HR for Family Business: Part 3 of 3

As the final in a 3-part series on HR for the Family Business, this workshop will continue the overall theme of the IFOB year:  Growing and Protecting your Family Business.   Leigh G. Mundhenk, PhD, career consultant with Anton / LeMieux Financial Group, a family business member, will lead a lively discussion with panelists from each generation including Traditionalists, Boomers, Generation Xers and Millennials.

Family businesses are often comprised of three (four if we include traditionalists) generations. Each brings work style preferences and values to their work, formed by the particular experiences of their generations. These differences can create stylistic differences in work behaviors that can lead to misunderstandings and frustration! This can be especially true when older generations work with millennials. Yet understanding these generational differences can help leaders drive productivity.

• Identify each generation and the influencers that have made them characteristically different
•  Describe the values, traits, ethics, and workstyles of the four generations
• Identify and manage generational bias in themselves and their subordinates
• Appreciate the important role the complementarity of generational difference plays in workplace productivity
• Implement effective management strategies for each generation that drive productivity

In this workshop, participants will learn how to understand these differences, how to appreciate them by what they contribute to the workplace, and how to manage people of all generations effectively by acknowledging these differences. This workshop will teach you:

• How and why the generations are different
• Individual strategies for managing members of each generation
• How to help manage conflict in relationships caused by generational differences

By the end of this workshop, you will be able to:

• Describe the characteristics of each generations
• Identify and manage generational bias in yourself and your subordinates
• Implement effective management  strategies for each generation that drive productivity

Leigh G. Mundhenk, Ph,D
Leigh is a career consultant with Anton / Lemieux Financial Group and founder and principal of WorkConcepts.  She has been a career development consultant and trainer for 22 years. She specializes in multigenerational differences, and how organizations can tap the special strengths and opportunities that exist when organizations value workers of all ages.  Leigh is a retired Associate Professor at Lewiston Auburn College.  She began her career development career as a consultant with Drake Beam Morin in Philadelphia. She enjoys working one-on-one with clients as well as doing group work, including training and facilitating. Prior to entering this field, Leigh spent 18 years with Johnson & Johnsons.

Our Multigenerational Representatives:

Millennials (Born 1981-1997, 20-36 years) – Emily Machesney, Management Trainee, Pratt Abbott Cleaners
Emily is a fourth generation drycleaner and represents the 3rd generation of Machesneys at Pratt Abbott. She currently oversees store operations and training for the retail arm of the company, which is a long way from where she started cleaning out washers and bagging shirts as a teenager. Prior to officially joining her family business last year she worked in marketing and attended Emory University. Emily is part of the IFOB Next Gen group and volunteers with Junior Achievement.

Generation Xers (Born 1965-1980, 37-52 years) - Jeff Messer, President/Owner, Messer Truck Equipment
In 2003, Jeffrey Messer, joined Messer Truck Equipment, becoming the fourth generation in the family business. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy with a degree in Ocean Engineering, Jeff served in the U.S. Navy for five years as a Surface Warfare Officer and Nuclear Power Engineer before returning to Maine and the family business. He has worked in various areas of the business, including service, parts, and sales, in an effort to learn the business from the ground-up. In 2008, he was named company president after his father’s untimely passing.

Boomers (Born 1946-1964, 53-71 years) – Paula Mahony, President, Words@Work
Paula has helped countless clients identify the key elements of their vision and brand, providing concept and direction for QVC, collectiblestoday.com, WebMD, Schiavi Home Builders, United Insurance, UNUM, and the Town of Falmouth. Sometimes, ideas take unique form. Work for VNA Homehealth Hospice resulted in the award-winning Ask for VNA campaign. For the Town of Falmouth, she created Very Merry Falmouth – a three-day celebration attracting shoppers to Route One.  Paula is a board member of the Falmouth Cumberland Chamber and Dancing with the Dentists. She stays busy golfing, skiing, romping with her Black Lab and observing the behaviors of her Millennial children.

Traditionalists (Born 1928-1945, 72-89 years) – Joseph “Buddy” Capozza, Founder, Capozza Tile Co.
Joseph “Buddy” Capozza is the founder of Capozza Tile Co. Inc. He began his long career in 1956, learning the tile trade for a local tile company at the time.  He soon became a master craftsman in the field and after nearly 20 years decided to break out on his own.  In 1974 he started Capozza Tile Co, Inc. in Portland, ME.  In the 43 years since, the business has grown to 50 employees and three locations serving customers across Maine with all types of flooring needs residentially and commercially.  He’s still involved with the company, regularly sitting in on weekly meetings and giving wise words of advice to the employees who know him as “Mister C.”

Attendees will have the chance to share their experiences and ask questions along with time to network with other businesses.