Friday, June 11, 2010

Generation Y Behaviour

• Constantly on the moving striving for more
Yers are looking for meaningful and challenging work and may take longer finding a job than members of previous generations.Gen Yers don't expect to stay in a job, or even a career, for too long.
• Multi-taskers at all times
They don't like to stay too long on any one assignment. This is a generation of multi-taskers, and they can juggle e-mail on their BlackBerrys while talking on cell phones while trolling online.
And they believe in their own self worth and value enough that they're not shy about trying to change the companies they work for. That compares somewhat with Gen X—a generation born from the mid-1960s to the late-1970s, known for its independent thinking, addiction to change, and emphasis on family

• Need to be kept stimulated
http://www.princetonone.com/news/PrincetonOne%20White%20Paper2.pdf
Typically, companies have performance management plan review point has a 30-day, 90-day, and one-year reviews point for fro new employees. After a year has passed, a single review per year is standard. These timelines can be too infrequent for Generational Y, as they desire more immediate feedback. Generation Y wants to know why they are doing work and how it contributes.
Managers should give Gen Yers interesting work, lots of feedback, chances to advances and rewards for good performance. In doing so, they can became a company’s best and most loyal employees.
• The push the limits in all directions
Gen Yers want to progress as quickly as they deserve and be given clear goals to reach the next level. The standard performance management program, in many ways, creates an artificial and arbitrary time constraint. Leaders must challenge the performance management status quo and make time for regular feedback.

• Continuous training and upgrading
Generation Y looks for the “why” behind the tasks they are asked to perform and can lose interest in menial responsibilities. They want diverse and meaningful office tasks and are happy with lateral moves within their companies, as long as they are able to gain new experiences.
Managers should learn about Generation Y’s values and person goals and then incorporate them into assignments. Leadership needs to offer this group challengers, teach it new skills and enlist its fresh perspectives. Put another way, Generation Y wants to know why they are doing work and how it contributes. By taking just a few minutes to explain the big¬ger picture, a leader will not only experience a more productive result, but also keep the em¬ployee engaged and motivated.
Another adjustment management needs to make is to be open to suggestions about the tasks they assign. As Generation Y members tackle new tasks, they are constantly thinking about how to do them better and faster. Generation Y is not locked into the mentality of “it has always been done this way.” If there is a more produc¬tive solution, Gen Yers will find it and expect to both share their findings and help implement the improvement. Leaders must make time to listen to these sug¬gestions.
• Keep with the times
Gen Yers like to find new, better and faster ways to do things, which is an attractive attribute in today’s office environment. They use e-mail, not “snail mail.” They do not drive to the mall and visit multiple stores in order to comparison shop. They go online, visit multiple Web sites and often make purchases in the time it takes to back the car out of the garage. They have information instantly at their fingertips via the Internet. Cable and satellite television have made hundreds of television stations available. Cell phones have connected them instantly to an array of friends. Technology has made Gen¬eration Y accustomed to getting what it needs quickly and easily.
Additionally, Generation Y is ambitious. Its members can envision a good quality of life, which is something they aspire to. This makes Gen Yers hard-driving and motivated when they accept and believe in a goal. They look forward to challenges, which make them motivated and confident workers.

Conclusion
Generation Y brings advanced degrees, techni¬cal skills, diversity, experience as a consumer and an appreciation of the world market to the workplace. Its members are ambitious, competi¬tive and have high self-esteem. These attributes make them highly motivated, independent and optimistic workers.
Generation Y presents a unique and exciting leadership challenge. Gen Yers are indisputably bright and talented, yet they think differently, have unique needs and require new manage¬ment styles. Leadership will have less room for error, as Generation Y has more freedom and job options than any other group in history.
Organizations able to see beyond the some¬times negative hype surrounding Generation Y should be excited to tap into the many talents this group can offer the workplace today and in the future.

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