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Why Gen Y Will Leave Your Organization When The Recession Ends
Written by Buddy Hobart on April 15th, 2010
The recent economic downturn has certainly adjusted everyone’s attitude toward work. Across the board, we are seeing members from every generation grateful to still be employed. For many members of Gen Y, this is a new development. In the past, a job was simply a stepping stone to another opportunity, and Gen Y is not seeing any of these other opportunities materialize.
With the unemployment rate at nearly 10%, Gen Y is seeing a disproportionate amount of unemployment in comparison to other generations of workers. I think this sense of gratitude for employment is ultimately a very good thing. In good times, everyone seems to think that being employed is a birthright. Being employed, especially in a job that pays well and offers interesting opportunities, is far from a birthright. These types of opportunities are earned.
I think Gen Y will come out of this recession with a newfound sense of appreciation for many things, employment included. However, I do not think that this newfound appreciation will dramatically impact their desire to have real-time feedback and interesting work. Once the economy turns, and it will recover, Gen Y will once again seek out interesting work in an organization that provides real-time feedback.
One of my concerns for business leaders is that they may be currently lulled into a false sense of security regarding the retention of Gen Y. Since many Gen Yers are holding on to their current jobs, business leaders may think that there is no reason to align their organizations differently. I still contend that once the economy turns, Gen Y will leave bad employment situations in record numbers.
Organizations that realize this and get ahead of the curve will be an employerof-choice in the next decade. As the oldest Gen Yer reaches 33, the next ten years of their career will be critical. Additionally, this will be the point in time when many Gen Yers marry and start families. One of the reasons Gen Y has been able to make some of these decisions is their delaying of marriage.
The next decade will have more Gen Yers marrying and starting families than at any time in the past. Starting a family will have a dramatic impact on many Gen Y choices. Will they be a dual-career couple? Will the family require a more “stable” work situation? Will Gen Y be more willing to “put up with” poor leadership? Or will Gen Y use this opportunity to dramatically adjust their careers and find other alternatives to making a living?
Much of this is why I think companies who align their organizations now will have a major advantage for acquiring key talent over the next decade. Businesses that set a strategic course to become an employer of choice will have top talent flocking to them.
While it seems counterintuitive to focus on talent management with such a high unemployment rate, I believe that companies who do just that will have the advantage and will recover quickly. As coach Sendek says, “The team with the best players usually wins.”
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