Gen Y and work

I was talking yesterday with a fellow who was happily telling me how much people love working in his organisation. “No-one ever leaves”, he said, with a self-congratulatory smile. Then there was a pause. “Except the young ones” he added wryly. I asked why the “young ones” leave. “Oh – because they’re bored, because they want to try something else, because it’s all too hard for them, because they want to travel – you name it.”

Ah, there it is – the Gen Y dilemma. Ask your average baby boomer manager about managing Gen Y and they typically shake their heads with horror stories of lack of focus, expectations beyond the established norm, high maintenance needs or just plain mystifying behaviour. The prevailing view seems to be that people who are too young to remember the last time that times were tough (the recession we had to have) just don’t have what it takes to stick at something for the long haul. And of course, the long haul is what it takes to succeed… doesn’t it?

I’d like to put a couple of things on the table. The longest I’ve ever held a job is 3-and-a-bit years. And I left that (in my twenties) because I wanted to travel. And I’m (just!) a baby boomer. And I recall some people in older generations at the time telling me I was being a bit irresponsible. So I have to admit, I sometimes wonder if it’s possible that differences between older generations and Gen Y’s just come down to the old generation gap – with new buzz words.

But then I think about changes that have been happening for years in the world of work, and I’m not so sure. While Gen Y was still at primary school, commentators were talking about the rise of the “portfolio” worker – someone who didn’t seek a full-time, permanent job, but instead treated their career like an adaptable and ever-changing smorgasbord of paid work – someone who was more focussed on maintaining their future employability than their current employment. It was widely accepted back then that this was the way of the future.

So why are we so surprised that some of our bright young things have embraced this concept and are busily making it their own? Why do we persist in trying to mould Gen Y’s in our own image, complete with our absolute faith in the “hang in there and work your way up” approach? This new generation has been brought up to believe that anything is possible. Here’s a novel idea – what if they are right? What if instead of trying to make them more steady and responsible, like us oldies(!), we tried to come to grips with new ways of working, and new ways of defining jobs? What if we made it possible for people to build more flexible and dynamic working lives – at any age? It could mean the death of the full-time, permanent, wage-slave – is that such a dreadful thing?