Generation Y

Option 4: Gen Y employees

Introduction

The report is based on providing the characteristics of Gen Y employees. Born in mid 1980s, Gen Y professionals are individuals who belong to 20 age group and are entering the work force. They are as high as 70 million and are also known as Millennials. They are the fastest growing segment of today's work force. Law firms compete for talented individuals and employees and the desires, attitudes and needs cannot be ignored for this generation (Martin, Tulgan, 2001). It is believed that each generation has certain characterisitcs which are composed of based on 4 generational models repating in a cycle. Milliennials are considered as more civic minded generation who have a strong sense of community locallyu and globally.

Findings

The main characteristics of Gen Y employees after reviewing the literature related to them are as follows:

Family-Centric: Gen Y does not appeal themselves on fast track and they focus on balance between work and life. Gen Y professionals have a high vision for work and they prioritize their family over work. There has to be a balance between work and personal life ad this help in increasing job satisfaction of employees and they feel that they are not ignoring other areas for work which are more important for them. Work life balance can be managed by showing empathy towards employees and understanding their views. Work life balance can be managed by providing employees flexible hours so that they can work according to the time which suits them best.

Multi-tasking: They focus on multi-tasking and are focused on determining what has to be done and are able to complete more than one tasks at a time. Emotional intelligence is considered as a popular trait of Gen Y employees. They incorporate emotional self-awareness and understanding others at an emotional level. They also upgrade their skills by coaching and learn more about what making them masterful at coaching. Finally, Gen Y employees also focus on change management as it is critical in this changing world (Trunk, 2007).

Tech-Savvy: This generation rely on technology as it helps in performing jobs better. They have the latest technology gadgets from cellphones, blackberry to all other gadgets which is in use by them for 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. They prefer to communicate through text messages and email than communicating face to face and also prefer online technology such as webinars rather than presentations.

Achievement-Oriented: Gen Y is more ambitious, competent, achievement oriented and confident than the previous generation who were pampered by their parents. They have high expectations and seek out new challenges and are able to question authority about any issue. They keep on learning and are based on meaningful work. Once a goal is established Gen Y employees also demand supervision and coaching to have a broader perspective of the situation and to discover the true root cause of the problems or interferences to finding solutions. Through this, they can find new solutions together. Gen Y employees are more likely ...