Wanted: New Work Rules for Gen Y Employees

By Rob McGovern, CEO of Jobfox

Companies must learn to hire, appreciate and motivate younger workers or they will perish.

Gen Y is the most educated and most technologically savvy generations ever. Yet, companies continue to have biases against younger workers. In a Jobfox poll of more than 200 recruiters, 63 percent rated Baby Boomers as "great" performers in their organizations. This compares to 58 percent who rated Gen X as great performers, 20 percent for Gen Y and 25 percent for our elder workers, the Traditionalists.

In short, companies don't think highly of Gen Y (or older workers). I think it's because companies don't understand them. But those that do will gain a competitive advantage. Just as there were workplace changes made to accommodate Baby Boomers and Gen Xers, I foresee major changes ahead as Gen Y grows in the workplace.

When I worked at IBM, for example, it was an incredibly formal culture. You were not allowed to take your jacket off in the building. My boss's name was "Mr." When I think back to that time, I often wonder: Was the real secret of Microsoft's success the fact that they allowed people to wear sneakers at work? That they created a place where Baby Boomer hippies could go work and be themselves without being stuffed suits?

Microsoft created a company that reflected the lifestyles of its people. As Gen Y begins to take up a greater percentage of jobs — they are about the same size as the Baby Boomer population — more workplace changes are ahead.

I recently interviewed hundreds of younger workers for my book, Bring Your "A" Game, and here's what I found out about Gen Y:

They crave stability.

The Gen Y world is full of instability. Ask them about the world and they talk about hurricanes, tsunamis, 9/ll, Code Orange Alerts, three wars and AIDS. They live in a world with a constant "News Alert" crawling at the bottom of their TV monitors. They watched their parents turn the word "downsized" into a verb.

Gen Y would like to think of a company as a refuge. If we can meet their other needs, which I will discuss next, I think we'll see tenure begin to rise again in the decades ahead.

They want balance.

Younger workers play for different rewards. With Baby Boomers, all you had to do was wave $10,000 more dollars and a promotion to Rochester in front of them and they were on their way. Gen Y doesn't want this.

I once had a young engineer working for me. I asked: "Dude, what are you playing for?"

His response: "I don't want a Lexus! My Dad worked his entire life for a stupid Lexus. I don't want that."

Gen Y, instead, wants a little balance to go with the American Dream. Give them flexible hours.

"Why can't I work 13 hours a day, three days a week? Why does it have to be your way?"

These guys just don't understand the rigidity in the world that the Baby Boomers have created.

They want to take charge.

Gen Y doesn't want to be junior anything. This is the generation that looked out the car window past the "Baby on Board" sign. This is a generation of helicopter parents who told them every day that they are "special and entitled to speak up to make something of themselves." This is a generation that believes everyone deserves a trophy, win or lose.

So, here comes big corporation. What do we do? We put them in a sea of look-alike cubicles and tell them to learn the ropes if they want to make something of themselves.

It's just not them. They want to make a contribution on the first day. As companies, we need to do a better job at talking to their sense of contribution. Gen Y will not be satisfied working inside the machine. We need to work with them to help them see how their actions are connected to organizational goals.

They don't want to wither.

Gen Y understands — better than any other generation — that everything goes obsolete. Quickly.

Everything they buy, they throw away in six months. The iPhone, the cell phone, the PS3, the Xbox.

They also know that their skills are on the same obsolescence curve. They know they have to remain on the cutting edge.

Today's companies must do a better job at letting workers move around so they can learn new things. Otherwise, they will leave.

Who can blame them?

Rob McGovern, CEO of Jobfox, is a regular BetterMondays contributor.  He is also the author of "Bring Your 'A' Game: The 10 Career Secrets of a High Achiever."

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1 Comment

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  By Jake DeVries, July 28, 2009 @ 9:40 pm

  True words my man. True words.

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