Generation Y is the largest generation in the workplace since the Baby Boomer generation. Due to the birth rate decline of Generation X and the reality that Baby Boomers are approaching retirement age, previous literature demonstrates a greater need to hire and retain Generation Y employees. Researchers posit that the loyalty of Generation Y tends to lie in engaging genuine leaders willing to give frequent and detailed feedback, and participate in a 'parent-like' mentoring relationship with Baby Boomer or Traditionalist co-workers. Other theories show, Generation Y tends to look for enjoyably meaningful work and relationships with co-workers, which would assume that those leaders who are able to foster meaningful work relationships, and proactively answer, are the ones most likely to retain Generation Y employees. The focus of this study is to define quantify the leadership characteristics preferred by each generation. The Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) Project research survey by Robert House et al. (2004), determined the statistical relationships between charismatic or value based, team orientated, self protective, humane oriented, participative, and autonomous leadership characteristics, in addition to their 21 subscales, when controlling for generational cohort, gender, and ethnicity. The differences between generation and preferred GLOBE Leadership dimensions and subscales were determined by Kruskal-Wallis H Chi-Squared; Mann Whitney U; and Wilcoxon W tests.

Keywords: Leadership Preference, Generation Y, Generation X, Baby Boomers, Traditionalists, GLOBE