The Aliens Have Landed

By Eric Chester

A spaceship has landed in your parking lot.  The ladder is down and the beings aboard are gradually descending into your place of business.  Although they appear to have assumed human form, their clothing, hair, and skin adornments are obviously not of this world.  Communication is a major barrier as they speak in a language all their own and they seem to have difficulty understanding your requests.  They claim to have come in peace, but you see signs that they anger quickly - even to the point of aggression. 

Your first reaction is to rush to the spaceship and close the door in hopes these aliens will return to their own galaxy - but alas, they are too great in number.  You have heard tales of these creatures, and you have seen them around your town and your community, but you wonder why they have chosen to invade your domain.  Suddenly it dawns on you that they have seen the “Now Hiring” sign in your window and they know that you are desperate for help.  Indeed, they have come to apply.  Exhausted of all other options, you reluctantly decide to integrate these “legal aliens” into your workforce.

Boomers thought they’d seen it all.  Just when they found the answers to working with Generation X (now well into their late 20’s and 30’s), along comes a generation that has completely changed the questions.  Ready or not world, here comes Generation Why.  And they're not politely knocking - they're breaking down the door.  Gen Why numbers 68 million (three times the size of Generation X) and they’re entering the workforce - and society - with a whole new set of attitudes, values and beliefs.  Clearly, American businesses and organizations are baffled.

If you’re experienced in employing, supervising, or managing young people, you know that referring to today’s 16 to 24-year-olds as “aliens” isn’t all that outrageous.  After all, they do not see life - much less a job - like you or anyone from a previous generation.  However, because your success hinges upon their performance, you cannot afford to look past them or hope that they will mature out of their attitudes and behaviors towards work.

Gone are the days when young ambitious teens and twenty-somethings felt lucky just to have a job and had to work very hard just to keep it.  Now Help Wanted signs dot the suburban landscape and the classified ads are crying out for warm bodies.  These announcements serve as a consistent reminder to every adolescent job seeker that their services are in high demand.  Let there be no doubt, it is a seller’s market and 16 to 24-year-olds are on the supply side of the equation.

Granted, if the economy takes a nosedive and the need for unskilled labor and entry level positions declines significantly, then it will once again become a buyer’s market.  Young people will have to work hard at getting and keeping a job.  But this is not likely to happen for quite a spell.  In the meantime, what are you - the employers and managers of today’s emerging workforce - supposed to do to recruit, train, manage, motivate, and retain?  Here are three very basic steps to get you started:

First of all, get your head out of Mayberry and into the new millennium.  Realize what you have to work within today's world and dedicate your time and energies into maximizing the resources we have among us.  You can't ignore Generation Why, nor can your business survive without them.  They are here, and they are now.  Get used to it.  Make the best of it by pledging yourself to make the best of them - even if that means instilling within them the manners, basic skills, and work ethics their parents and educators were supposed to have done before they got to you.

Next, dedicate yourself to learning to speak Gen Why.  Read everything you can about them, and much is being written.  Dive into their world!  On occasion, listen to their music, watch their movies and TV shows, and read their magazines.  Watch Gen Why in the malls and pay attention to them as they work in the restaurants and stores you frequent.  When you get the chance, ask them questions and listen to their responses.  Why should you go to the trouble of doing all this?  Because how can you lead them if you do not understand them?

Lastly, don’t be afraid of change; in fact, drive it!  Generation Why, by their very nature, questions rules, policies, and procedures, and demands rationale before action.  So don’t ask a Gen Why to follow a rule without having a darn good reason behind it.  Question your policies and procedures, and if you cannot justify something; change it or throw it out.  In the process, you’ll streamline the bureaucracy out of your workplace, leaving behind the really important policies and procedures that cannot be compromised.  
The freedoms that are left as a result of weeding out stale rules will create an environment that will allow your younger employees to maximize their individual abilities to the betterment of your business. 

Sure, making these changes is easier said than done.  But it is well worth the investment of effort.  And don't be surprised if you find this new management style and approach reveals your Generation Why workers to be the brightest, most creative, hardest working, and most loyal employees on your payroll.  They certainly have the potential to be just that!  The key to unlocking this potential? 

Remember what every alien says when they first make contact, “Take me to your leader!”

That, my friend, is you.

Read Only © Copyright 2002 Eric Chester, President of Generation Why, is an award winning keynote speaker, trainer, consultant, and the co-author of five books.  He can be contacted through the website www.generationwhy.com  or by calling 303-239-9999. Used with permission of author.

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