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Dr. Ginny Barnes is president and owner of G. B. Communications Inc., a consulting and training firm in Columbia, Mo. Barnes specializes in areas of diversity, communication, conflict management and organization development. She is the author of “Eight Steps of Highly Effective Negotiations: Letting the Other Person Have Your Way” and is the 2006 recipient of the Telly Award for her production of a diversity video titled “Can You See Me Now?”
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Generation Y Are You Ready for Them?
Yes, they are here! Generation Y, otherwise known as the millennial generation, has grown up and is now job hunting. Companies are responding to this potential employee market with mixed reactions. On the one hand, the generation Y market exhibits competitive and attractive applicants. On the other hand, this generation comes with a set of expectations and behaviors unlike those of generation X, boomers or the matures. Companies are competing for the best applicant, yet often are unprepared for the recruitment, interview, hiring and coaching process that creates a successful hire. What are the characteristics of this generation, and how can you position your company processes to be successful?
Generation Y – Who Are They?
Members of generation Y, born between 1980 and 1994, are the children of 78 million baby boomers. Reaching numbers of more than 60 million, they are an enormously powerful, savvy and diverse market. They have grown up in a time in which the world was no longer safe and reliable, recalling events such as school shootings, the Oklahoma City bombing, Sept. 11, terrorists’ activities and the Iraq War. They have been exposed to AIDS, drugs, rapidly improving technology, reality TV, talk shows and MTV. They also benefited from growing up in a time of economic growth and personal wealth for parents and the country, creating a menu-driven society and options for busy schedules, activities and lots of things given to them. They were the first generation to grow up having the global world view at their fingertips.
Sociologists and psychologists disagree about the future of generation Y. They have been described as being the next great “hero generation,” indicating their traits as being extraordinarily well rounded, having high selfesteem, being civic-minded, and raised to believe they could do anything. Others describe them as the next “me generation,” indicating their self-focus, expectation of entitlement, and desire for fame and fortune.
While the jury is still out on the future of generation Y, what is most important are the core traits they exhibit as a generation and what can be done in the workplace to support, challenge and prepare this generation for the years to come.
Four Core Traits of Generation Y @ Work
Here are four core traits that, in general, the workplace will focus on as it prepares for recruiting, hiring and retaining this generation Y workforce:
1. Achievement Goals: Fame, Fortune, Leadership and Trust
2. Strong Parent Connection Impacts Problem Solving
3. Desire for Psychological Comfort: Fear of Failure
4. Hyperlink Communication and Impacted Attention Span
Achievement Goals: Fame, Fortune, Leadership and Trust
Members of generation Y are optimistic about their futures and fairly cynical about current leadership. Because of the current situation of the world (unsafe, war, terrorism, etc.), they do not see that current leadership is producing the type of world they want. So, the status of being a leader is not based on old patterns of hierarchy, title or age. Rather, for generation Y, good leadership is based on trust, which is built one day at a time by the actions of the leader. This criteria for leadership means that the person who leads can be anyone worthy of that trust, and that produces a free agent mindset of “I can do it my way.”
Often, other generations like baby boomers misinterpret the questioning behavior of generation Y as a lack of respect for authority or seniority, instead of understanding that the primary quality search for leadership is trust. Generation Y not only seeks a trustworthy leader, but also wants seniority to trust them and give them the opportunity to produce good ideas and quality results. Then, generation Y’s goal is to gain recognition (fame) and ultimately fortune. The difficulty for both seniority and this generation is in the timing factor. Generation Y expects this rise to leadership to come faster, while boomers believe one should “pay ones’ dues.” Thus, the conflict for leadership and achievement are strong issues in the workplace with generation Y. It is important for seniority and managers to communicate frequently the pattern for leadership development within the organization, documenting the benchmarks necessary for leadership success. This communication is done most effectively during recruitment, interviewing and at hiring with mentors and coaches, where both parties can share dreams, ideas and conflicts.
Strong Parent Connection: Impacts Ability to Problem Solve
The term “helicopter parent” has been overused and appeared as front-line news in studying and analyzing generation Y. Parents were described as swooping in to rescue the young adult from problems and situations. Stories proliferated in every college setting as generation Y became a freshman. College admissions counselors and academicians began describing the unwarranted parent interference as “Blackhawk helicopter” because of parental intrusion into grades, faculty decisions and social issues.
