the workforce revolution: implications for leaders€¦ · generation z, the youngest generation,...
Post on 24-May-2020
2 Views
Preview:
TRANSCRIPT
©2014 Career Partners International
All Rights Reserved. 1
Executive Summary
With Baby Boomers beginning their
moves into retirement and
Generation Z, the youngest
generation, now entering the
workforce, the needs and
expectations of employees are
changing.
To provide insight into the
importance and impact of this
workforce revolution, Career
Partners International, one of the
largest talent management solution
providers in the world, hosted
researcher and author Dan Schawbel
for a webinar entitled “Generation Z:
Understanding the Next Generation
of Worker.” This document
discusses the concepts introduced
during the webinar, as well as
practices that engage employees of
all ages, concluding with solutions to
help organizations thrive by
leveraging the strengths of the new
workforce.
The Workforce Revolution:
Implications for Leaders
Debra Magnuson
Career Partners International – Twin Cities
Leading organizations is
increasingly complex and
challenging on many fronts—
globalization, technology use,
the pace of change, and ever-
escalating competition. At the
same time, leaders are
recognizing that they cannot rely
on the same people practices as
they did as recently as a few
years ago. Boomer leaders,
especially, are confronted with a
workforce who wants things
Boomers themselves wouldn’t
have dreamed of requesting. We
have seen employers who throw
up their hands in frustration
saying, “We just won’t hire
young people.” Clearly, this isn’t
a workable long-term strategy.
There are solutions that enable
leaders and their organizations
to thrive with the new
workforce. Savvy organizations
have found that key satisfaction
drivers for younger employees
can also appeal to workers of all
ages.
In this whitepaper, we offer an
overview of the current
workforce and review of
research impacting the
Millennial Generation, as well as
other trends impacting how
workers of all ages engage and
contribute to their organizations.
This paper also offers
recommendations for
organizational executives, HR
leaders, and those overseeing
talent management, succession
planning, and employee
engagement encompassing all
generations.
©2014 Career Partners International
All Rights Reserved. 2
Who are the
Millennials?
It depends on whose definitions
you use. Some researchers and
demographers use the years
1981-2000, others use 1982-
1993, and others use 1981-
1997. Whichever definition you
use, the basic numbers, traits,
and work motivators and de-
motivators are much the same.
Who is this New Workforce?
“Demographic transformations
are dramas in slow motion,”1
says Paul Taylor in his
introduction to The Next
America, a 2014 book from the
Pew Research Center.
Demographers, sociologists, and
organizational leaders have been
watching workforce trends
unfold for many years, and it is
no secret that the huge Baby
Boomer generation, dominant
in the US workforce since the
1980s, began reaching the
traditional retirement age of
65 in 2011. They are now
turning 65 at a rate of 12,000
per day in the US.
We also know that those 78
million Boomers raised smart,
tech-savvy kids bathed in the
aspirations and prosperity of
their parents, and that these
offspring turned out to be
exceptionally good at asking for
what they want, which should
come as no surprise. Squeezed
between the Boomers and their
children is Gen X, who often
1 Paul Taylor and the Pew Research Center, The Next America, 2014, BBS Public Affairs, NY, NY. P. 1
holds different work values and
goals than their elders, paying
their dues and waiting (and
waiting…) for the chance to
show what they can do as
leaders.
Workforce Changes in the New Millennium In the early 2000s, business
leaders were bombarded with
dire warnings about the “War for
Talent,” threatening imminent
shortages of key workers, rising
wages, and star treatment for
young people with advanced
educations and sky-is-the-limit
expectations.
Then came 2008, and the War
for Talent stopped before it
really got started. Predicted
workforce shifts went on hold
for five years, and the recession
years were a painful period of
downsizing, furloughs, loss of
benefits, and a tough job market
for people of all ages. Hundreds
of applications flooding
businesses for every position
created an employer’s market,
and many employees
experienced downgraded wages,
job insecurity, and periods of
unemployment. The surplus of
available talent often had the
unfortunate impact of making
people feel expendable, with
their work contributions
interchangeable and devalued.
Other workplace trends
including increased automation,
globalization, and reduced
manager training, only
exacerbated employees’ sense of
vulnerability. Current employee
engagement data2 tells a sorry
tale of disengaged workers who
now send employers a whopping
message of “whatever,” or
worse.
2http://www.gallup.com/services/178514/state-american-workplace.aspx
©2014 Career Partners International
All Rights Reserved. 3
Against this backdrop, the US
workforce has now reached a
crucial turning point. According
to data from the US Bureau of
Labor Statistics, in 2013 the
three big generations reached
near parity in the workforce:
32% Boomers, 31% Gen X, and
32% Gen Y/Millennials. The
Traditionalist generation (age 69
and older) made up the
remaining 5%. However, that
point of parity has already
passed. In 2014, Millennials
surpassed the number of
Boomers in the workforce and
there is no turning back. In
industries such as call centers3
and fast food establishments,
Millennials already constitute
more than half of the workforce.
