GenY and 21st Century Business Models

Last week I pointed out the Employee Evolution web site; an on-line community and career center site aimed at Gen-Y, also known as the Millennial generation. An author at the site had developed a Top 10 list on how this up and coming group would change the way we work and play.

Of the 10 points, three of them have been addressed in the working world and fall under the auspices of continual process improvement. (productive meetings, real mentors, timely performance reviews) Gen-Y may have some influence in how the process is enhanced, but the idea of continuous process improvement and feedback loops have been around since Taylor and Deming. It is a given that under the concept of continuous improvement, each new wave of employees will render some influence.

Two of the points, redefine retirement and valuing our parents input, are attributable to the boomers' philosophy today. As companies go through wave after wave of downsizing across all industries, many are opting for early retirement and seeking second or even third careers. There are literally thousands of boomers who have moved into consulting and advisory roles for both profit and non-profit organizations, launched their own businesses or have teamed to launch a new business. The attitude of redefining retirement starts with the boomers. That is the generation where 30 year gold watches ceased to exist.

Boomers are also known as the sandwich generation. They have taken on the responsibility of looking after their parents as well as their own children. Elder care has been accepted by the boomers because they want to stay close to their parents in their twilight years. The Millennials are seeing the lessons of respect and appreciation in action. Continuously valuing our elders goes back thousands of years and is witnessed in our sociology studies.

The remaining four items speak to the business naiveté of Gen-Y. For example, bringing back administrative assistances and enjoying higher starting salaries are fundamental business cash flow points. Business is in the business of making a profit. Where there are technology solutions in place to remove overhead expenses, the ROI dictates that the technology be implemented. In the case of administrative assistants, there are ample tools available that most any employee is able to be self-sufficient right down to ordering their own office supplies. As for that higher starting salary, it may seem that way due to inflation, but the net of the situation is that as long as the entry level labor pool is greater than the number of jobs available, the salaries will be appropriate for the position and no greater.

Businesses and business processes are moving to a virtual business model. This is what Web 2.0, mash ups, enterprise social networking, hosted and managed services, and unified communications is all about. These are the technologies that make businesses more efficient and more productive. The boomers recognized, a long time ago, the employment pool following them would be substantially smaller. Consequently, while the boomers are still leading the firms, technologies are being put in place to be able to do more creative intellectual property development with fewer staff, less travel and much more flexibility for global interaction.

As Gen-Y matures, they will undoubtedly have profound influences on business and business processes, but not in the way this list implies. I have two Gen-Yers in my family; I see this in real time.

Later this week I will cover the results of my highly non-scientific, informal survey regarding Gen-Y and today's business environment.