The Generation Puzzle

The Netherlands is in the midst of a generational shift. While the Protest Generation is gradually handing over its leadership role to Generation X, the Pragmatic Generation is taking the middle position, and the first screenagers are making their voices heard. Organizations and other social systems are constantly dealing with the succession of new generations.

This involves not only new juniors but also new generations of mid-level employees, leaders, and seniors. Generations are culture refreshers, reinventing themselves in every life phase. They make an essential contribution to the social evolution and development of organizations and society. Many managers and employees are unaware of this or insufficiently realize it, often unintentionally and unknowingly hindering the innovative drive of new generations.

This affects the youngest generations the most: it frustrates them and leads to a loss of freshness and work energy. This energy dip is often noticed but not recognized as a signal of stagnation in the social evolution of their organization.

Aart Bontekoning has extensively studied this phenomenon. Based on his findings, he developed methods to encourage new generations—from juniors to seniors—to go "all in," show themselves, and let their natural innovative power influence organizational culture. This generates energy and contributes to the healthy development of an organization's culture.

In The Generation Puzzle, the author explains how this works. This book is written for anyone who works with multiple generations. It focuses on revitalizing the different generations, improving intergenerational collaboration, and enabling sustainable cultural change.