Generation Y: motivated to share
Estimated reading time: 3 minutes
Anybody who has not yet heard of Generation Y has clearly not read anything about management, business, social networks or employment during the last 12 months. This very specific group is forcing an intensive paradigm shift within the company.
Contrary to previous generations, the members of generation Y are not motivated by the same things. ”Y” has grown up alongside technology as it is not an accessory to them if not an integral part of their lives. Generation Y opens up six chat Windows, listens to music, updates its social networks, talks on the phone and replies to e-mails at the same time as preparing a report or analyzing data. Impossible? Not for Generation Y. This generation has grown up accustomed to doing a bundle of things at the same time. For them, speed is something else. And they always want more and more…
The existing time lapse between this generation and the last is not enough to justify the immense difference between the two profiles. It is the profile of generation Y that is provoking businesses to “slip up” when it comes to retaining these professionals. Generation Y professionals are good. Ok, great – in addition they also represent about one half of the world’s workforce. But they do not want (nor do they accept) being passive players within the business project. They either participate or they are out.
Generation Y is motivated to share. Perhaps it is not yet understood why it is so normal for them to have a profile on Facebook, Twitter, flocks of followers and friends and an unending timeline but this is the reality. Members of generation Y participate within social networks purely because they are collaborative and sharing environments.
Within social networks it is possible to speak, provide an opinion and be listened to. They provide a space in which to ask, indicate, voice opinions, ask, challenge and build. This is collaboration.
Thanks to social networks being so close to these professionals, one of the great debates nowadays is whether or not the use of social networks should be allowed within companies. Existing research quantifies the time wasted whilst others show that using social networks increases productivity.
Personally, I have a Social Media agency – where all employees are of course, the classic representation of generation Y-. The use of social networks has always been allowed within the company as I strongly believe in their potential – as well as always having my iPhone handy to review and update my Facebook and Twitter accounts… even before going to bed or brushing my teeth! But I must confess that I do sometimes worry about the time spent on social networks and whether or not they really do help productivity or not.
In spite of this, it is a lot of fun for me to be able to pair up my both the work of my companies and my team with Zyncro. The traditional social networks are not eliminated from the daily routine but are actually incorporated into the professional environment and I will now see how productivity is increased thanks to a collaborative environment and tool that is “familiar” to us all. The team works in a much more united manner. Everybody has the same information. And the best part of all is that they love it!
“I’ve just sent you an e-mail” has been replaced by “I’ve just published something in Zyncro.” A great saving…
