Mike and Morley

It’s time for Millennials (born 1982-2003) to have that tough talk about retirement with members of the Baby Boom generation (born 1946-1964). Unless more Boomers start stepping down soon, the path to promotions and career progress for younger generations will continue to be blocked by people who haven’t shown any inclination to leave, especially after the Great Recession devastated many Boomers’ retirement portfolios. But using logic or inter-generational appeals isn’t likely to be successful and would seem... Read more

The latest survey data on the  living preferences of the Millennial generation (born 1982-2003) once again validates the picture of a cohort that, contrary to urban legend, actually prefers the suburbs, even as they prepare to shape the suburbs in their own image. We and others have previously made this data-based point on this website. The results of the survey challenges the often wishful thinking of academics and ideologues who yearn for a more urbanized, denser America. The Demand Institute commissioned... Read more

  Beyoncé’s performance of her song, “Flawless”, at the Video Music Awards ceremony was the culmination of her efforts to celebrate and endorse the Millennial generation’s concept of feminism. Quoting the Nigerian writer, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Beyoncé proclaimed, “We should all be feminists,” defining a feminist as a “person who believes in the social, political and economic equality of the sexes.” MTV proclaimed her performance to be “Fearless, Feminist, Flawless, Family Time”, a combination only a Millennial could deliver.The acclaim that Beyoncé received from Boomer women, who had begun to... Read more

The "us vs. them" tone of American politics, most visibly emanating from the White House, but infecting all the country’s political rhetoric, has now spread to daily life. The polarization leads some to question the country’s ability to keep its democratic traditions and hold together as one nation. A recent poll conducted with bipartisan sponsorship by the Biden and Bush Institutes found that 50% of Americans believe that the United States is in “Real danger of becoming a nondemocratic authoritarian country and 80% of... Read more

Finding the right mix between encouraging learning and growth within an organization while still providing enough direction to keep the entity on course remains the biggest leadership challenge facing anyone seeking to harness the energy and enthusiasm of America’s youngest, largest and most diverse generation of workers. Although strategic direction will still come from the leaders of organizations in the future, new work processes and behaviors need to embrace the bottom-up approach to solving problems that Millennials, born between 1982 and 2003, favor. Part of... Read more

Confrontation and conflict are the favorite dispute resolution tools of Baby Boomers, who were born in the aftermath of WWII and grew up in the rebellious ‘60s. In stark contrast, members of the Millennial generation, born 1982-2003, bring a spirit of collaboration and consensus to solving any problem they encounter. A great example of what a difference this generational distinction can make is the cooperative spirit the parents at the LA Unified School District’s 24th Street school, most of whom are Millennials... Read more

The Millennial generation’s (born 1982-2003) attitude that will have most impact on the daily lives of Americans is the distinctive and historically unprecedented belief that there are no inherently male or female roles in society. This belief stems directly from Millennials’ experience growing up in families in which the mother and father took on roughly equal responsibilities for raising their offspring. As men and women enter the workforce on an equal footing this generation’s belief in gender neutrality will force major changes in our laws... Read more

Depending on one’s partisan leanings, the desire of House Republicans to shut down the federal government if the Democrats don’t agree to repeal ObamaCare may seem to be either a courageous ideological stand or a kamikaze mission sure to destroy its proponents, if not the country. However, from a generational perspective it is not only a predictable but a necessary step in the country’s search for a new consensus on the role and size of government. Nor is it coincidental that the current confrontation is... Read more

Over the centuries, differences in generational attitudes have caused the nation’s consensus on how to balance the tension between security and privacy to shift. Group and civic-oriented generations, such as the GI generation that fought in World War II, emphasized safety and security. Individualistic generations, such as today’s Baby Boomers and Generation X, tilted the balance back toward protecting privacy from the intrusions of big government or big business. Today another civic generation, Millennials, born between 1982 and 2003, is emerging into young adulthood and,... Read more

The current Congressional debate over Obama’s request to attack Syria for its use of chemical weapons embodies the same generational consequences and disagreements as the debate over the United States joining the League of Nations did almost one hundred years ago. The outcome of that vote settled the direction of American foreign policy for two decades, the span of a generation. The outcome of today’s debate may well have the same consequences for shaping the role of the United... Read more