How to maintain the loyalty of Generation Y

Everyone would agree that talent is the lifeblood of any organisation. Without young, aggressive, dynamic people bringing new ideas into the company and pushing back at the traditional way of doing things, many companies will die.

But the youth of today, sometimes called “Generation Y”, are different from the types of people many human resources professionals are used to hiring, and understanding these differences is key to not only building the team but also getting them to stay.

Generation Y’ers are usually said to be between 20 and 30 years of age, technologically and economically savvy, care deeply about the global environment and have heightened expectations about the job they are about to accept.

What else do we know about them and what implications are there for hiring?

1. Generation Y’ers were born with a device in their hands. Sometimes more than one. They Google, Facebook, Twitter, take photos of what they are eating and post them instantly, update their status hourly … in short, they are connected with their world of friends.

Companies need a Facebook page, not a website, to attract these people. They need to recruit them from LinkedIn. They need to allow them the time during the day to update their page (You do know that Bangkok is the world’s leading city for the number of Facebook users?). Overall, the Company needs to allow and accept that their employees need to be connected.

2. Gen Y’ers have a sense of belonging to a community – actually, several communities. They are joiners. They want to be with other people who share their values. The company they are employed at needs to be one of those communities. Your corporate culture needs to reflect their values and their desire to belong. Friday afternoon parties; once-a-month celebrations of birthdays, anniversary recognitions – all of these are tools to build the sense of being part of a bigger thing.

3. Multi-tasking seems to be a skill that every Gen Y’er is born with. Yet many companies give their new employees repetitive jobs that entail doing one thing over and over again. This is a surefire recipe for disaster. Accept that your newcomers can, and in fact love, to do many things at once. Give them multiple jobs to do. Challenge them. Give them a different thing to do every day. Keep them interested. Above all, don’t bore them.

4. Generation Y’ers love to express themselves. The first thing they do on buying a new phone (which they do quite frequently) is to personalise the cover. Yet we often stick them in a uniform and expect them to be happy. Why not allow some freedom of dress in the workplace? A personalised employee is a happy employee.

5. Many Generation Y’ers are born entrepreneurs. They are happy to take risks. Don’t stifle them in the corporate environment, but let them express their talents. Encourage them to suggest new ways of doing things. Don’t punish them for failure but support and nurture the “can do” spirit.

6. Above all, be human. 

A satisfied employee is a loyal employee. The higher the satisfcation, the greater the loyalty. An extremely satisfied employee is an extremely loyal and productive one. Money spent on making employees happy will pay back tenfold in reduced recruiting and training costs. 

The key to recruiting and retaining Gen Y’ers? Understanding.

 

Eric Rosenkranz is chairman and founder of e.three, a strategic advisory helping companies in Southeast Asia develop growth-oriented strategies. He can be reached at [email protected],