Unfortunately, I’m no stranger to bad timing.
About three seconds before the economy bottomed out, my book on the New Rules for Managing Generation Y launched.
Suddenly, there was a whole new take on Millennials. A writer for the New York Post wrote an op-ed titled "Slice of Humble Y," which made the case that the recession was just what Gen Y needed to get put in their place. In other words, my book and the leadership training I had planned around it was toast. Or so I thought.
The economic waters are far from clear, but as the panic over imminent drowning continues to calm, some of the old flotsam and jetsam are rising back to the top. And Gen Y is once again making headlines.
About.com’s Susan Heathfield not only names Gen Y as a top 10 HR Trend of the Decade; she also presents the valid point that many Boomers who find themselves unexpectedly out of a retirement plan due to the recession are suddenly being asked to mentor Gen Yers, or even more problematic, finding themselves supervised by the younger generation.
The challenges of managing Gen Y are alive and well. The recession was their first big blow, a clear message that life might not always deliver what they expect and demand. But while it may have made them a bit more workplace savvy, it didn’t undo 20 some odd years of training that said “You’re the best. You deserve it all”.
As for the “old timers", you know, Boomer and Gen X folks like me, it’s time to take stock of what makes Gen Y tick and get busy creating a new set of rules to attract, retain, manage and motivate this unique generation of talent. Employee engagement for Gen Y requires a balance between what the younger generation wants and what organizations are willing and able to give – and making sure older generation employees are comfortable with it all.
And it’s not just Gen Y we need to worry about.
The boundaries that define a generation are getting narrower as the speed of the world increases. It used to be 30 years before a new generation jumped on to the work scene and shook up the status quo. These days it’s more like 10 years, and soon it will be five or fewer. Leaders who cling to the old rules and refuse to adapt to the inevitable are going to quickly find themselves out of the game.
