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Special G20 Edition: Economic Impact of Gen Y (pt.1)
Written by Buddy Hobart on September 21st, 2009
It is hard to miss in Pittsburgh…..the world is coming to town! Pittsburgh hosts the G-20 on September 24 & 25. The Group of 20 will be focusing their attention on the economy and how to sustain the recovery. Their short term challenge is to build upon the small victories the world economies have shown of late and the long term challenge is to create policies that will allow economic growth for decades to come. In the spirit of long term thinking, I wanted to address the impact Gen Y will have on the world (and the economy) for decades to come.
It is a global marketplace.
By 2025 nearly 75% of the world’s workforce will be Gen Y. This is not just a North American trend….it is a GLOBAL issue. Not only will organizations need to adapt their leadership styles to attract and retain the best talent, marketing departments will need to adapt their messages to attract and retain Gen Y consumers. It stands to reason that if 75% of the working population is Gen Y, then this cohort will also be the largest consumer group. When the last of the Baby Boomers are 61 (in 2025) the last of Gen Y will only be 30.
Gen Y already realizes it is a global market place. They have been buying imported goods their entire lives. The current economy is trying to grow while every G-20 country’s exports are shrinking. This is a very difficult equation to overcome….no country really has enough consumers to sustain its’ economy with just a domestic market. (China may be the exception, but Chinese consumers are historically frugal and save vs spend). The question companies should be asking themselves is “what products will resonate with Gen Y?”
Gen Y will gravitate to products that are good for, or at least do not harm, the environment. Over the top luxury goods will not resonate with Gen Y. Why drive a luxury car that gets 14 miles to the gallon? That is not a statement Gen Y wants to make. Are the products made humanly? Are human rights respected in the manufacturing countries? Does the manufacturer give back to the community and world at large? Gen Y will begin to pay even more attention to these questions as they move farther along in their careers and as consumers.
Volunteerism as economic engine
Gen Y already volunteers at rates never seen before from previous generations. As they age and move deeper into their careers, I do not see this changing. I believe Gen Y will begin to have this built into their employers’ policies to allow for continued time off, even without pay, to volunteer for causes. In my travels it is rare to find a roomful of ’20-somethings’ where no one has studied or volunteered abroad. In fact, it is more common that the majority of the room has spent some time in very serious volunteer activities, both in the US and in another country.
More focus on social causes will not only make the world a “better place” in the short term, but it will lead to more economic development in the long term, just look at what Charity:Water is doing in Africa right now. By providing clean water to the residents of those areas, they are able to begin to build a more normally functioning society, without being crippled by the diseases and daily demands that they faced in the past. This leads to further improvements in infrastructure and greater life expectancies, both of which position these areas as a destination for inward investment.
Gen Y’s volunteer activities are not just a feel good exercise. The intent is to change the world. While part of that is purely altruistic, the other part is also commercial. Gen Y has been consumers their entire lives and they know the power of money and purchasing decisions. Through their efforts in making the world a better place, they will also shift the world’s economic forces.
By 2025 this group, making up 75% of the worlds work force, will be well on their way of achieving their collective vision of making the world a better place.
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