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| Photo Credit: Open View Blog |
The Internet was
alive this week with another round of stories about Generation Y and the
struggle many appear to be having to make their way in the adult world of work
and life.
Gen Ys were born
between 1986 and 2000, making the oldest 26 years of age while the youngest are
still in grade school. As the best educated generation, they are also burdened
by record student debt, struggling to find permanent jobs and therefore
reportedly likely to be living at home for years to come.
Employers
complain about Gen Y’s poor work ethic, obsession with technology,
inattentiveness to detail and lack of concern with authority or rules. Managers
report feeling lost on how to motivate younger employees and how to get
employees from older generations to work with them.
Recent research
by best-selling author Paula J. MacLean provides insights and strategies on how
to work with this puzzling generation.
Her research shows that Gen Ys regard themselves as having a high work
ethic, a perception that older co-workers do not share.
Connecting to
Gen Ys intrinsic source of motivation is not as difficult as you might imagine.
Many from this generation work best in groups. This should be no surprise, they
grew up attending play school, preschool, kindergarten and many also
participated in team sports. As a result, they understand cooperation,
relationship building and how to compromise better than any other
generation.
Unlike Boomers
who were raised to compete and rise to the top, Gen Ys value team contribution
over individual accomplishment or winning.
As a generation (and not without individual exceptions) they are
decidedly not a good fit in highly competitive workplaces. They are respectful of authority only after
creating personal connections with those who are their bosses. They can be
fiercely loyal to customers and employers only when they perceive their work
matters and connects them to some greater good.
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