How to manage the millennial generation in the workplace is stumping both baby boomers and Gen-Xers. But the generation gap is especially acute in the independent agent-broker (IAB) universe, where 84 percent of employees say there are real generational differences regarding work, and 72 percent agree that these differences pose challenges in their workplace.

That's the finding of a “Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers: The Generation Gap,” new study commissioned by Assurex Global and produced by LifeCourse Assocs., Great Falls, Va.

This could be attributed to the fact that millennials are also significantly underrepresented among the agencies surveyed, comprising only about 15 percent of the workforce, compared with the 22 percent national average, says F. Warren Wright, executive vice president of LifeCourse.

LifeCourse surveyed 47 agencies and brokerages, all affiliated with Assurex, representing all sizes and geographic regions. There were 4,986 individual respondents from all three generational bracket, Wright adds.

Much of the misunderstanding revolves around the different ways in which the three generational segments approach work, Wright says: “Millennials prefer frequent and exhaustive feedback on their performance, as well as lots of coaching, guidance and mentorship— more than their managers ever received when they started out in the business. A typical response we received from boomer and GenX managers was, 'I never had a lot of handholding and training when I was their age, so why should they?'”

Perceived Generational Differences in the Workplace

“In my organization, there are real differences between older and younger generations and how they approach work.”

IAB employees' favorable perceptions by generation as a place to work.

Millennials give the industry low marks as a place to work.

Only 24 percent have a favorable perspective on the independent agency system, compared with 31 percent for Gen X and 43 for baby boomers. This is a problem because millennials are heavily networked, and spreading this negative perception through bad word-of-mouth could thwart industry efforts to recruit and retain, says Wright.

Millennials Respect Their Elders, but the Feeling isn't Mutual.

Millennials have the most favorable view of other generations in the workforce, with 19 percent ranking Xers “very favorably” and 20 percent ranking boomers “very favorably.” In comparison, only 9 percent of Xers rated millennials very favorably, and only 5 percent of boomers ranked millennials very favorably.