The relationship of generation Y to its parent is both a positive and negative influence on the young adult and the workplace. Basically, the strong parent connection has been largely responsible for producing young adults who have been sheltered from consequences, have weak problem-solving skills, have a high sense of entitlement and have a high expectation of being cared for and being served. Stories (which may by now have reached fable proportion) abound on both the college campus and the workplace environment about how parents rescue little Johnny or Mary. When Johnny’s mother asks his teacher to give him a wake-up call so he won’t miss class, or mom and dad sit in on the job interview or do the salary negotiations for little Mary’s new job, we tend to laugh and shake our heads in disbelief. Yet, this strong connection between parents and generation Y continues in the workplace environment and has resulted in companies opening “parent interface offices” to deal with specific questions related to recruiting, interviewing, hiring and negotiating salary.
What implication does this interference have for the workplace and for managers? Often, generation Y anticipates and can benefit from a “surrogate” parent in the form of a company coach or role model from whom to learn the ropes and assist with problem solving. A trusting role model or coach can teach and mentor a generation Y employee to success.
As generation Y matures, it will be necessary for them to create appropriate boundaries with their own parents while maintaining good relationships. Having a mentor or coach in the workplace can help the young employee become more independent while being encouraged and supported.
Desire for Psychological Comfort: Fear of Failure
Increasing numbers of generation Y are seeking mental health services, with an increase in reported panic attacks and stress. In focus groups, individuals report fear of failing parents, pressure in school and panic when unable to locate parents to help solve problems or have someone to talk to. While generation Y appears to have high self-esteem, it often hides the shallow or fragile lack of confidence that is impacted by dealing with failure. Because of the support of parents who often step in to solve problems for generation Y, there appears to be a disturbing lack of critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Thinking long-term, planning and evaluating risk are weak life skills of this generation, and those inabilities lead to psychological discomfort when problems surface that they do not know how to solve. This generation often received awards, trophies and stars for competing in team activities in which they may or may not have excelled. Just showing up often resulted in an award. As a result of being a recipient of much praise, photography and awards, generation Y often expects immediate feedback and praise when working on a project or simply fulfilling the job description. Silence is often seen as a negative response and has the potential to impact performance. This perception has implications for seniors or managers in a company who believe that simply doing a job is the award in and of itself – not so for this generation, who wants and gives immediate feedback on relationships, work, activities, etc. They are not afraid to challenge authority or speak out. However, they respond negatively to threats of discipline or consequences and are apt to network or negotiate to solve a problem in order to secure comfort for themselves. Both educators and company managers cite examples of parents, officials and friends stepping in to assist with solutions when negativity or stress results.
Generation Y’s need for support may go unnoticed in the workplace due to the appearance of high self-esteem initially and only begin to surface when problems or conflict occur or award is not timely enough. Seniority and managers should be observant about potential problems, negativity and depression or decreased work performance due to lack of a company network, feedback or successful progress. Keeping open communications with generation Y employees and helping them understand the operations of a company and where they can go for help within the company will provide needed help.
Hyperlinking Communication and Impacted Attention Span
This generation is fast-paced and has been exposed to many activities in life, with access to fine-tuned, portable technologies. They are accustomed to being chronically stimulated since childhood and as a result get bored easily and don’t know how to deal with dead time. While their fast-paced, get-it-done attitude is a plus for employers in terms of fast performance, they also exhibit the need for instant gratification, getting it done and moving on to something else. So, commitment to a long project, dealing with slow bureaucratic wheels, longterm decision-making tools and staying the course to pay attention to accuracy and details are not necessarily their best features! As experiential learners, they are multi-focused, managing many ideas at one time and hyperlinking or hopscotching from one idea to another. They indicate a decline in undivided attention span and, as a result, the old linear patterns of meetings, project organization or communication don’t work as effectively with these generational workers. They want to work quickly, create ideas and projects as they come, in any order, and put many things together to create one.
The best way for generation Y to work is in teams, where ideas can be expressed, feedback is quick and members can work on different parts of the whole. When generation Y’s are asked to work on a project solo, they will often network and create their own web of support and communication to hyperlink the project to completion. Maximize the talents of generation Y by creating virtual and real teams for work-related issues and projects. Provide a variety of ways for them to network and communicate on and off the company property. Create a variety of patterns for workdays that are different from the standard 8-5, five days a week model. This variety will maximize their efforts and motivate them to creativity and performance.
To prepare for generation Y, companies need to be flexible and analyze why and how they currently conduct business internally. Admit it to yourself! Generation Y brings new ways of thinking, behaving and expecting. This innovation doesn’t have to be a negative thing.
The relationship between your company and your new generation employee can be a success by:
1. Developing trust in leadership relationships.
2. Improving problem solving and critical thinking skills.
3. Communicating steps for performance success.
4. Developing new ways to work and communicate.
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2007 Horizons 