Ah ha! If I'd seen this before I wrote my blog post I would have been far better informed, but regardless it still backs me up that there is no secret to Gen Y, it is a myth!
The following extract is from an AHRI White Paper - people@work/2020
So just how different is Gen X, Y and Z from the baby boomer generation, who by 2020 will have vacated the ground of leadership to the former?
In a study titled The Workforce Crisis, Tamara Erickson (2006) examined 10 work expectations of baby boomers, Gen X and Gen Y, and found no significant differences in their underlying values as people, suggesting that many of the recent public stereotypes attaching to these cohorts in the population are likely to be flawed. The underlying genetic code of human beings does not change between the generations, notwithstanding how some Gen Y may feel on the matter. However, there were some differences observed by Erickson, and they were of two types:
- Differences in priorities explained mainly by time and age, e.g. baby boomers are more concerned about the quality and affordability of their retirement; Gen X&Y are more concerned about experiencing a quality career, as baby boomers would have said twenty years ago had they been asked
Observable differences in the preferences of Gen Y including:
- a stronger desire for work flexibility
- better technology literacy levels
- more transparent attitudes on requiring a strong ethical leadership brand in the companies for which they work
- swarming patterns, i.e. they like to work in “hi touch” packs and “if one moves, all move!”. With baby boomers that characteristic used to be confined to foreign exchange dealing teams that defected from one bank to another
- A transparent desire for their employers of choice to “…know me and take care of me…”
It would seem that Tamara Erickson was on to this far sooner than I was!
One of the things I really took from this paper was that perhaps in the past other generations simply have not been asked what they want in their career and what their needs are.
Employee satisfaction and well being has become a huge focus in the last 10-15 years which makes it seem like Gen Y are expecting more than other generations but if there is no conclusive data to say that Baby Boomers didn't want the same things you can hardly claim that it is just a new generation being picky.
As it would seem from Tamara's research, there is no difference, it's just that no one bothered to ask!
Great blog and can I say "hear hear" or is it "here here"??? Anyway I have always said that gen y experts talk to a baby boomer audience and validate all their complaints about managing people. Stereotyping people based on so called generational characteristics is another form of discrimination.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Karalyn. I believe it's 'hear hear' but 'here here' kind of looks better doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteThere are types of discrimination which are acceptable and others which aren't, hopefully with time people will realise no form of discrimination is ok.
Ellison