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03.09
Managing Young
Employees: Recruiting and Retaining Them
By George
McClure
The generation born after 1982
has been called Generation Y or the
Millennials. There are at least 70 million
of them in the United States, and they
constitute 21 percent of our work force — 32
million workers. They have been put under the
microscope to see how management must adapt to
best use them. Intergenerational differences
have been identified, as we have 60 year olds
working alongside 22 year olds. There may be
discomfort as the younger workers become
supervisors for workers old enough to be their
parents.
Gen Y grew up questioning their
parents and now question their employers and
supervisors, who get impatient with them. The
earlier expectation was “Do it and do it now.”
They value independence, and many start their
own businesses so they can be their own boss.
Where Boomers put a high value on career, Gen Y
is interested in work-life balance — making
their jobs accommodate their family and personal
lives. That includes job flexibility,
telecommuting options, and the ability to shift
to part-time work or temporarily leave the
workforce to care for children.
They are multitaskers who are
comfortable with rapid change. They are likely
to do email texting while talking on a cell
phone and surfing the web. They may prefer
virtual interaction to face-to-face meetings or
phone calls. But they see colleagues as
resources from whom they can gain knowledge.
They value feedback on their
work; an annual job appraisal may not be
sufficient. They appreciate fair and direct
managers who are concerned for their
professional development. Ownership and control
of challenging projects will keep them happy,
avoiding boredom and attrition. But they don’t
want to bury themselves in a cubicle and take
orders from others
Early on, Gen Ys gained a
positive reputation for their energy, drive, and
skills. But short attention spans and reluctance
to perform small tasks when needed marred the
overall impression. But they do like small goals
with tight deadlines, where they can assume
ownership of tasks.
Gen Y is more affluent, more
adept at use of technology, better educated, and
more ethnically diverse than any previous
generation. It has always been familiar with the
Internet, CDs, DVDs, cell phones, and digital
cameras. Developing new skills and embracing
challenges are important. They strive for
success, and measure their own success in terms
of what they have learned and the skills they
have developed from each experience. They may
take longer to settle into stable careers and
find lifelong relationships than their
predecessors.
The challenge for employers is
capitalizing on the assets of Gen Ys in the work
environment without alienating the rest of the
workforce. Organizations must formulate
strategies to attract and retain this talent.
Coaching is one way to do this.
Frequent mentoring and coaching by higher-level
employees encourages new graduates to take on
more challenging work. By playing to their
strengths while recognizing their weaknesses,
where more work is needed, it takes advantage of
employee potential. Gen Y do not expect to rely
on their employers to take care of their
careers, but they appreciate all the help they
can get.
Dos and Don’ts
Do stress that the company
values performance, attitude, integrity,
dependability. Acronym: PAID.
Don’t overwhelm them with an
unexplained assignment. They are used to
being led and value a supportive environment.
Do give them challenges, but
don’t abandon them. They are looking for
coaching and expect praise for a job well done.
They are goal-oriented and
accustomed to teamwork. If the job is structured
properly, both they and you — the boss — will
benefit.
To dig deeper
-
Generations at Work:
Managing Millennials, by Claire Raines.
http://generationsatwork.com/articles/millenials.htm
-
How to Attract and Retain
Generation Y Employees, a blog.
www.rockyfu.com/blog/how-to-attract-and-retain-generation-y-employees/
-
Inside Recruitment Process
Outsourcing : All the Fuss About Gen Y (aka,
the Millennials)
http://novotusllc.wordpress.com/2008/03/07/all-the-fuss-about-gen-y-aka-the-millennials-2/
-
The “Millennials” Are
Coming. 60 Minutes.
www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/08/60minutes/main3475200.shtml
-
Generation Y: The
Millennials.
www.nasrecruitment.com/talenttips/NASinsights/GenerationY.pdf
-
How to Hire Millennial
Employees
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-To-Hire-Millennial-Employees&id=814422
-
Understanding and Managing
Generation Y
www.rockyfu.com/blog/manage-generation-y
George McClure is Technology
Policy editor for IEEE-USA Today’s
Engineer and a member of IEEE-USA's Committee
on Transportation and Aerospace policy.
Comments on this article may be submitted to
todaysengineer@ieee.org.
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