The Perennials: The Megatrends Creating a Postgenerational Society

by Mauro F. Guillén

In today’s world, the acceleration of megatrends – increasing longevity and the explosion of technology among many others – are transforming life as we now know it.

In The Perennials, bestselling author of 2030 Mauro Guillén unpacks a sweeping societal shift triggered by demographic and technological transformation. Guillén argues that outmoded terms like Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z have long been used to pigeonhole us into rigid categories and life stages, artificially preventing people from reaching their full potential. A new postgenerational workforce known as “perennials” – individuals who are not pitted against each other either by their age or experience – makes it possible to liberate scores of people from the constraints of the sequential model of life and level the playing field so that everyone has a chance at living a rewarding life. Guillén unveils how this generational revolution will impact young people just entering the workforce as well as those who are living and working longer.

This multigenerational revolution is already happening and Mauro Guillén identifies the specific cultural, organizational and policy changes that need to be made in order to switch to a new template and usher in a new era of innovation powered by the perennials.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sociology, Business, Society, History, Cultural, Audiobook

263 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2023

About the author

Mauro F. Guillén is director of the Lauder Institute and the Dr. Felix Zandman Professor of International Management and Sociology at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of The Limits of Convergence: Globalization and Organizational Change in Argentina, South Korea, and Spain (Princeton), The Rise of Spanish Multinationals, and the coauthor of Building a Global Bank (Princeton).

Reviews

[Richard Derus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Real Rating: 4.5* of five, rounded up because it's too important not to shout

The Publisher Says: In today’s world, the acceleration of megatrends—increasing longevity and the explosion of technology among many others—are transforming life as we now know it.

In The Perennials, bestselling author of 2030 Mauro Guillén unpacks a sweeping societal shift triggered by demographic and technological transformation. Guillén argues that outmoded terms like Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z have long been used to pigeonhole us into rigid categories and life stages, artificially preventing people from reaching their full potential. A new postgenerational workforce known as "perennials"—individuals who are not pitted against each other either by their age or experience—makes it possible to liberate scores of people from the constraints of the sequential model of life and level the playing field so that everyone has a chance at living a rewarding life.

This multigenerational revolution is already happening and Mauro Guillén identifies the specific cultural, organizational and policy changes that need to be made in order to switch to a new template and usher in a new era of innovation powered by The Perennials.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.

My Review: I'm well into my geezerdom. I think this gent's insight is a corker. Not just because he acknowledges the role of experience in a functioning world but because he says it's really the only way out of the looming crises of employment, productivity, and collapsing ecology. Well, I added the last one, but it seems to me that the problems the planet is facing are best faced with all hands on deck.

Most people don't live in the way I grew up, or likely that my readers did: A mother, a father, some siblings, one house, a couple cars; some orbiting family from the parents' siblings, closer or farther from us with whatever degree of connection our families could/chose to maintain; maybe grandparents on big family occasions. Life was preordained to follow that pattern through our generation, and we thought beyond it, too. Varying political movements and social pressures began to change the tiny, nuclear-family model...not least a reality of the nuclear world is that fission is easier and more common than fusion, and produces very, very toxic waste with a hugely long lifespan.

As a result of demographic realities the huge boost of living standards after World War II across most of the globe produced a gigantic population bubble. Better lives for "all" keep coming about, and all meant so many more than ever. The sociological changes wrought by the various liberation and empowerment movements around the world meant that there were huge numbers of people who needed jobs that had little or no family component. University educations became necessary (in theory anyway) to get ahead, to make a decent living. Maybe, if you wanted to, have a family of your own. It was the choice of many not to do so much of that old model, but the world's picture of school then work and then finally retirement...the whole structure of the twentieth century's body politic...has changed very little. Our lives within it are, however, being lived in a more flexible and inclusive way than ever.

What the author propounds in his fascinating look at how we could all benefit from adapting our model to lived reality is the acceptance that people live longer and need to live better. All of us need challenges and face the reality that those challenges ae changing. He proposes the deeply pragmatic solution of adopting a life-long learning model. This means we're not In A Job for life but in a habit of honing skills we have and acquiring new ones.

Addressing the looming labor shortages as people get older and stay fit longer means second, third, or fourth careers for many of us will have to be planned for by employers. Age discrimination is very much a reality. The companies that emulate BMW in their age-blended team models will make a big bonus for their shareholders. The entire landscape of work will need to change (see my review of THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN for some background on this; also that author, Mohammed El-Erian, approves of this book and its thesis) to accommodate different needs and desires, like the work-from-home lifestyle that most people prefer and Big Tech is leading the charge to reverse in the wake of the pandemic's accidental proof of concept that it works.

Possibly the most resonant part of the book to me was its model of exchanging skills among the generations. I know that, in my own life, my Young Gentleman Caller has helped me remain more comfortable with information technology and its many nuances than almost all the people I live among. I know also that my experience has alerted him to some less-than-honorable intentions among his acquaintance. It's a joy to be able to both learn and be taught. And I don't exaggerate when I use the word "joy." In my own life, as in his, learning stuff is a source of real joy for each of us...it's one reason we remain in relationship in supervention of the challenges we face.

The author's thesis is particularly informative of th challenges the world being summoned into being by Big Tech (see review above) being met with effective control. It will take an intergenerational conversation of great depth and serious intent to prevent the dystopic possibilities of surveillance capitalism and totalitarian governance from happening.

