Recently I’ve heard stories from management in my company and others about how Gen-Y is becoming a “problem,” and that managers are beginning to be intimidated by the thought of hiring us to fill the gaps left by retiring Baby Boomers.  You’ve heard of our common traits: we modify the dress code, we surf Facebook at work, we get in late, want to leave early, and we take a long lunch somewhere in there.  All of this is true, and as a result, a large consensus of management seems to view us as slackers with poor work ethic, and that we expect the world to change for us; but there are flaws in these notions.

Gandhi once said “you must be the change you wish to see in the world,” and to effectively work with us you need to understand that we don’t expect businesses to change for us.  We expect businesses to change for everyone because of our questioning of the long standing staples in business culture.

For instance, the current structure of 9-5 American business dates back to the manufacturing era where the job was repetitive work on an assembly line, and showing up was actually work.  The world has changed and corporate structures haven’t adapted to reflect this. 

Gen-Y embodies the concept of “work smarter, not harder,” and we thrive on efficiency and automation.  We know how to use computers and the internet to accomplish our work in a fraction of the time, but we are still willing to put in more time when it’s necessary.  So when we get all of our work done, why shouldn’t we be able to leave, why should we sit around waiting?  Or worse, pretending to be busy?  Why is facetime still the standard when productivity should be king?

This is one of many questions that thousands of corporations need to answer in order to effectively recruit and retain Gen-Y.

Best Buy has already answered this question.  In 2006, Best Buy implemented what they call a Results Oriented Work Environment (ROWE).  ROWE means that employees are evaluated on their results, not on how much or how “hard” they work.  Employees are encouraged to work wherever they want, whenever they want, as long as their work gets done.  It may sound absurd, but as a result of ROWE, Best Buy has increased productivity by at least 35%, and employee satisfaction is through the roof!  Now Best Buy is widely known as a “Gen-Y friendly employer,” but more than just Gen-Y flocks to work there.

This is a prime example of the change that Gen-Y works for, and it positively impacts everyone!  From the family man to the single mother, to the thousands of people who work a job to support their true passions.

Changes like ROWE are becoming more widespread, and if the corporate world does not jump on board with forward thinking like this, you will see Gen-Y turnover skyrocket because of another true trait about us; as we see the greener grass, we won’t hesitate to hop the fence.

Related posts:

  1. Why Corporate Camo Is Necessary For Gen-Y
  2. How A Change In Dress Changed My Credibility
  3. Finding Motivation
  4. Merging My Two Worlds