You Raised Us, Now Work With Us

Lauren Stiller Rikleen is a nationally recognized speaker and consultant the multi-generational workplace; women's leadership; and unconscious bias. She is president of the Rikleen Institute for Strategic Leadership and Executive-in-Residence at the Boston College Center for Work & Family in the Carroll School of Management.

Since the original hardcover release, the book has received accolades from the media and from experts on generational issues. “Read this book if you want to get beyond stereotypes and understand millennials and the workplace.  Lauren Rikleen provides terrific practical insight that will help employers harness the talent of millennials in the workplace.  Whether you are a parent, an educator, or an employer, this book will help you understand the dynamics of the millennial generation. Buy the book. Give it to your friends. They will thank you.” —David P. Angel, President, Clark University“Rikleen takes on the mythology that Millennials are soft and entitled and turns it on its head. With original research and a wealth of fresh and powerful voices, she draws a more complex and nuanced portrait of a young, tech-savvy, highly skilled and dedicated generation with a different definition of success. That they put more stock in efficiency, quality and performance, rather than in the ‘tried and true’ long hours of face time in the office is, Rikleen points out, something not to be denigrated, but celebrated. Essential Reading for employers, employees, and parents of any generation.”—Brigid Schulte, author of the New York Times bestselling “Overwhelmed: Work, Love and Play when No One has the Time,” long-time, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and director of the Better Life Lab at New America"It is easy to simply write that Millennials are entitled. It is much harder to write a nuanced portrait that accurately captures the complexities of the Millennial Generation, but that's precisely what Lauren Rikleen has done in You Raised Us - Now Work with Us."— Keli Goff, author of Party Crashing: How the Hip-Hop Generation Declared Political Independence"If you look at the organizational pyramid of many of today's companies and apply a generational label to each typical level in the hierarchy you will generally find 'boomers'in top management, 'Gen Xrs' in middle management and Millennials' in lower management. It is in the latter group where a majority of day-to-day client contact occurs. In my former company, a global financial services organization of more than 30,000 people, I, and 10 other boomers focused on strategic decisions; roughly 1,000 Gen X middle managers transformed those decisions into local actions; and all the rest, roughly 29,000 out of 30,000, most of whom were under 30, delivered our products and services to our customers, working with them every day, and shaping their opinion of our company.These groups do not think alike. As a leader it is critical to understand how they are not alike, and to harness that knowledge for the greater good of the enterprise, as well as for each member of these groups. That understanding can clearly be found in Lauren Rikleen's book. It is a must read for those making major decisions for their companies. Understanding how those decisions will be executed means understanding who will execute them. That understanding can start here."—Ron Logue, former CEO, State Street Corporation"There is a long tradition of the older generation misunderstanding and denigrating the younger generation, but it need not always be so. Lauren Rikleen presents a healthy alternative to this pattern in her wise and informative book. Drawing on her own research as well as other studies, and presenting survey findings along with individual perspectives, she explains today's emerging adults to their potential employers and colleagues, to the benefit of both sides. This book provides a road map toward a workplace that is not only more productive but more harmonious and humane."—Dr. Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, Clark University, co-author (with Elizabeth Fishel) of When Will My Grown-Up Kid Grow Up?"Generational differences are causing uncertainty and strife in the uncharted waters of the digital economy, but they don't have to. In You Raised Us – Now Work With Us, Lauren Rikleen does a brilliant job of outlining the nuances behind many of the stereotypes that befall Boomers, Gen Xers and Millennials – particularly critical as more Millennials enter the workforce at the same time Boomers are delaying their retirements. Her book paves the way for workers of all ages to not just tolerate generational differences, but thrive by embracing the best of them. Backed by data and powerful anecdotes, Rikleen has written the manual we need to redefine team effectiveness and workplace success for the new millennium."—Jenny Blake, author of Life After College