The survey of more than 7,000 consumers in the United States, the United Kingdom and France, conducted in November and December 2021 in partnership with Accenture Research, Ipsos and Nielsen, found those two groups are least likely to see people like themselves portrayed in “nuanced and non-stereotypical” ways.

This lack of diversity in the way people are depicted represents a lost business opportunity of considerable significance. Older people are “the wealthiest age group on the planet,” according to Ipsos CEO Ben Page, while 50% of LGBTQ+ consumers say they will stop using a product or service they consider noninclusive. There’s also mounting evidence that when consumers see themselves in advertisements, their loyalty to the brand is strengthened — and the failure to do so can drive them to competitors. A diverse workforce, moreover, leads to innovation and to better products and services.

“The social impact stemming from a culture that embraces inclusion and diversity — as a core strategy both internally for their people and externally for their customers — will be among the top differentiators for whether companies thrive or get left behind in the inclusive future we must build together,” says Kathleen O’Reilly, Accenture’s global lead.

Even though older consumers — baby boomers, mainly — are wealthier than their younger counterparts, only 8% of organizations “include age as part of their DEI strategy,” according to the Harvard Business Review. These organizations do so despite the fact that age-diverse teams “are valuable because they bring together people with complementary abilities, skills, information, and networks. If managed effectively, they can offer better decision-making, more-productive collaboration, and improved overall performance — but only if members are willing to share and learn from their differences.”

Lack of Trust

Too often, however, generational differences cause problems in the workplace and elsewhere, leading to the sarcastic rejoinder, “OK, boomer,” that went viral in 2019. Five generations now work together and “tensions are mounting. The anger and lack of trust they can cause hurt team performance by limiting collaboration, sparking emotional conflict, and leading to higher employee turnover and lower team performance,” HBR continues. “And a lack of awareness and understanding of age issues can drive discrimination in hiring and promotion, leading to lawsuit risks.”

Generational frustrations “have become even more pronounced during the pandemic. As people of all ages have left their jobs in the so-called Great Resignation, older and younger workers are competing for similar roles. While older workers have more experience, the 35-and-under age groups, according to a recent survey of hiring managers, are seen as having the most relevant education and skills and the best cultural fit for open positions.”

Who Knew?

Ironies abound. Many Gen Z employees have worked remotely for much, if not all, of their careers and are accustomed to such an arrangement, leaving them “feeling disconnected from coworkers and undervalued by their older teammates,” HBR writes. But older employees, having spent their professional lives reporting five days a week to headquarters, seem to enjoy working remotely. They “have adjusted to working from home better than expected, finding the flexibility energizing after a lifetime of long hours at the office.”