Came across this snippet from ASTD's T&D blog.
- T+D Blog: The Invasion of Gen Y
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A new Jobfox poll shows that Gen Y workers are perceived by recruiters as being the weakest performers among the four generations that now make up the U.S. workforce.
Ouch!
But, then again, hmmm... could it be the look of bored indifference? Or the incessant need to snatch that flippin' cell phone on the first ring--regardless of how long you make me and the cashier, and five other people in line behind you at the Chipotle restaurant while you fish for your friggin' cell phone instead of focusing on the task at hand and paying for your meal to get the line moving?! (Clearly I still have issues about this.)
And yet, despite my issues with 'tudes of self-absorbed indifference (not just from Gen Y'rs, I might add), getting Millenials into the workforce and engaging them as the responsible, productive professionals their potential promises is very much an area for us in the field of learning to shine. Especially since, as T&D observes, they'll represent a significant pool of our workforce after the baby boomers.
Insightful View From Tomorrow's Knowledge Pool.
Geoffrey Greene's post about Gen Y values is insightful. I lifted the poignant section below, but the whole post is actually a good read (here).
"...Instead of facilitating 'social networking,' the social network technologies themselves are the end. You don’t Facebook to socialize, you socialize to Facebook. Everything you do is documented, uploaded, and given instant feedback. The number of friends one tallies; the frequency of messages, posts, and comments; the intangible “cred” garnered through one’s online personality—these are the social currency that we desperately accrue. You are being watched, but not just by The Government. In the sequel to Orwell’s dysptopic dream, you are watched not by Big Brother, but by your peers. You voluntarily and desperately submit to constant surveillance and judgment. Thus is Generation Distraction also known by its other avatar, Generation Panopticon."
So, whether fair or not, what I've labeled casual indifference and perhaps translated by recruiters as "weak performance," may be giving short shrift to a knowledge pool that, in fact, has much to offer. How to tap into that? What accommodations are employers willing to make to cater to the "cred" that new employees need form their peers. More specific to the theme of this blog is a question for you, my colleague in the learning industry: is there a place in formal and informal training programs that gives a more prominent role for behaviors, metrics and assessments linked to social currency?
Novel approaches.
Last month another article discussed reverse mentoring as one novel approach to tap into the knowledge capital of Gen Y. Reverse mentoring can take place in the form of formal lectures or presentations delivered to more senior colleagues, or in more informal settings.
Certainly, these ideas, while novel, aren't new. In one case example of a formal effort, P&G reportedly backed a program to pair the company's male executives with younger female employees to capture information about the next generation of women as consumers and leaders. This was implemented in response to increasing turnover among their female employees and a resulting lack of female candidates for leadership positions.
In another, the scenario described at GE gives an example of a more informal construct when Jack Welch was reported to have instructed senior managers to meet with younger employees to learn more about the internet.
Certainly, another approach that seems to trump the Jobfox poll results is the one formalized by military and paramilitary organizations. Certainly, we've churned out some high caliber/high quality and very respectful young men and women who risk a lot more than their iPhone in support of organizational objectives.
For My Part.
I'd be interested in hearing case examples from you about any novel programs in your organization that cater to social currency for Gen Y'ers. And, more specifically, what models are you aware of, and are willing to share, about how we distribute skills and expertise from younger workers (because despite what conventional wisdom says, I believe there is profitable expertise there waiting to be tapped) to senior employees.
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