Reading these books together was one of the most challenging emotional rides of 2023 for me. There's a lot to be deeply concerned about in the direction that our present system of inaction and wasteful misdirection of energy is following. There are ways to solve it, and this read's author has one of the best structural models for directing growth into sustainable channels I've read. This is largely, I suspect, because I already implement the lifelong learner model of being. It's paid such huge dividends in my own life. Not least by giving me the mental framework and the emotional push needed to recover faculties many like me lose when they have the multiple strokes that I had in January 2023. I'm slower, and quicker to tire, than before my problems got worse; but unlike those whose retirements or simply aging lifestyles aren't focused, I had something to recover for and get back to doing: This. Reading. Thinking about what I've read. Thinking about how to support the changes I want to see and resist the ones I don't want to see effectively. Communicating those thoughts on this little blog I've run for ten years, that still attracts about two hundred viewers on an average day.

I think more people would find ways to do what I've done if they read these two books: the first to learn what's at stake and how to get a handle on it; the second to learn why it's a good use of your time to overcome inertia and restart your mind's journey.
*my blogged review contains links to sources

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the idea behind this book, and some of what I read was very good. But it was such a typical "big idea" business book, I ended up skimming and skipping, and unless you work in HR, you probably will want to do the same. Just another reason the library is my friend: I can check this out without having to spend $30 on a book I'm not even going to read closely. But there's some good stuff here, so it's worth a look.

The idea that made me want to check this out is that we need to get over all this generational identity crap and learn to get along in mixed generational groups. I think the book has value because of the social change he suggests as how we can go about this: For example, instead of everyone trudging along until retirement, we need to make it possible to pause at various stages of life: e.g., making it possible for folks at any age (young or old) to change the direction of their career, or making it possible for parents to give their attention to young families without damaging their careers. This is so sensible it ought to be obvious, but instead we still plod through the fixed stages we learned from a very different world: School/work/retirement. This wastes the energies of the young as well as the wisdom of the old, and we can't afford to do it anymore. The author makes the business case for this change, which is important for a society as business-oriented as ours. For me, it describes a much healthier approach to life for most people, so I would love it if business leaders and policy-makers got on board, even if they are motivated by concerns other than the happiness of the masses.

This issue is up for me because I've aged out of the hiring pool, but still have plenty of good work left in me. AI screening means that potential employers can't find out that I'm eager to learn new things from younger colleagues, so I'm out to pasture as far as a regular job goes. Because I'm already somewhat educated, I can go get more education and try something new. But there are plenty of people my age who don't have the resources to pull that off, and yet it would clearly be better for our society if they could.

[Monnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Because we're octogenerians, conversation between my husband and I every once in a while turns to where we'll need to live when we actually start to get old. On one thing we totally agree: neither of us is particularly excited about spending time in any kind of elder care facility. But that's not because we've heard horror stories about how poorly old folks are treated; rather, it's that we know our mental and physical health would suffer enormously anywhere we couldn't routinely interact with other people of other ages.

Focusing on and promoting age-oblivious lifelong interaction instead of pigeonholing people by age group (i.e., Baby Boomers, Millennials) and sequential life "stages" (i.e., childhood/play, then education, then work and retirement) is what is needed if we're all to reach our full potential, maintains the author in this intriguing book - that's just one of several benefits. For the record, I totally agree - and I honestly don't know anyone over age 50 who gets a kick out of being stereotyped simply by virtue of the year of birth.

But alas, that's the real-world truth; most of us can attest, for instance, that's it's darned near impossible to get back into the work force once we've crossed that line into "senior" status. We also know, though, what employers have been conditioned to ignore: that our skills and experience remain valuable assets that we want to contribute - and that we're capable of and willing to learn new skills (yes, even if we're learning them from someone 30 years younger).

What is needed, then, is nothing short of what the author, a management professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, calls a "multigenerational revolution" - shifting gears to the concept of "Perenniels," or those who are not identified by the decade in which they were born but rather by the way they work, learn and interact with others. Doing so will free individuals from near-mandatory adherence to those life stages in exact order, instead allowing them to move in and out of each as the need, or desire, occurs. When this happens, not only will those aforementioned sectors - education, work and retirement - take on a different and more meaningful framework, but all lives will be enriched by the experience of interacting with people of all ages.

Abandoning the sequential model of life, the author emphasizes, would usher in a multitude of other benefits to society as a whole; consider, for instance, that by 2030, the largest consumer market will be age 60 and up - with big implications for virtually all retail markets if for no other reason than buying power. Consider the stress faced by most new college students (traditionally those who enter right after high school) to decide what they want to be not only when they grow up, but for the rest of their lives. Such an attitude just isn't appropriate, or feasible, in this era of rapid technological changes wherein having to learn new skills and switch career paths more than once is inevitable.

Much pressure would be lifted if young people didn't believe they were locking themselves into a box by choosing a college major because they'd be able to shift gears at any point. And at the typical retirement age of 65, most of us can expect to have at least as many years ahead of us as we spent on the way to that high school graduation. Why shouldn't we be free to fill them with more education or a new job instead of being, essentially, put out to pasture?

There are countless other negative ramifications of continuing with our linear approach to life, and the author artfully presents the benefits that shifting to a multigenerational approach can bring. To some extent, we're already seeing it happen in some sectors (as an academic retread in my 40s when I returned to college to finish a bachelor's degree and go on to earn a master's, for instance, I was the only student in my classes who actually wanted to sit in the front row; these days, so-called "nontraditional" students are anything but). It's certainly a start, but the author maintains that the timeline for meaningful change needs a jumpstart. He lays it all out in this well-written book, complete with references, citations and resources for further enlightenment. It certainly gave me a bounty of food for thought, and I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review it.

