Our framework distills two distinct critical elements that give ‘generations’ agency
in organizational settings – chronology (the idea that a unique location in time creates a ‘generation’) and genealogy (the idea that
generations are linked through the transmission/descent of ideas/values/skills/knowledge). After an historic overview of the
evolution of the topic of generations, we review generational research across the fields of political sociology, family sociology,
psychology, social anthropology, cultural sociology, demography, and gerontology. Our framework elucidates how linkages
between generations, based on chronology and genealogy, can be characterized in organizations and how the nature of
inter generational contact and transfer predicts a wide range of organizational outcomes such as change/innovation, conflict,
turnover, and socialization. We outline the implications of this framework for future research on generations in organizations.