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Look around your office right now and you can see history in the making.

No, not an available copier that's actually working. We're talking real history here.

If you're in an office of any size in practically any industry, you see four different generations of people working side by side. And that has never happened before. Ever.

At present, organizations are comprised largely of Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), and a slightly smaller group of Gen Xers (1964-77). The smallest percentage of the workforce is distributed between Millennials (born after 1977) and Traditionalists (born before 1946). But the mix varies by company, industry, and location.

Which means we have history, and a few headaches, in the making. The four generations all have varying expectations of the organizations they work for, different ways of working, and different attitudes about the workplace. But the most pressing issue presented by this gang of four is also the toughest: a coming brain drain.

Older workers are one of the fastest growing segments in the workplace today. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics estimates that between 2002 and 2012 the number of U.S. workers 55 years and older is expected to grow by nearly 50%.

As Boomers and Traditionalists (referred to as “ancients” in Europe) prepare to leave the workforce, organizations are faced with the challenge of preserving the knowledge and experience that the older-generations possess.

How an organization manages the transfer of knowledge, has huge implications for the organization's future well being.