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The quickest way to communicate well across the generations is to ask people how they like to be contacted instead of guessing from their age. In our 2024 survey of 4,067 people, 72% of Baby Boomers use WhatsApp, and the generation least likely to accept calls from unknown numbers is Gen X, at 24%. Organisations that ask, and offer more than one channel, reach more staff and customers.
The quickest way to communicate well across the generations is to ask people how they like to be contacted, instead of guessing from their age. The usual stereotypes only partly survive the data. In our Communication Habits and Preferences 2024 survey, 72% of Baby Boomers use WhatsApp, and the generation least likely to accept calls from unknown numbers is Gen X, at 24%.
It's easy to make assumptions about how colleagues and customers of different generations prefer to communicate. Those assumptions can lead to misunderstandings, lost productivity and even financial losses. The fix is simple enough to feel obvious.
You have probably heard the shorthand, and I have used it myself: Baby Boomers prefer phone calls, Gen X favour email, and Millennials and Gen Z live on instant messaging and social media. There is a grain of truth in each, which is why the shorthand survives.
The trouble starts when the shorthand becomes a rule. Steve Haynes, a negotiator and mediator, summed it up when he joined me for Negotiation, differences and cutting through generational assumptions: "Assumptions are just shortcuts to misunderstanding, aren't they?" The moment we assume we know what someone wants, we stop really listening.
Our survey of 4,067 people in the UK let us test the shorthand, and it fails in some surprising places.
| The assumption | What our 2024 survey found |
|---|---|
| Baby Boomers prefer phone calls | 49% of Baby Boomers like phone conversations and have them frequently, and 72% use WhatsApp |
| Older people avoid new technology | 89% of Baby Boomers use a smartphone, and 40% of Baby Boomers who use video calls for work enjoy them frequently, against 18% of 18 to 21 year olds |
| Gen X live on email | 37% of Gen X send emails several times a day, against 10% of Gen Z, but Gen X are also the most wary of the phone: 24% accept calls from unknown numbers and 32% only phone when necessary |
| Gen Z won't pick up the phone | 36% of Gen Z aged 16 and over accept calls from unknown numbers, more than any other generation |
| The oldest generation won't use apps | 61% of the Silent Generation use WhatsApp, although 47% phone first to reach distant friends and family |
Source: Communication Habits and Preferences 2024, UK, 4,067 respondents.
WhatsApp is the clearest case. 80% of all our respondents use it, more than any other app, and 91% of Millennials do. Ofcom's Adults' Media Use and Attitudes report, published in April 2026, found the same pattern: 81% of social media users aged 16 to 24 use WhatsApp, and 78% of those aged 75 and over. Our guide to how each generation prefers to communicate ranks all six generations on these measures.
Because people use the channels they want to use, whatever your process says. In 2023, during a Q&A after one of my keynotes, an audience member who worked for his local council told me about a problem they were having. The council had a process on its website for reporting faults and concerns, but the public, especially younger people, kept posting on social media instead. How could they get people to follow the "correct" protocol?
My suggestion was to stop trying to change the way people do things and embrace the ways they are prepared to interact. That meant welcoming reports through social media while keeping the online process for those who preferred it. Organisations that try to force people into one method of communication rarely get the feedback they are looking for.
The same is true of customers. In March 2024 I ran a LinkedIn poll on how people like to check in to a hotel, receptionist or self-service, and plenty of people had a firm preference. So if a hotel wants me to use a digital key on my phone, great! But don't assume I'll want to, and keep other options available if you want a loyal customer.
You ask, and then you act on the answer. Encouraging people to share their preferred methods reduces guesswork and builds mutual respect.
Ask every new starter. In the first week, ask how they prefer to be contacted for quick questions, for anything urgent and for anything sensitive, and write the answers down where the team can see them.
Offer more than one channel. For staff, that might mean a team chat for quick updates, email for decisions and a call or a meeting for anything difficult. For customers, keep a phone line or a person available alongside the app.
Stretch in both directions. Older colleagues can try newer tools, and younger colleagues can pick up the phone or write a proper email when the situation calls for it. Communication has to be adapted, not standardised.
Listen to the answer. Steve Haynes's advice from the podcast works here too: "Listen to understand, don't listen to respond." If someone tells you they hate video calls, take them at their word, whatever their age.
Our overview of how each generation likes to talk and our guide to managing five generations at work go further. Do you adapt your communication to the person, or to their generational stereotype?
There are patterns, but they are weaker than the stereotypes. In our 2024 UK survey of 4,067 people, WhatsApp was the most common way of contacting friends and family for every generation except the Silent Generation, 47% of whom phone first. 72% of Baby Boomers use WhatsApp, and 37% of Gen X send emails several times a day, against 10% of Gen Z.
Partly. 49% of Baby Boomers and 62% of the Silent Generation like phone conversations and have them frequently, against 32% of Gen Z. But most older people use messaging too: 72% of Baby Boomers and 61% of the Silent Generation use WhatsApp. And the generation most wary of calls from unknown numbers is Gen X.
Because even the clearest generational patterns leave many people out. 49% of Baby Boomers like phone conversations and have them frequently, so around half do not. Age-based assumptions can lead to missed messages, frustrated customers and colleagues who feel misjudged. Asking takes a minute. Record each person's preferred channels for quick, urgent and sensitive matters, and offer more than one route for staff and customers.
Make it part of onboarding and one-to-ones. Ask how they prefer to be contacted for quick questions, urgent issues and sensitive conversations, and whether there are channels they dislike. Write the answers where the team can see them, review them every six months, and ask customers the same question when they first get in touch.
Alastair speaks to organisations about communicating across the generations without relying on stereotypes.
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