2014 was a watershed year for
the US workforce. With a slowly
yet steadily improving economy
and back-on-track 401K
accounts, Boomers are actually
retiring (at a rate of 12,000 per
day in the US) or planning to
retire in the relatively near
future. Gen X may finally have
the chance to assume executive
3 “At US Bancorp, millennials now make up 57% of the call center workforce. [The bank has] discovered it needs to modify training methods, incorporating multimedia training, and the bank leans on coaches to help young hires get up to speed.” Minneapolis Star Tribune, November 16, 2014.
leadership, though now in their
late 30s and 40s, many have
moved on to other career and
life goals, such as
entrepreneurship. And this year,
Millennials became the largest
demographic in the workforce.
Consider:
In 2014, Millennials will make up 36% of the US workforce
By 2030, they will be 50% of the US workforce
This shift is even more evident in
other parts of the world. By
2025, Millennials will make up
75% of the global workforce.4
The rapid unleashing of post-
recession demographic shifts
means that organizations must
4 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics / The Business and Professional Women's Foundation
think and act differently to
attract, engage, and retain
Millennials. The big events of
their formative years—9/11, the
War on Terror, increasing focus
on getting a 4-year college
education (no matter the cost),
24/7 media bombardment, and
instant access to the world in the
palms of their hands—have
shaped Millennials’ values,
beliefs, and attitudes. Add in a
dose of helicopter parenting and
a plummeting job market as they
entered the workforce, and you
have young people who are
ready to take on the world, but
have learned some tough lessons
along the way. The world of
work isn’t as easy as they
thought it would be, but they
still want to shape their own
lives and careers; they want to
do it their way.
What do Millennials Want?
Many studies tell us what
Millennials value, what
motivates them, and why they
stay or leave their employers.
©2014 Career Partners International
All Rights Reserved. 4
On November 6, 2014, Career
Partners International hosted a
webinar with Dan Schawbel, the
founder of Millennial Branding
LLC and author of the books ME
2.0 and Promote Yourself.5 Mr.
Schawbel recently partnered
with Randstad to conduct the
first worldwide study comparing
Gen Y and Gen Z workplace
expectations and the findings
were released in September,
2014.6 For Schawbel’s research,
Millennials were divided into
Gen Y (1982 – 1993) and Gen Z
(1994 – 2010). During the
webinar, the following key
points were outlined:
1. Work Environment
Millennials want workplaces
that:
Offer learning and
development
opportunities that add
value to their careers
Provide opportunities to
5 Dan Schawbel, Career Partners International Webinar, “Generation Z: Understanding the Next Generation of Worker” Nov. 6, 2014. http://www.cpiworld.com/knowledge-center/webinars/generation-z-understanding-the-next-generation-of-worker 6 http://millennialbranding.com/2014/geny-genz-global-workplace-expectations-study/
collaborate, although
employees don’t need to
be in the same physical
location
Place more emphasis on
the work itself and less on
where and when the work
gets done
Give them access to the
best, most recent
technology
Offer them work
opportunities that align
with their strengths
2. Leadership Qualities
The youngest generation desire
leaders who are:
Honest and transparent
enough to share as much
as possible
Visionary and can identify
a future that enhances
people, communities or
the world, and then
generate the solidarity to
get there
Communicative and adept
to articulate and exchange
information in all formats,
but especially in-person
3. Wellness and Community
Involvement
Value is placed on employers
who “give back”:
40% feel it’s very or
extremely important that
their company has a
wellness program which
may include health
screenings, a gym,
incentives for being
healthy, and
walking/standing desks
Gen Z says the biggest
obstacle that could get in
the way of job
performance is stress
77% of Gen Z and 63% of
Gen Y are very or extremely
interested in volunteering
to gain work experience
What incentive would motivate you to work
harder and stay at your future employer longer?*
*From ”Gen Y and Gen Z Global Workplace Expectations Study” Millennial Branding & Randstad, September, 2014
©2014 Career Partners International
All Rights Reserved. 5
4. Learning Styles
Millennials stated their order of
preference for learning
methodologies as:
Cross-functional projects
Mentoring/executive
sponsorships
Corporate-sponsored
classes
Rotational programs
Online courses
Is there Generational Common Ground?
Much has been written
about the differences
between Traditionalists,
Boomers, Gen X and
Millennials. However, less
attention has been given to
the areas of common ground
that connect all the
generations in today’s
workforce.
