THIS IS
OUR BLOG!

I seem to bump into a lot of people who have trouble dealing with staff members who come from the dreaded “Generation Y.” Whether I’m at Chamber of Commerce breakfasts, or training sessions the topic of younger workers (and more specifically their attitudes) invariably pops up.

It’s incredible that one entire generation of workers has been labeled lazy, unreliable and self-centered. Gen Y is not a liability, it’s an asset. The following is a generalization so don’t hound me down if you don’t agree; it’s my own personal experience.

The world need not be afraid of Gen Y workers. In fact, they can be dedicated and passionate if they’re managed well. First up, traditional methods of delegation such as “this is how you do it, so do it” don’t work. I know that can be a bit of a pain for some jobs, especially jobs like data processing and accounting, but it’s only a small thing.

Success lies in involvement. If you want Gen Y’ers to perform at the peak of their potential you have to give them ownership in the project. You have to tell them “why” and not just “what.” Authoritarianism is not well received. Interaction and assertive communication is.

If you’re working on a project, what ownership can you share with the Gen Y’ers involved? Can you leave it up to them to decide on a logo, or to come up with a better system for handling invoice queries (or whatever)? Ownership is important as younger people love to be responsible for engagement. It’s not rocket science to see how involvement can motivate a person to succeed. Nobody (of any age) likes to be responsible for failure, and ownership of a project or idea will make someone want to see it finished, properly. When we developed 2Large2Email we actively sought the involvement of the Gen Y’ers on the team. Inherently creative (and out there) our team took hold of smaller projects within the development of 2Large2Email and went for it. The result is a great way to send large files, and it’s Baby Boomer friendly too.

Sometimes there are systems already in place that can’t be changed. Old fashioned methods of personnel management probably won’t be well received here if you want to get the job done the “right” way. Telling a Gen Y’er to “just do it” won’t go down well, and the result will be apathy and indifference. It’s probably in situations like this that Baby Boomers, and even Gen X’ers see the apparently lazy side of Gen Y. You might not like this and you may think it’s a waste of time but the next time you’re in this position, take a deep breath and explain to the Gen Y’er “why.” Why is it important to the company? Why does it need to be filed like that? Why, why, why. It might take a few minutes but if you do it properly you’ll see Generation Y at its best.

It’s important you don’t read the above and simply give it lip service too. A fatal mistake is to simply say no, or dismiss out of hand, a suggestion proferred by Gen Y. Think about it and if you can, try it. If you can’t, then explain (yep, you guessed it) why.

If you have Gen Y’ers on your team you really do have an asset. Handle them properly and you’ll reap the rewards.