This week, Nathan Laurie, president of Jobpostings.ca, was quoted on the topic of millennials and boomers working in the same office.

An excerpt of Nathan's key points in Romina Maurino's Financial Post article:

There's definitely a difference in their age, in their experience and their maturity, but there are some Boomers who I've seen them act like Millennials and some Millennials who act like Boomers, says Nathan Laurie, president of online student job board Jobpostings.ca.

Smart leaders and mangers won't pigeonhole any one worker into their generational slot, he adds, and will instead look at unifying threads that make workers happy across generations while still finding ways to account for individual differences.

Best practice is to focus on the individual and then build a work environment that celebrates and accommodates everyone's work styles and personalities in a cohesive way.

Respect, flexibility, task variety and working with people they like are common themes for all generations, as are mentoring and appreciation.

If a company uses those core values as pillars for their work culture its employees will work well together, regardless of their age, Laurie says.

Trusting employees to work independently also requires training, which is another component both Boomers and Millennials see as adding strongly to a company's culture.

For younger people they look to be included in the dialogue, to, if not provide direction for the company, at least have input into the direction of the company, says Tom Turpin, president of Randstad Canada, a leading human resources company and recruiting firm.

Boomers tend to think more about: What do I have to offer the organization and what does it have to offer me ÔÇô but both of them respond extremely well to training and mentoring, whether it's being mentored or doing the mentoring.

And whether it's a Millennial directly asking how to achieve a certain career path or a Boomer's belief that if he/she just puts his/her head down, works hard and does a good job, he/she will be promoted, both groups want a workplace that will allow them to move up and to better themselves, Laurie says.

We see that Boomers want clear goals and objectives, with the flexibility to execute them their way, he says, adding they also feel more ownership over their work and are motivated by financial incentives than Millennials, who care more about ownership over how they work than the type of work they actually do.

[Millennials] also care for an open and casual work environment since they see their work life and their home life as one and the same, Laurie says.

The full, in-depth article can be found at the Financial Post: http://business.financialpost.com/2014/10/07/focus-on-unifying-corporate-values-with-inter-generational-appeal/?__lsa=b69b-3cd6