[Sura Siri · Rating 5 out of 5]

เนื้อนำเสนอปัญหาโครงสร้างของประชากรในปัจจุบัน ที่มีผู้สูงอายุมากขึ้น การเกษียณจากโครงสร้างประชากรแบบเก่าที่ วัยรุ่นเรียนจบแล้วต้องทำงาน ภรรยาที่คลอดลูกควรเลี้ยงลูกอยู่บ้านให้สามีทำงานหาเงินเลี้ยงครอบครัว ผู้สูงอายุที่รับเงินเกษียณจากภาครัฐโดยที่มีประชากรรุ่นอายุน้อยกว่าจ่ายภาษีเพื่อจ่ายบำนาญให้ผู้สูงอายุ แต่หนังสือเล่มนี้หาทางออกได้อย่างดีเยี่ยม ปัญหาเป็นอย่างไร แก้ไขได้อย่างไรน่าสนใจมากๆ

[Philip · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Perennials" is a good book with a better message - even if it gets a little confused sometimes around whether some things ARE happening or SHOULD BE happening.

Guillén argues convincingly that socioeconomic and demographic trends should be - and maybe is - moving society towards a future where age really is just a number. He also does a good job showing that we should be welcoming this. But he is a little to cheerlead-y about it and consequently misses ample opportunities to preempt some very easy counter-arguments (to specific points he makes).

Personally, as someone who has jumped around a fair bit in life (both physically and professionally), I am fully behind the whole 20-year professional/educational cycles (the origin of the "perennial" bit) and integrating generations by scrapping generational thinking. Arguing that reeducation and career-changes should be encouraged regularly, resonated very strongly within yours truly. Like the author, I also think this would be a huge boon to society.

In way of a simple summary, "The Perennials" makes the observation that the world is changing, wants society to keep up, and provide some actionable steps in achieving that goal.

Recommended.

[Richard Propes · Rating 4 out of 5]

In "The Perennials," Mauro Guillen unpacks a sweeping societal shift triggered by demographic and technological transformation. Arguing that terms like "Boomers," "Gen X," "Millennials," and "Gen Z" are divisive and preventing people from truly reaching their full potential, Guillén identifies a new post-generational workforce he terms "perennials" - individuals who are not pitted against each other by age or experience - and how this way of living makes it possible to liberate ourselves from the sequential model of life to level the playing field.

This, in turn, will give everyone a chance at living a rewarding life.

With "The Perennials," the author identifies that this "multi-generational revolution" is already happening and he puts forth specific cultural, organizational, and policy changes needed to be made in order to switch to a new template and promote a new era of innovation.

For those familiar with the author's "2030," "The Perennials" will be familiar with Guillen's extensively researched documentation dominating his argument. Those looking for an "entertaining" read would do well to look elsewhere. This book leans heavily into academia. Guillen is a professor of management at the Wharton School and "The Perennials" continues his long-standing interest in social change and its impact on society.

Guillen has touched on these ideas before, however, with "The Perennials" he expands greatly. There's no question there's some challenging concepts here - for example, Guillen argues that concepts like retirement are now doing more harm than good. However, he constructs his arguments well and it's hard not to be intrigued by them.

I found myself most enthusiastic about "The Perennials" in its closing chapters when Guillen turns toward the specific changes necessary to bring these concepts to life. There's a passion, I'd dare say, to these chapters that is largely absent from the rest of his writing.

I also found myself a bit troubled by basic assumptions that are easily argued against. For example, in early chapters Guillen repeatedly talks about increased life expectancy. Yet, it is well documented that life expectancy in the U.S. is actually falling - yes, it has greatly increased from years ago, however, it would have been nice to explore a possible correlation between this sequential transformation and life expectancy. Has the way we've been living in society impacted our life expectancy?

Overall, I appreciated "The Perennials" even if I didn't always completely resonate with it. Likely to appeal more to those particularly invested in sociological and cultural trends and their impact on business and social change along with those who can appreciate Guillen's extensive research documentation.

[Kristiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a big Mauro F. Guillén fan. I read 2030, and it broke my brain in the best way. I love discussions on generationalism, and Guillén’s input is valuable. The Perennials looks at the idea that there are five generations currently in the workforce, and when we cling to generational stereotypes, it hurts all workers. Guillén looks at the generations and the state of the modern workforce and lends his precision and broad outlook to the topic. I think more could have been said about who wields power in the workforce, but it is a good conversation. His points are well thought out, and the book is easy to read.

Thank you, Macmillan Audio, for the gifted audiobook.

[Allison Bronander · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting!!

[Blair · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this because my mom picked it up and said she enjoyed it. While Guillen argues for a post-generational society, this book felt like an illustration of generational differences. Mom found it informative; I found it meandering, presenting needed actions that are already in place and simply need time to execute, and highly repetitive. I think we are already living a post-generational society to a large extent and most of the issues discussed here aren’t due to age but other factors (misogyny, poor political leadership, financial illiteracy, etc.). The tie to age was weak for me on a lot of these fronts. One star for giving me an opportunity to have a discussion about it with a different generation.

[Books and the Bru · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book deals with the topic of different generations nowadays and how can we handle living in a world filled with different perspectives and POVs that constantly changes.
There's a focus on how gainful it is when we add different ages and backgrounds in a team reinforcing the idea that it's never late to learn new things and that we should actively listen about someone else's experiences.
The author says that although the increase in longevity seen as an issue due to younger people being affected with those costs, it could turn a productive thing since older people have more visibility and want to contribute to the industry a bit longer.
Another interesting topic focused here was the fall of the nuclear family which was imposed a long time ago as a dogma, ingrained in people’s minds that the natural order of things was to be born, play as kid, study as a teen, go to college afterwards, get a successful job, build a family, and retire. For today’s standards though this concept doesn’t work anymore. There are a lot of people who’s choosing to set their life goals in a non-linear way and succeeding in doing so.
I admit that the amount of data in this book was overwhelming and bored me a bit. However, all the topics presented, and the author’s factual explanation were engaging enough to keep me hooked.

