Like dislike and frustration of young generation

A prevalent view among older-generation leaders is that Generation Y employees (and some younger Gen X’ers) expect undeserved praise (or promotion, or perks, or some other kind of reward). These leaders feel frustrated, angry, and firmly resolved to “never lower my standards.”  There’s a problem here, though, which would indicate that a lot of leaders are stressed-out unnecessarily.  When Leadership IQ studied the extent to which people like or dislike working with low performers, we found that 87% of people universally dislike working with low performers.  It turns out Gen Y employees hate working with low performers just as much as Baby-Boomers, Traditionalists and the Greatest Generation.  This busts the myth that Gen Y employees are all low performers who show up to work expecting something for nothing.

Most Gen Y workers are valuable employees who, with strong leadership, can become high performers. But like all the generations before them, the world in which Gen Y was raised shaped them to have some new and different workplace expectations.  Don’t let these differences lead you to dismiss the value of your younger-generation employees. The most successful leaders are flexible in how they respond to Gen Y.  They’re meeting these employees’ expectations, but getting something in return, without lowering their standards, by using techniques that push younger workers to greater levels of engagement and performance. 

Here are a few examples of how today’s best leaders are bridging the cultural disconnect with Gen Y employees:

Gen Y Wants Praise. Raised in a highly kid-centric era, Gen Y was told: “You’re special, and everything you say and do brings value.” Turn Gen Y’s love of praise into teaching opportunities by giving timely and specific feedback. Saying “Hey, Bob, the way you got this report done ahead of schedule means a lot to me, and the extra data analyses were creative and really impressed the client” instead of “Great job on that report,”  gives Bob the deserved praise he wants---and ensures that Bob (and anyone else who’s listening) knows how to do a great job again.

Gen Y wants Resume Enhancement.  It may not be how it worked in your day, but it’s OK if younger employees admit they probably won’t work for you forever.  Just establish full agreement on what you’ll both give and get out of the working relationship while it lasts. (Consider that Google ends up buying half the companies started by its former Gen Y employees.) Reinforce what’s “in it for them” by reminding Gen Y employees of all the professional growth gained on the job.  Even better, let employees tell you what they’ve learned by asking monthly: What would you like to get better at? What was your high point this month? What was your low point this month? What’s something you’re better at now than you were last month?

Gen Y Wants to Get Ahead.Don’t dismiss the younger generation’s big career aspirations as impulsive and underserved. It may be hard to accept that younger workers don’t want to put in the years you did to get ahead, but this generation grew up doing it all, in a meritocracy where their opinion counted, and where multi-tasking was expected and encouraged.  Use Gen Y’s ambitions to push them to grow on the job with “career mapping” that asks: “What skills will you need to reach those big aspirations?” Everyone wins when employees gain new skills that make them even more valuable in their current work. 

GenY Wants Community. Older generations may have been raised to believe “it’s called work for a reason,” but Gen Y grew up wanting a different kind of work experience.  And honestly, is it really that awful to want an extra ounce of fulfillment (dare I say “fun”) from your work? This doesn’t mean you should lavish meaningless perks just to win employee approval.  Consider Google, for example. It might seem like they offer all those great perks (like free haircuts, fitness equipment, laundry facilities and on-site medical staff) just because they’re so nice and cool and hip and all the rest.  But think again. Doesn’t a strong the strong sense of community Gen Y wants also present the opportunity to create an environment where employees never have to leave work?  Embrace Gen Y’s love of community by offering perks that inspire employees to work harder and to stay with the job longer.

Gen Y Wants to Know “Why?” Also known as Generation “Why,” the younger generation notoriously asks “why?” not to judge, but to learn, to better see the big picture, and to assign significance and meaning to their work. All of which validates their early message of “you’re something special.” Most people of all generations want to know “why?” and for pretty much the same reasons, but older generations were taught it’s a rude question to ask. Allow employees to challenge why something exists and be prepared to explain “why?” Eliminate any rules you can’t explain or justify.

More and more Gen Y employees are entering the workplace, and right behind them is Gen Z, which is just like Gen Y---except on steroids. Older generation leaders can save themselves a lot of frustration by taking the time now to better understand the younger generations and what they want from the job. Then address and meet those expectations in ways that push younger workers towards higher performance.