engaging the gen y employee in india - nov 2013

© WhiteLight Consulting Pvt. Ltd. 2013 Page 0

Engaging the Gen-Y employee

The article is drawn from the results of primary research conducted with 98 participants from different fields and

industries. The views expressed belong to the participants and HR leaders from the industry.


Introduction

The global business environment, over the past 5 years has

undergone tremendous change. Organisations have

redefined their strategies and approach in the way they

operate. To the external stakeholders and bystanders, this

has been the result of the visible economic turbulence. While

it does hold true, there has been another major change, a

very gradual one and hence unnoticed. This internal change

is the transition of the reins of organisation between

generations.

The age of baby boomers has now passed. Gen-X employees

have risen to the peak of careers and are now at the helm of

organisations. This means that the rest of the show – from

middle to junior level of organisational hierarchy – is almost

completely driven by Gen-Y. But naturally, this new

generation has come in with a new mindset and a new

outlook towards matters. They have a different set of

expectations from the organisation than Gen-X. At the top,

the leaders have a fresh set of expectations from employees

to tackle the turbulent times. While some expectations on

both sides are met, the ones that do not meet create a gap,

leading to one glaring question on both sides: “Are they

doing enough?”

“Different Folks

Different Strokes”


The Gen-Y Mindset:

During the research, the term that popped out for Gen-Y was

“Fast Track”. They set a high personal goal, and wish to reach

there in the shortest time possible. Gen-Y employees are

highly ambitious with a desire to grow quickly and on their

own terms.

They expect to be in a management position within three

years of starting work. They want to be in an organisation

that can cater to their aspirations, be it purpose, pay or

position. The highest level of engagement is seen when the

personal goals coincide with the professional goals. Such

employees are all praise for their work and organisation, with

the motivation to carry on more than 2 years.

They want to be paid proportionally to the level and amount

of work. Also, the work should relate to what they have learnt

in the past – from their institutes and experiences. Graduates

feel more comfortable when they get a feeling of being able to

apply their knowledge. But when asked to pick one, money

wins over work. 57% rated compensation at higher priority

than challenging work.

Gen-Y graduates value a higher level of freedom and

autonomy, in the way they approach and carry out their work.

While there is an expectation of hand holding to some extent,

they like taking pride in accomplishments achieved on their

own. There however, is a constant comparison between

training needed and training given. 43% of respondents said

that they felt a lack in initial and ongoing training.

Top -5 priorities of Gen-Y:

Alignment of

organisational goals with

personal goals

Compensation

Work-Life Balance

Career advancement

Challenging roles

57%

43%

Work v/s Pay

Compensation

Challenging work


Work life balance holds a dear corner in the minds of

graduates. Long hours are not appreciated unless they

serve the purpose of greater pay or greater growth. Most

graduates hope to put in long hours to reach a certain

position within a year or two before shifting to another

organisation for a less taxing job.

The message to be taken is that the time of loyal employees,

striving for the organisation has now come to pass. Gen-Y

engagement levels today stands a point there is satisfaction

to contribute just enough till a better opportunity comes by.

What Organisations Expect:

From the organisational perspective, the demand from the

Gen-Y employees is quite simple, “Do what you do best to

improve either the bottom-line or the top-line”.

Organisations have come to expect a large amount of zeal

and zest from the younger employees, especially those

falling within the age group of 24 to 27 years. The

expectations however, vary depending on the role of the

employee. While a fresh graduate joining the organisation

at an entry level position – e.g. a software engineer – is

expected to do tasks on time and be compliant of the

policies, an employee joining at the junior management level

is expected to shoulder a lot more responsibilities and

contribute in terms of improving processes in addition to

compliance.

“They are not kids

anymore. In order to

earn, in order to be

valued, they should

be first ready to

deliver”


Organisations expect loyalty and commitment to the bigger

cause. They want the organisational goals to precede

personal goals. When it comes to remuneration,

organisations expect a proportional return on the amount

they have spent on an employee. They expect to derive apt

value on the salary given to an employee along with the

training costs and branding costs incurred.

For career progression, all organisations want the employees

to prove their mettle before they can step into leadership

roles. Barring entry level positions, the policy of periodic

promotion has almost ceased to exist.

Organisations accept that a certain amount of attrition is

bound to happen and is healthy to an extent. But that being

said, they wish their Hi-Pots and High performers stay with

the organisation for at least four to six years in order to

deliver the desired value and results.

From a learning and development standpoint, organisations

expect the Gen-Y employees to be comfortable dealing with

ambiguity and pick up lessons on their own. They should

have the initiative and be alert enough to learn at each point.

Gen-Y should be able to internalise and apply learning as

soon as possible without it being pointed out. Knowledge

sharing by spoon feeding is something which organisations

wish to avoid.

The question that comes to the fore is that in the current

business environment, can organisations promise a fixed,

periodic path of growth? If the answer from an organisation

is no, then it’s up to the employees to create their own path.

“They have to prove

themselves in order

to Progress”


The Gaps:

Gaps arise because of the lack of clarity and understanding

of expectations from both sides. The biggest gaps arise

between the priorities and perspectives of the organisations

and the employees. Gen-Y employees are more self-centred

and tend to focus on personal goals as compared to the

organisational goals. Organisations wish the employees to

have a long term perspective of around five years whereas

employees do not think beyond two years at a stretch.

The shorter tenure of Gen-Y employees in organisations can

be linked to their dissatisfaction across certain areas like:

career progression, coupled with unmet expectations on

compensation and benefits and to certain extent, being

bound in their approach towards their work. While 85% of

the respondents are happy with their current role, only 29%

are definitely sure that they would carry on for more than 2

years with their current organisation.

This staggering statistic poses a dilemma to organisations as

to what they can do or improve to engage and retain these

employees for a longer term. While they do their best,

practices do not seem to have the desired effect in terms of

motivation and retention.

Points of Dissatisfaction:

Lack of Role Clarity

No alignment of

roles with skill sets

Lack of growth

opportunities

Low Compensation

Organisational

Culture

86%

14%

Role Satisfaction

Yes No

71%

29%

Motivation to carry on for > than 2 years


Bridging the Gap:

By bridging the gap between the expectations, organisations

can pave the way for higher engagement and retention. Given

the widespread nature of the issues, bridging the gap

effectively can prove to be effective in creating a competitive

advantage.

The task however, is easier said than done. The gaps in this

case are in expectations, which are different for all employees.

While a “one size fit all” strategy is definitely out of the

question, it is impossible for organisations to cater to every

single employee. Organisations will therefore have to rethink

their practices in order to set up a halfway mark where both

the sides can put forth their views. Be it through internal

communication, new processes or any other top-driven

initiatives, organisations have will have to create a feeling of

acknowledgement and hope in the Gen-Y minds. For only then

will they be in a position to understand the organisations’

expectations and act upon them. For addressing lack of clarity,

career progression maps need to be designed such that they

give light to each role and highlight them as beacons an

employee can look to in times of ambiguity.

In conclusion, it falls upon the shoulders of the organisation,

especially the human resource leaders to create a system for

balancing expectations, for in the end, it is more feasible to

retain than to recruit.

“Rethink,

Redraw,

Retain””


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