[AnnieM · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so refreshing because it finally challenges the paradigm of distinct generations boxed in by expected linear life stages. As someone close to retirement with aging parents and a son who is just starting his career, it is a relief to see that we can look at life in a completely different way. What if we allow ourselves to be lifelong learners and reinvent our careers multiple times? What if we stop pressuring college kids to get a marketable degree and figure out what they are going to do for the rest of their lives? What if we stop discriminating against older people who still have the capacity and capability to work and contribute? This book challenges the concept that has been promulgated over the past 150 years globally, that we must live according to prescribed rules and roles in distinct stages by age. But demographics are shifting, technology is advancing and we are living longer. Those rules are outdated and harmful to individuals and societies globally. What is particularly compelling about this book is it addresses systemic barriers within policies, government, and organizations that continue to reinforce this antiquated view. The chapter about women and the "mommy track" is still an issue today. The CEO of Catalyst (a research organization on women in the workforce) mentioned the mommy track which created an unintended firestorm. It reminded me of how when I attended a Catalyst conference in NYC many years ago, many prominent CEO's from Fortune 500 companies stood onstage lamenting the lack of women leaders in their organizations. I wanted to scream "You are the CEO - what are YOU doing about it?" but alas, I am sure they would have escorted me out of their fancy party. Another chapter which is a must read is on reimaging retirement. Contained within are many successes with multi-generational work and living so there are test cases out there that are working. This book is a timely and important read for all of us and ideally leaders in government, private sector organizations, etc.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC and I left this review voluntarily.





Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC and I left this review voluntarily.

[Ashley Evearitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was just okay. Some really helpful insights into trends impacting different age cohorts, and thoughts on how to best serve people across the lifespan in the workforce, marketing, etc. I found most of the opinions here fairly myopic. So many sections focusing on older cohorts working longer, but the author's basic assumption was that older folks/boomers want to be working longer (rather than work being a necessity due to a failing social safety net for all Americans across the age spectrum). This would be better if was re-written with a sociologist or psychologist to look critically at the social trends causing this shift and questioning if people working significantly longer in full-time roles is best serving their physical, mental, and emotional health. Work was just accepted as a net positive for all employees, with an assumption that employers just need to shift their mindset to serving employees across the lifespan. Maybe the issue in America is we only consider adults to be valued members of society if they are toiling away 40-50 hours a week. If we had a robust social safety net, could people have more choice and options in how they spend 40 hours of their life every week? Could universities offer more majors and options outside of those that lead simply to lucrative careers?

I was ultimately disappointed. I recommend the author read "The Nordic Theory of Everything: In Search of A Better Life" by Anu Partanen.

[Juan Diego López Rodríguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mauro Guillen’s The Perennials: The Megatrends Creating a Postgenerational Society delves into how demographic and technological change are reinventing the compartmentalization of the stages of life. The sequential model of life demands categorization of life stages depending on age: millennials should be working, baby boomers, retiring, and generation alpha, studying. Removing age categorization from life stages can prove to be a solution to many social issues worldwide. Society should embrace an ageless society, Perennials, to the end of achieving greater equity.

Compulsory education, wage-based employment, and pension schemes gave rise to the sequential model of life. A century later, we see the issues this model has had on society: “adolescent stress, delayed adulthood, teenage motherhood, declining fertility, lack of work, family balance, midlife crises, career dead ends, intergenerational conflict, pension shortfalls, retiree loneliness, gender-based discrimination, economic inequality, and disgruntled consumers.” Embracing more flexible life stages, shifting from education to employment to gap years, and back and forth in a lifetime, can solve many of the issues written above.

Flexible, non-linear career pathways can benefit not only misfits –as perceived by the sequential model of life – e.g. teenage or single mothers, women having to choose between career and personal life, older adults, young people who have gone through a different route, family tragedy, divorce, substance abuse, people who want a career shift at some point in their lives (to think about reinventing themselves into a different profession), but also everyone else.

The book explores different topics of sociology –marriage, family, religion, household formation, inequality and demography –population growth, fertility, life and health span, work, labor markets by sector, automatization, among others. Interesting data-tables comparing different countries, while learning about tackling these problems using theories from different social sciences.

Individuals, companies, and government can have an influence in each stage of life for an ageless society: playing, studying, earning, living, consuming, inheriting and retiring.

Playing

Although the book doesn’t go to deep into this aspect, socializing, leisure and entertainment will be ageless activities. We must think about creating socializing opportunities that appeal—and are inclusive to—all ages of people and provide great design for this to become the norm.

Living

An aging population and new forms of household formation means multigenerational living spaces, where buildings must accommodate to multiple ages living in them.

Studying

A longer life means going back to school, once, twice, or more, in a lifetime. Reentering, shifting, or enhancing skills will become more common. Educational spaces need to accommodate for intergenerational learning. The book provided a great example about how beneficial experimenting with three careers can be for individuals. One shot at hitting bull’s eye, yields lower probability of success to find fulfilment in a lifetime. How about three tries? It is the same with education. There are better chances of enjoying what you do, when you’ve tested different paths.

Earning

Multigenerational workspaces. The book provides examples of multiple companies embracing multigenerational workspaces, with multiple benefits.

Consuming

This is the same argument as to why include diverse teams into consumer research. It represents the population. With 60+ folks compromising a big chunk – and growing –of population, it makes sense to think about them as the audience. Marketing aimed at all ages to capitalize a growing market consumer base. Trying segmentation not by age, but by: values, media channels used, why they used them, what’s important to them, who influences them, what frustrations to they have. Interestingly, there are older generations serving as influencers.

Inheriting

Should children or grandchildren receive inheritance? It didn’t occur to me that inheritance improve equality: bigger impact on middle to low-income people. Counterintuitively, inheritance tax could deepen inequality.

Retiring

Pensions made sense when work was mostly physical. Phased retirement should be a norm by now. Now, people should choose if they want to continue working.

