other generations would mean I’m posting up at the watercooler and hopping on Zooms with someone my kids’ age (pretty likely), my parents’ age (less likely, but certainly possible), my grandparents’ age (RIP), and my future grandchild’s age (not yet conceived).
Your results may vary, but I bet the math only maths if you use the strictest possible marketing definitions of generations. And even for us marketers, that tidy utopia where an 81-year-young member of the Silent Generation collaborates seamlessly with Boomers, Xers, Millennials, and a 20-something Gen Z feels like a reach. But maybe the family bakery runs a little differently than a marketing firm.
Squishy math aside, the concept that today’s business environment has become the most diverse generational melting pot ever is very real. At Planit, we believe a blend of lived experiences, cultural reference points, and communication styles creates an intergenerational gumbo that makes us stronger, sharper, and more resilient. It’s a huge competitive advantage for us, our clients, and any other business that operates across (or markets to) multiple generations.
Here’s the real challenge: Too many organizations say they value generational diversity, but fail to leverage it.
No criticism—just a leadership opportunity we’re working on ourselves. It’s not uncommon to still equate authority with age and tenure. A 2025 Leadership Quarterly study found that younger adults are consistently perceived as less “leader-like” compared to middle-aged or older adults. This has absolutely zero to do with their performance. It’s driven almost entirely by age-based stereotypes about competence. Younger leaders also report higher rates of impostor syndrome, which negatively impacts their confidence and how older generations perceive them.
So if our workplaces celebrate generational diversity but still default to the same authority structures, old tropes, and skewed beliefs we’ve always had, it falls flat. The actual competitive advantage only shows up when authority isn’t automatically tied to age. We have to treat younger team members like experts, not apprentices.
While guzzling office coffee for the past three decades, I’ve seen highly confident employees of all ages and extremely timid ones of all ages. I’ve been around plenty of genuine pros, and more bullshitters than I can count. How a young employee shows up in the room says very little about their actual value or real potential. Courage at work isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about bringing your insights. Seeing what others can’t. Expanding the conversation.
In my experience, someone half my age is much more likely to be fluent in emerging tech, social platforms, and cultural codes than I am. They’re closer to trending consumer behavior vs. the nostalgia of “how it used to be.” They’re certainly fresher from being bathed in the light of provocative academic thought leadership like cultural ethics to DEI to data: topics my hardbound textbooks never even sniffed 35 years ago.
Planit’s clients expect relevance, not just experience, and they trust us to bring both to the partnership. It’s magic when we can pair fluency and raw innovation with seasoned strategy and business judgment.
So for the up-and-coming generations primed to lead the new marketing workforce, here’s a permission slip you deserve:
- Don’t hesitate to share your POV and your unique cultural perspective. When you offer real observations and evidence without feeling like you need to know everything, you may discover you’re exactly the voice the C-Suite needs to hear.
- Claim your space. “From a Gen-Z perspective” or “Based on my analysis of TikTok trends” are superpowers not everyone has.
- Remember, you were invited to the room for a reason. It probably wasn’t to sit quietly and do whatever the boss says, or to keep slogging through the status quo. You are necessary, not optional, to the conversation. I promise I’m not just being a cheerleader; this is how we’re actively trying to build our Planit teams and leadership.
And for leaders, especially the ones who have been around for a minute:
- Put younger voices in visible, meaningful roles, even when the stakes are high and the client isn’t a “youth brand.”
- Pass the mic. If we keep relying on the same go-to managers to drive everything, we’re leaving valuable insights on the table.
- Be open to a different way than you would have done it. New doesn’t mean better, but it also doesn’t mean worse.
- Learn from our home team. Less than two miles from Planit, the Baltimore Ravens just hired a much younger head coach in Jesse Minter. They also let him bring in a 29-year-old Offensive Coordinator who’s the same age as our QB and the youngest in the league. Is their youth movement a gamble? Totally. But it sends a clear message that standing still is the bigger risk. And if a top NFL franchise can hand the ball to a new generation to spark innovation, our agencies and boardrooms can certainly do the same.
Let’s be clear: old can be very wise. Young can be very wise, too. Smart organizations make space for both. The real advantage of the modern workplace isn’t just having five generations in the room. It’s knowing when, and being brave enough, to give them the floor.
(And to all the “mentees” like mine who share their ideas and open the dialogue, keep pushing. We’re listening.)