Saint Vincent College faculty member Michael Urick has released a book addressing generational stereotypes and myths in the business world.
More than a decade of research and two years of writing went into “The Generation Myth: How to Improve Intergenerational Relationships in the Workplace.”
Published by Business Expert Press, it was released as an eBook in late February. A print edition is due out this month .
The book highlights the complexity of the “generation” concept, beyond simple age-based groupings, and suggests that over-reliance on generational stereotypes in the workplace and society can impair interactions and even lead to conflict. Urick presents strategies to help improve inter-generational relationships.
“Engaging in such a project, where I take many of my prior publications and try to weave together a cohesive narrative explaining my work, was exciting, fun and daunting,” Urick wrote in a blog post.
Urick is director of the Master of Science in Management: Operational Excellence program at the Unity college’s Alex G. McKenna School of Business, Economics and Government.
He started his career as an auditor and discovered older colleagues had negative attitudes toward members of his generation, with a perception that younger employees aren’t as strongly committed to work.
He said his goal is to help people in business have better interactions, regardless of their age, instead of focusing on their differences.
Urick holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Saint Vincent College, a master’s degrees in human resource management and business ethics from Duquesne University and a doctorate in management, with a focus on organizational behavior, from the University of Cincinnati.
He recently served as a contributor and co-editor for a three-volume set of leadership books — “Essential Principles for Managers: Innovative Approaches to Examining Foundational Theories of Management and Leadership;” “Diversity and Performance: Multidisciplinary and Nontraditional Styles of Leadership and Management;” and “Management and Welfare: Applications and Theories of Leadership for the Economy, State and Welfare.”