Book review

I am interested in sociology and demography, so many of the topics that were covered –marriage, fertility, pensions and social security, labor markets, and market research were engaging to me. For social science nerds, this will be a fun read. Furthermore, Guillen’s corporate experience provides actionable insights into constructing a society where age becomes a less significant variable. The way issues are presented, and solutions proposed, demonstrates both critical thinking and domain of the fields. Understanding how society organizes in different institutions and intending to create the right social institution is the end of sociology.

For instance, I appreciated learning about systems thinking. Introduced in the first chapters of the book, it exposes the idea of dissolving instead of solving the problem. This can be applied to every situation for the corporate world, public sector, or personal lives. The example in the book was about solving the problem of the delay in London transportation bus system. Trying to solve it meant –within existing systems, design, parameters, and constraints. For instance: finetune schedules, adding bus lanes, traffic light changes. Instead, dissolve the problem (eradicate it) meant that by redefining the situation, the problem vanishes (this was having bus personnel at stops start checking bus passes at the stops, saving significant amount of time). Dissolving most of the problems highlighted above does entail rethinking the sequential life model.

I still have doubts in mind about age, and generations, being different enough to be segmented into groups for greater personalization of solutions. The book does pose concepts that further the discussion: period effects are events that change all generations equally while cohort effects are events or trends that affect one generation differently from another. How does events affect one group of people at one age more than others. Can this be used to enhance equity?

A society not defined by age can be more equitable, by removing the age premium. It can provide more flexible career pathways, and freedom from life-stage milestones constraints. Starting to think about ageless activities and symbols: hiking, culture, The Beatles, values, or Star Wars, will be the job of marketers all over the world. This flexible view, of not following the sequential model of life will be necessary for individuals, governments, and corporations to succeed in the new world.

[Graeme Newell · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise of this book sounded interesting enough: a book about how we should rethink life stages, careers, and aging in this modern world where people live longer, work longer, and don’t follow the tidy little boxes of past generations. I thought, “Great, let’s shake up the old retirement-at-65 formula and see what comes next.” Unfortunately, what I got felt less like a fresh reimagining of life’s possibilities and more like a PowerPoint presentation stretched out over 300 pages.

Let me start with what I actually liked, because I don’t want to sound like the cranky guy at the back of the book club shaking his fist at progress. Guillén has a good instinct for the big picture. He’s clearly thought a lot about demographics, technology, and global trends. Some of the ideas he tosses out are worth chewing on: people might have three or four careers instead of one, traditional education is due for a serious shake-up, and society’s obsession with labeling people by generation is silly.

The problem is that those moments are sprinkled like raisins in an otherwise dry loaf of bread. You get the occasional bite of sweetness, but mostly you’re gnawing through dense, flavorless dough. Guillén loves to hammer home trends that are pretty obvious by now. People are living longer. The workplace is changing. Careers aren’t linear. Yes, Mauro, we got it on page ten. By page two hundred, it feels like he’s still trying to convince us that email exists.

The writing style doesn’t help either. There’s a lot of consultant-speak, the kind of language that feels like it was cooked up in a conference room with a whiteboard and too much coffee. Terms like “multi-stage lives” and “lifelong adaptability” keep popping up, but they never really crystallize into something concrete. I wanted stories, examples, even a few case studies of people living these so-called perennial lives. Instead, I got vague pronouncements about the future, most of which you could probably hear in a TED Talk while waiting for your latte.

Another sticking point for me is that Guillén tries to position his book as radical and revolutionary, but it’s actually pretty cautious. He spends a lot of time pointing out obvious shifts without offering much in the way of bold solutions. Sure, he suggests we need to rethink retirement, education, and the idea of career ladders, but those thoughts rarely go beyond “we should do things differently.” I kept waiting for a big, imaginative leap or some juicy detail about how companies or individuals are actually pulling this off. What I got instead was more like, “We need to be flexible.” Well, thanks, I could have figured that out on my own.

My feeling is that the title is misleading. “The Perennials” sounds like it should be about a group of inspiring people who reinvented themselves and bloomed in every season of life. I pictured stories of late-in-life musicians, sixty-year-old startup founders, or grandparents traveling the world on digital nomad visas. What I got was more like a set of demographic charts and reminders that, yes, society is aging. I’d rather read about the real perennials out there than have someone define the term at me repeatedly.

By the time I finished the book, I found myself doing the reader’s version of nodding politely while checking my watch. I appreciated the effort, I liked some of the ideas, but I was ready to leave the lecture hall and get some fresh air. Guillén clearly wants to inspire us to rethink our lives, but the delivery ends up being more lecture than revelation.

In the end, I think The Perennials is one of those books that sounds better in concept than in execution. The good parts are the reminders to stop thinking in rigid boxes, the acknowledgment that life isn’t a straight line, and the push to embrace adaptability. The bad parts are the repetition, the buzzwords, and the lack of fresh examples to bring the argument to life. This was a breezy overview of the obvious. It lacks depth, story, and inspiration.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

In The Perennials, Mauro F. Guillen explored the new trends that occurring in the different generations and how times are changing. He defined the term perennials as, “people who are not characterized by the decade in which they were born but rather by the way they work, learn, and interact with others.” He explained how creativity boosts on their twenties and again in their fifties. In their 20’s they rely more on cognitive abilities and when their brain slows down, they rely more on their experience. He looked at BMW’s pioneering and how they choose to approach mutigenerational workplace. They strive to mix over fix generations where they can all collaborate together with their own perspectives and this led to greater productivity and higher job satisfaction. In the book, he also looked at how the common trend is having three careers in a lifetime, how retirement is changing, inheriting, consumer market, and longevity and health.


