Existing business paradigms have failed. Political and business leaders still holding on to beliefs and behaviors that no longer have relevance in today's transforming world of work must get out of the way and allow a new workplace frontier to evolve. Every day in my university classroom, undergraduate business students talk about how to pull out of this economic crisis in a forward-thinking way not voiced by the experts. With 40 million already in the workforce and another 18 million in colleges and universities all across this country, Gen Y is redefining the very meaning of work. Having just completed a three-year research project looking at generational differences in the workplace, I can unequivocally state that Gen Y views the world of work through a polar opposite navigational system compared to people like AIG's Joe Cassano or Lehman's Richard Fuld, just two among many thousands responsible for our financial undoing.
Gen Y holds the secrets to economic recovery because they were born into the future. Since childhood, with every mouse click their understanding of the world has been expanded. As a result, they see the world of work in its evolving form and their professional beliefs and behaviors instinctively align to fit these dynamic conditions. While it seems like most of Corporate America and Washington would prefer to go down with the ship, holding on to outdated precepts rather than adapting to a new way of being in the world of work, Gen Y instinctively possess solutions to recapturing and sustaining our greatness.
To ignore what the world of work looks like from their vantage point is economic folly. Their expertise is not based upon naiveté or even youthful arrogance. It is based upon going through all of their developmental stages where pervasive access to on-demand knowledge has changed how they communicate, form relationships and view themselves as part of a global business community. As a result, their professional instincts match the underpinnings of the next incarnation of the workplace. For example, their ability to zoom in and out, constantly adjusting their outlook to facilitate effectiveness ensures on-going relevance. In my research spanning over 2,500 professionals across diverse industries and demographics, I found that Gen Y's innate ability to focus on details while always checking in with the greater context allows them to simultaneously be the worker bee, as well as the big picture thinker. It's a professional instinct that promotes decisions that are more timely, pertinent and centered on the source of the problem.
The blueprint for how businesses should be restructured and run from this point forward lies, to a great extent, within the radically different workplace souls of Gen Y. For example, they understand why connection within an organization has as much economic value as the building in which it lives. Their instincts tell them economic recovery demands the reinvention of old products and processes of work, incorporating more qualitative values in addition to quantitative. More truth. More inclusion. More green. More communication. More collaboration. When asked if they agreed with the statement, "Individual success is dependent upon the failure of others," only 27% of those 21-30 answered "Yes," compared to 47% of those 31-44 and 54% of those 45 and over. Clearly Gen Y views their own success as being tied to the success of others to a much greater degree than any of their predecessors. If only the architects of this economic disaster who walked away with billions while their stockholders were wiped out shared this view, we might not be in the eye of a financial hurricane.
Collectively, Gen Y will be the people actually doing the majority of the work for the next 40-50 years. Overlooking this fact and refusing to incorporate their radically different navigation system as a key to economic recovery is simply more of the same. Gen Y offers us a peek into tomorrow's business landscape and by understanding how they will rewire the world of work in the future provides solutions in the present. In trying to navigate their companies out of this hole, should any CEO like to consult with these experts, I know where you can find 18 million of them.
...and we have sent robots back in time to stop Hank Paulson from bailing out the banks!!!
1) The baby boomers were the largest generation in history and controlled the culture for 20+ years and the political/economic structure for close to 30. Besides the innovation of their ideas, they have grown stale and ideologically old. As Thomas Jefferson said, "generational change is a good thing" and the boomers have been hanging onto their power for too long because of....
2) Generation X made its inroads on culture for a brief time in the 90s and have created new business models mainly in the technological fields. They are more family oriented and have a more difficult time with authority. Politically and economically, the X-ers have been unable to gain a foothold in these spheres creating frustration and attachment to fringe candidates like Ron Paul and Ralph Nader. With the boomer children growing up and maturing into the job force....
3) Generation Y has become an active part of our society. Culturally, they have never made much inroads and despite their innovative ideals, they tend to be inward focused and self centered. . With Generation Y in power, how do we know that their consumer mentality and self-centered attitudes won't throw this country into a worse position than what we are experiencing now? We need a combination of the Y-ers innovation mixed with the more family oriented down to earth economic ideals of the X-ers. With this, we can definitely move this country forward.
many in generation Y realize that our foundation, our constitution, is the case for liberty and economic freedom and see that it has been systematically ignored and abused and eroded.
many in generation Y shout out: END THE FED.
many in generation Y have joined www.campaignforliberty.com
many in generation Y ARE the remnant and we will REVOLT.
To illustrate this point, modern business' brief history shows how each generation radically changes the work environment. During the 1920-30's, business adminstration and business schools did not even exist. Modern understanding of workers as "feeling", "needing", individuals did not exist. Gaslow's hierarchy of needs did not exist. However demands in the 40-50's began to illustrate the needs of workers, "unions" which were previously squelched, gained recognition in the eyes of government backed by generations of individuals who felt that firms needed to respect the rights of workers.
Through the movements in the 70-80's these rights were further built upon; models of human behavior in the work environment were established with social science and psychology built into the framework of modern business.
No structure built to satisfy invidivuals from previous generations will satisfy the needs of the next. Business is a living creature whose growth and change are ensured through the success and failures of firms. Firms that fail to adopt the thinking, needs and wants of Gen Y are sure to fail.
It's not so much a story of why and how each generation is different but more a story of Darwinism in the Era of Modern Business.
The larger point, as I see it, and hopefully as the author meant, is the battle of progress v. status quo. In this case, specifically, the progress being a shifting paradigm from an economic system focused solely on competition to one that acknowledges collaboration and cooperation as valid paths to success. It's more efficient to work with your neighbor rather than against them; you'll both get more done.
The logic for putting this concept in a generational framework I think was an optimistic nod to the future -- a paradigm shift is what we need, and more of today's youth seem to recognize it than their predecessors. And, just as a matter of human nature, as we get older, we tend to be more resistant to change (despite its invevitability). And thus those in places of influence, who tend to be older, tend to fight progress rather than foment it. It does not mean Gen X is better than the boomers, or Gen Y is better than them; it is a cycle between every generation and that which preceded it.
Baby Boomers and Gen X-ers had genuine youth movements which contributed greatly to society (i.e., civil rights, women's rights, technology, music, etc.). Gen-Y, on the other hand, has so far shown us that they have an uncanny ability to play guitar hero. They can also can choose which celebrity clothing line they want to purchase; they can pick a favorite reality TV show to obsess over (The Hills), or they can enjoy the latest major label artist who was manufactured just for their discerning tastes. Basically, they can consume what they are served.
Gen-Y holds the key to economic recovery in that they are good at buying things, and that's about it.
Everyone has their faults of course.
The Britney Spears/Lindsay Lohan/American Idol/America's Next Top Model Generation Y is hardly confidence inspiring. On the plus side, they do seem to be experts at feeling entitled.
We'll stir things up before things are done. We'll just need to drag the Y-ers along with us for a while,... then they can boot us out when we do get in the way in a couple of decades.
Generation Y is basically a soulles carbon copy of the baby boomers, whiney, self-entitled and to date, pretty much worthless. But, just as the boomers road the coat tails of the efforts made by their parents, Geny Y are hoping to catch the wave of ignored Gen Xers.
I think you need to follow-up here by defining that "navigational system" along with some examples and the kinds of decision-making that results from this new direction.