discussion.

I believe the increasing age diversity will create new challenges for managers. Managers already have to make sure they are recognizing that they are not discriminating gender, handicaps, nationality, and even religion. Age has become more of an issue as life expectancy has increased. The challenges I expect that will be profound is the stereotype that job performance will decrease with age. As the case study mentioned, there is no evidence to this issue, but we have all heard it before.

Diversity can impact individual attitudes and behavior by teaching us to understand the differences in each other. Many of the younger employees can learn from the older generations through experiences and vice versa. The saying “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks” is just that, a saying. I think it is carless to say that the older generation does not pick up on things like iPads and computers. I know many “older” individuals that have no problem learning new technology. There is just a select few people who may not get it, which is where I believe the stereotype comes into play. It just takes time and education and many of us adapt. It also takes willingness to learn new things.

Many of us can be guilty of doing our jobs the way we see fit. In reality we have to learn new things and keep up with the ever changing world and economy. One way we can learn is through others. One way diversity can bring about job satisfaction is through working with others that are similar. We are more likely to advance. According to our text, “Those whose personality traits are similar to those of their co-workers are more likely to be promoted than those whose personalities are different,” (Robbins & Judge, 2013). Individuals obviously tend to work well with others when they are with people who share similar ideas. It creates a positive work environment that can benefit others as well.

Robbins, S., & Judge, T. (2013). Organizational behavior. (15th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall Publishing.