The book explored the role of the nuclear family structure and how it has changed and fallen. Children used to always move out of their parents’ homes and they would get married and raise their own children. He looked at the history and how divorce and separation is causing more single parent households. There is also an increasing happening of being choosing to live alone all together. They are being described as singletons and some choose to never marry or have children. It also means that living alone is becoming more expensive. There is a trend of seeing the breakdown of the sequential model and the nuclear family. Some of this is related to independence and more self-reliance. He shared how young adults without a college degree are living with their parents. In the past, we believed that parents at some point in life would be empty nesters and this is greatly changing.


I would recommend this wonderful book on the mutigenerational workplace and family dynamic to anyone who is wanting to earn more about what is occurring right now. I loved how he did tons of research for this book and included a number of different studies to clarify the message of this book. I was shocked by reading about the benefits of flex work and how this helped people to feel less stressed and this in fact prevent job burnout. People are also less likely to retire or quit their jobs. I wonder if companies would provide this key feature how much more happiness, we would in turn witness. There should be a fine line balance between work and living your life. Companies could also see less turn over and not waste their times in training someone who doesn’t want to stay. This book is an incredible resource for us to use to learn more about the mutigenerational and the changes that are happening.










"I received this book free from the publisher, St. Martin’s Press for my honest review.”

[Mikala · Rating 4 out of 5]

**A Hopeful Blueprint for a Post-Generational Society**

It’s rare to come across a book that genuinely shifts your perspective on how life could—and perhaps should—be lived. The Perennials is one of the most hopeful books I’ve read in a while, offering a refreshing challenge to what it calls the “linear life plan.” (Admittedly, I think the authors could have workshopped that phrase a bit more, but the concept itself is powerful.)

### Rethinking the Linear Life

Traditionally, society has mapped out life as a straight line: we’re born, we go to school, we work for decades, raise children, and finally retire—hopefully to a life of travel, grandchildren, and hobbies. The Perennials argues that this model is outdated, especially as our lifespans and healthspans continue to grow. Instead, the book proposes a more flexible, cyclical approach: work for a while, raise children for a while, return to school to learn new skills, embark on a new career, and repeat as needed. This model not only fits the realities of a rapidly evolving technological world, but also promises a society that is more adaptable, resilient, and inclusive.

### Toward a Post-Generational Workplace

The real purpose of this vision is to create what the authors call a “post-generational” society—one where people aren’t defined or limited by the era in which they were born. As a millennial, I’ve often felt both kinship with and frustration about my generational label. While it’s sometimes useful shorthand, it can also be stifling and reductive. The Perennials makes a compelling case that we are all more than the sum of our birth years.

One of the book’s most inspiring ideas is the value of multigenerational teams in the workplace. I’ve always enjoyed working with colleagues at different life stages—whether they’re fresh out of college or balancing the demands of young children. The diversity of perspectives, skills, and life experience makes for a richer, more dynamic environment. Imagine a workplace where everyone, regardless of age, is encouraged to learn, contribute, and grow together. That’s the future The Perennials invites us to build.

### Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for a book that offers genuine optimism about the future of work and life—and practical ideas for how we might get there—The Perennials is well worth your time. It’s a call to rethink not just how we structure our careers, but how we define ourselves and our communities. In a world that’s changing faster than ever, that kind of hope feels revolutionary.

[Kathleen Bowman · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The Perennials' takes us on a journey through time and generations, as we follow a group of friends who reunite at a beloved summer camp many years after their initial experiences. The author skillfully weaves together past and present, allowing the reader to witness the evolution of relationships and the impact of shared memories.

What struck me most about this novel is the depth and authenticity of the characters, with their flaws, and aspirations. From the introspective artist to the free-spirited adventurer, the cast of characters resonates with the reader, evoking a sense of familiarity and empathy.

The author's writing transports us to the idyllic setting of the summer camp, immersing us in the beauty of nature and the nostalgia of childhood. The vivid imagery and poetic language create a sensory experience that helps you to relapse into your own memories of carefree summers and the bonds forged in youth.

One of the novel's greatest strengths lies in its exploration of the complexities of friendship and the enduring connections that withstand the test of time. Through the characters' interactions and inner reflections, we witness the ebb and flow of relationships, the joys and sorrows, and the transformative power of shared experiences.

While 'The Perennials' is a delightful and poignant novel, it does have moments where the pacing lags, and certain plot threads could have been further explored. Additionally, some readers may find the multiple perspectives and shifts in time challenging to follow. However, these are minor quibbles that do not detract from the overall impact and enjoyment of the story.

In conclusion, 'The Perennials' is a captivating and thought-provoking novel that celebrates the enduring power of friendship, the beauty of nature, and the resilience of the human spirit. With its richly developed characters, evocative prose, and exploration of the complexities of life, this book is a worthy addition to any literary collection. I wholeheartedly recommend it to those seeking a heartfelt and immersive reading experience.

[Katie Fratus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please Note: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher.

In Perennials, the author delves into the transformative shifts occurring in our familiar world, irrespective of our desire for change. Traditionally, we adhered to a linear pattern: growing up, securing a job, marrying, establishing a household, starting a family, and eventually retiring. The author skillfully illustrates how diverse generations contribute distinct value and viewpoints to existence. A case in point is drawn from BMW, where the dynamic zeal of younger staff contrasts with the seasoned sagacity of their older counterparts, culminating in a harmonious synergy.

In the contemporary landscape, birth rates are dwindling, and an unprecedented eight to ten generations coexist. Multigenerational households are becoming the norm. Companies are adapting their marketing strategies to capture fresh clienteles beyond their historical target audience. Conventional notions of a single lifelong career are giving way as individuals return to education to embrace new fields and pivot vocations. Notably, several educational institutions now actively promote programs tailored for those aged fifty and above, reflecting a trend of self-reinvention among older demographics.