In their book Work With Me: A
New Lens on Leading the
Multigenerational Workforce
(PDI, 2008) authors Debra
Magnuson and Lora Alexander
identify four practices all
generations desire in the
workplace. They are:
1. Flexibility—a sense of
control over parts of their
work schedule
2. Desire for Development—
opportunities to learn and
grow on the job
3. Coaching Approach to
Leadership—bosses that
ask rather than tell
4. Respect—feeling listened
to, included, and valued
While different generations
might define these differently
and want them for different
reasons, companies that focus
on these common-ground
factors will retain their best
people longer and have more
engaged employees who
communicate better.
Companies don’t necessarily
need a different strategy for
each generation. But they do
need to understand what
employees want, why they want
it, and create workplaces in
which employees—whatever
their age—can thrive.
As co-author of Work With Me,
this writer has continued to
study how the workplace has
evolved since the book was
published, especially the impact
of the Great Recession when too
many companies went
backwards in these areas. As
Millennials make up an ever-
growing segment of the
workforce, conditions are
changing fast, and organizational
leaders need to keep up in order
to engage the best and the
brightest.
The four common-ground
issues—flexibility, development,
coaching approach, and
respect—remain a core around
which leaders can build
energized work environments
that support business goals. The
imperative to build workforce
cultures around these core
issues grows stronger every day.
©2014 Career Partners International
All Rights Reserved. 6
Leadership Implications
As the global workforce heads
into 2015, the shift towards the
new workforce is moving into
full swing. Boomer retirements,
though progressing more slowly
than former “65-and-out”
models, are happening. Many
organizations still need their
skills and experiences, and a
majority of Boomers want to
keep contributing. New, more
flexible arrangements need to be
embraced to enable forward-
thinking tactics like phased
retirement. An example is the
US federal government’s new
phased retirement program,
introduced this month. 7
Gen X is moving into leadership
roles in greater numbers. They
desire and need focused
development opportunities,
coaching, and mentoring as they
take on executive positions.
Succession planning initiatives,
including identification and
development of high-potential
talent, are intensifying in many
organizations and need to be
implemented in many more. 8
Millennials are already the
largest generation in the
workforce, both in the US and
globally. According to Schawbel’s
global study9 outlined in the
recent Career Partners
International Webinar10, Gen Z,
the youngest generation now in
school, college, and early
careers, wants a future
workplace in which:
Hours aren’t confined to 9-5
7 http://time.com/money/3584634/phased-retirement-federal-boomer/ 8 Talent Management Alliance, Succession Planning Summit, www.the-tma.org/ 9 “Gen Y and Gen Z Global Workplace Expectations Study” Millennial Branding & Randstad, September, 2014 10 Career Partners International Webinar with Dan Schawbel, “Gen Z: Understanding the Next Generation of Worker”, November, 2014.
Technology will be embraced
at all levels
Projects and people are
more important than
location of work
Career paths will be defined
earlier
Hierarchies will flatten
Summary
The new research on Millennials
in the workforce from Schawbel
aligns with trends identified over
the past decade by demographic
and talent management experts.
What is new is the pace of
demographic change in the
workforce now, and the
increasing concurrence of
recommendations for leading
the new workforce, summarized
as follows:
Plan for business strategy
and talent strategy
Be more flexible
Be more tech savvy
Develop leadership skills
needed to bring out the best
in workers of all ages
Listen better and more
respectfully
Support career development
©2014 Career Partners International
All Rights Reserved. 7
Increase accountability along
with autonomy
Create workplace cultures
based on values and trust
As Thomas Paine said in 1797,
which is still relevant for the
2015 workforce, “Lead, follow,
or get out of the way.” ■
Career Partners International
helps organizations around the
world assess, engage, develop
and transition their talent. For
additional information on this or
other talent management
solutions, please contact your
local Career Partners
International office.
About the Author Debra Magnuson, Vice President of Talent Management at Career Partners International - Twin Cities, is an executive coach, career counselor, leadership development consultant, speaker, and author. Her clients include executives, teams, and organizations working on career development, leadership and coaching skills, change management, innovation, and succession planning. She is a keynote speaker, group facilitator, and presenter to audiences large and small. With a specialty in managing across generations, Debra is co-author of the book, Work With Me: A New Lens on Leading the Multigenerational Workforce, and serves as a recurring Vistage speaker on the topic. Additional information may be found at www.cpitwincities.com.
About Career Partners International Career Partners International enhances organizational performance and people’s lives every day! As a global leader in talent management consulting since 1987, organizations of all sizes and industries trust Career Partners International for the very best outcomes to their most challenging and important talent strategies and initiatives. With the most experienced and respected consultants in more than 45 countries, Career Partners International provides clients with one-on-one access to local experts in talent development, career management, executive coaching, outplacement, and career transition services to successfully assess, engage, develop, and transition talent to drive organizational performance. Additional information may be found at www.cpiworld.com.
top related