However, a pressing concern arises – a deficiency in both literacy and financial acumen. Many grapple with basic comprehension and numeracy skills. Tackling these challenges becomes imperative for maintaining competitiveness in global markets.

The author presents these insights in a digestible manner, sparking contemplation. The material provided is intellectually stimulating, revealing the emergence of a society that transcends generational boundaries. For enthusiasts of sociology or those captivated by generational dynamics, this book warrants a perusal.

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is primarily about the megatrends that have resulted in 8 generations on the world stage at the same time and how fewer people are following the sequential life style of play, study, work, and retirement.

Mauro Guillen describes the “perennials” as those who are not defined by their generation; however, in this book, “perennial” is most often a senior (and therefore a Silent or Boomer) by a new name.

He gives a lot of data, not only from the US but also from many developed countries to define the social trends. He discusses the concept of “health span” that needs to be considered along with “life span”.

He has charts showing the international trends of delayed childbirth and the rising proportion of babies born to unmarried women. (Did you know the Chile leads the world at 73%). He writes about retirement and how longevity affects the inheritance for the next generation.

Guillen appreciates the benefits of the social changes primarily driven by longer life expectancy. He goes to great length to praise the value of older people in the work place and the return to several generations of a family living under one roof.

There were some new takes on the megatrends (living longer; working women; delayed motherhood to name a few). International data was interesting as well as examples of marketing to “postgenerationals".

He concludes with recommendations (along with others earlier in the text) about having more supportive workplaces, the availability of education; the need to change zoning requirements to house multi-generational families and the removal of barriers that support the sequential life style.

In general, I was disappointed in that I thought the book would be more about “Perennials” than megatrends.

[Laurent Reinhardt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read and reviewed Guillén's 2030: How Today's Biggest Trends Will Collide and Reshape the Future of Everything in 2022. This book repackages some of the same themes, but focuses on a postgenerational society and workforce that the author says is becoming more and more the norm. Not sure it's quite as fully formed as he would have us believe, but given technological, demographic and economic realities, I feel it's a positive and necessary trend on balance. Having left the workforce a few years ago, I nonetheless look forward to watching how things unfold. On one hand, less ageism and more age diversity in the workplace will be a good thing. But I'm much less keen on having my own demographic more aggressively targeted by lifestyle brands.

"A perennial way of thinking also facilitates better outcomes in other domains and for people who have not suffered from life-changing crises or tragedies. For example, people are increasingly taking to reinvention, but the way professional careers are structured doesn't help. The workplace belongs to multiple generations, but we have not yet reaped the full potential of the complementarities that exist among the skills, expertise, and experience of different generations. Technology continues to render knowledge antiquated, but we still don't have a fluid way for people to move back and forth between study and work over the entire life span. And most marketers seem wedded to the notion that lifestyle brands are the province of the young, thus missing out on how different generations influence each other inside and outside the household." p193

[joyce w. laudon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was not familiar with the author of this book but he has written several and is described as an “expert on global trends.” In this title, Guillen turns his attention to “How long-standing trends are igniting a revolution in the way we live and work at every stage of life.” (this is the subtitle of the book).

Guillen titles his book Perennials to reflect a new model in how and when people work and lead their lives. He notes that there is more overlap in the workplace of people of different ages because of increasing life expectancy and some not retiring at a traditional age. He cites BMW as an example, finding that five different generations are working there. Guillen sees flexibility as there are currently more choices; for example, if there is a model that is not sequential with retirement at a set age, people may do different things at different ages. In some ways, he believes that this will cause less stress to people as, for example, there may be less need to have figured out your whole life path when a teen or young adult. Similarly, those who are in their sixties no longer have to accept retirement as the next step.

A few of the chapter headings will give a flavor of what is discussed. Chapter One is The Four Stations in Life. Chapter Two is Soaring Longevity and Health. Chapter Five is Three Careers in a Lifetime while Chapter Eight is A Game Changer for Women.

This was an interesting read with much to chew on.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this title. All opinions are my own.

[Janette Fuller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Virtually every country in the world has embraced the idea that life proceeds in the following four sequential stages;
Play
Study
Work
Retirement
The author believes the trend of sequential stages is coming to an end and we are entering an era where the perennials will thrive. Perennials are defined as "people who are not characterized by the decade in which they were born but rather by the way they work, learn, and interact with others."

People are living longer and having fewer children. Multi-generational households are becoming more common.
The demand for social skills in the workplace is increasing. The future will require more soft skills, self-awareness, empathy, networked thinking, and lifelong learning.
The ability to adapt to changes will be crucial in the workplace, in social interactions, and at home. People will be required to adapt, learn, unlearn, and relearn.
This is a fascinating book designed to predict the future trends of the worldwide economy and way of life. This book represents many years of research by the author and his team. The writing style is appropriate for the lay reader as well as professionals in the fields of business, sociology, and economics.
I found this book insightful and inspiring.
The world will be a better place if these trends come to pass. Long live the perennials!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an excellent reading opportunity.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Multi-generational Approach to Life and Work

Life expectancy has increased substantially as has technology since the 1900’s. The combination of these trends has led to increased opportunity as well as friction between generations. The author points out that the lock step progression through life from school to retirement is no longer satisfactory when people are living long and in many instances healthier lives.

The longer lifespan leads to people wanting education at more than one stage of their lives and not wanting to leave the workforce as quickly as they did in past generations. In the workplace, the author points out how successfully BMW has implemented a multi-generational workplace. It’s also true that with improved communication and access to the internet, people can take advantage of increased educational opportunities even if they are unable to attend the bricks and mortar university or college.

I found this book a timely and exciting read. The changing dynamics of population and aging are obvious all around us. The author has done substantial research to brings some order to what we see happening. I found it quite challenging to think about. My only reservation is that the book is heavy on academic presentation. This will not be a problem for many people, but for the casual reader it may be hard to get into the argument.

Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for this review copy.

[Răzvan · Rating 5 out of 5]

citEști „The Perennials- Unleashing the Power of Our Postgenerational Society”, de Mauro F.Guillen: După generații suntem chiar noi
https://youtu.be/qh2RA_Pq9T8
„Longevitatea accentuată are urmări pozitive nu doar pentru pensionari ci pentru toată lumea, în orice etapă a vieții s-ar afla” (p.cvi) Mauro F.Guillen „The Perennials- Unleashing the Power of Our Postgenerational Society”, Heligo Books, 2023
TEXT Anticorupția este celebrată de ONU pe 9 decembrie. E și un prilej să îți dai seama în ce fel te-ai obișnuit să te deruteze termeni pe care i-ai tot auzit. Iar generație este unul dintre acești termeni. În materie de anticorupție îți dai seama că toate generațiile sunt cam de acord. În schimb Mauro F.Guillen îți vorbește despre ce este dincolo de acest termen în ”The Perennials”. De altfel cartea lui are un subtitlu care te lămurește: Dezlănțuirea puterii societății noastre post-generaționale”. Pentru că, oricât s-ar fi bucurat până acum o companie sau alta de marketing că poate să își împartă publicul pe felii de vârstă, schimbările din societate tind să ne readucă iarăși interesele împreună indiferent de anii în care suntem născuți.
„E momentul să cam adoptăm o mentalitate stabilă care să dizolve problemele în loc să le rezolve”. (p.208) Mauro F.Guillen „The Perennials- Unleashing the Power of Our Postgenerational Society”, Heligo Books, 2023

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Guillen's work argues that the traditional, sequential path from childhood, college/marriage, job, and retirement is outdated and penalizing to many, and how a new group, Perennials, that deviates from this traditional model is more conducive to the growing workforce were working together outside a linear path will bring us better into the future.

In addition to examining workforce shifts, Guillen also examines the traditional family dynamic against the shift to the more common single-family home, or even the greatly increasing choice of some to remain childless and live alone. A lot is covered in this relatively short work, and much of it is thought provoking and important to the ever-changing shape of family and workforce.

Many familiar with Guillen's 2030 will have read a bit about the argument made in his new work, but the Perennials greatly expands on his ideas adding to the argument.

Using lots of anecdotal stories and evidence, lots of statistics (that is easy to get lost in), and well-researched information, Guillen's work is something I think everyone should read to get a better understanding of the world and what we will be better served by.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this work in exchange for my honest review.

[Enzo Miguel De Borja · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book filled with facts, stories, and expert testimonies, Guillén advocates for the upending of the sequential model of life that has defined how homo sapiens have lived for so long. He argues that it has locked people into generational boxes in which unfair stereotypes and divisive political and cultural issues have hindered greater intergenerational understanding.

However, the emergence of "Perennials" (people defined more by their beliefs rather than the generation they belong to) and demographic, economic, and technological trends are gradually ushering in a postgenerational society. I agree with his assessment that the concept of "generation" is inherently nebulous, flawed, and potentially perilous.

I appreciated Guillén's focus on the well-being of women (especially teenage and single mothers), retirees who still want to work, and other often-overlooked groups. Indeed, life should not be a beaten path where people's options are already laid out under the sun. Reinvention is essential to the human condition. At the core of Guillén's argument is a sincere concern for human flourishing that, while daunting, should take center stage in a fast-paced world that can be cruel and unforgiving.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one wasn’t what I was expecting. It was very informative, but was packed with so many numbers and stats being rattled off that it was hard to keep things straight in the audiobook format.

It was also distracting that the author gave dates for movie releases, which are super easy to Google without dates if you're interested, but simply referenced articles using phrases such as “a recent article in the New York Times”, making the article nearly impossible to find. I’m not sure if these are provided in the PDF that is mentioned in the opening of the book, as I did not receive that as part of my advance reader copy.

Overall, 2.5 rounded up to 3. While the book made some great points, it wasn't a practical or useful guide for the majority of us reading business books.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a septuagenarian, I did the typical linear stages of life: education, career, retirement. I now understand that this model is no longer the one that works best in the present and for the future. That model is obsolete.

I could live long enough to have another career. The changing structure of education possibilities with online learning makes training for another career a real possibility, regardless of age. Corporations need to realize that multi-generational teams offer a much broader variety of skills and problem solving insights. Hiring practices to achieve those teams would allow people of all ages to enter a career.

Guillen gives readers much to think about. Visionaries in education and business would do well to read this book and consider the changes and possibilities he presents.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

[Cathy]

If you have considered generations in the workplace or society at large, you may be accustomed to thinking in terms of differences or divisions. In The Perennials, Mauro Gullen posits that we exist in a post-generational society. Because we live and work together, the way forward is through a commitment to lifelong learning and all ages working together toward common goals. Look for commonalities rather than focus on differences. Flexible workplaces and intergenerational sharing can lead to innovation. Guillén believes this generational revolution will impact young people just entering the workforce as well as those who are living and working longer. It’s a good read for anyone who enjoys taking a critical look at societal assumptions. I received this Advanced Reader Copy of The Perennials from St. Martin's Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Darnell S. Dudley · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! Reading this makes me feel more prepared to live in modern society. People are living longer, societal expectations of keeping one career cause issues, and creating a system can improve the quality of life for many, if not all, people. We should seek to create a society that allows people to have flexibility in making decisions. The expectation of living across each stage of life in a specific manner leads to people falling behind, detrimentally reducing their opportunities for success. Retirement should not be the only time for freedom after growing up. Making decisions about starting a family is difficult when there is a double standard and your career aspirations may become limited. There are so many statistics in this book that back up many of these claims. Everyone should read this book!