During the planning process the conversation about Gen Y came up as a strategic initiative. Our client realizes that in order to grow they will need to attack some aggressive recruiting and retention strategies. This is really the first time that we had a client who made this a stand alone initiative. Over the years we have had many clients focus on talent acquisition, but this is the first time a client is focusing solely on Gen Y. In the past this was usually buried under a broader goal.

A recent article written by Business 24/7 stated that by 2025 over 75% of the global workforce will be Gen Y! The last of the baby boomers (1964) will be 61 in 2025. While Gen X will fill in the leadership and experience gap, there simply are not enough of them to make up for the retiring baby boomers. Gen Y will be called upon to fill in, even in locations and positions where they may not be ready or have the requisite experience.

Our client seemed to deeply understand this demographic reality. Not only are they focused on recruiting the right talent, they are also focusing on TRAINING their talent for this eventuality. ALSO, our client realizes how CRITICAL it will be to give the proper time and attention to their Gen X leaders. In a very short time experienced Gen X talent will be in HIGH DEMAND. If an organization wants to retain their best performers, the time to start is now.

Fortunately, these two initiatives do not have to be separate. The right performance management tools for Gen Y are also the right tools for Gen X (and Boomers!). Gen Y only wants what every generation of work wants. The good news is that Gen Y will force this positive change.

It is hard to pick up a national or local publication and NOT see an article about Gen Y. Business magazines, employment papers, marketing gurus and just about everyone else is now at least TALKING about the differences. There seems to be a greater awareness to the issue today than when we first started to write the book. However, I have some serious concerns about how that awareness has been gained and how many publications are presenting Gen Y.

Over the past 3 months I have seen literally dozens of negative articles and cartoons exploiting the prejudices of Baby Boomers and Gen X toward Gen Y. This negative positioning is not helpful to business leaders as they try to create their strategies for growth and recovery. Gen Y will be a critical part of the recovery, and having a negative view of what they bring to the work world will not speed up the process of creating a useful solution.

As an example of how the negative stereo types are presented, a recent national weekly magazine ran a story of Gen Y and focused on their sense of entitlement and “self indulgence”. The article talked about a generation that has had $100,000 sweet 16 parties. There was also a photo of some “20-somethings” having fun at a nightclub. The photo was designed to drive home the point that this cohort is out of control.

In the following days after seeing the article I had an opportunity to talk to several business forums across the country and conducted an informal survey. I asked “has anyone here held or attended a $100,000 sweet 16 party”. Not only was the answer no across the board, the rooms (mostly made up of successful baby boomer business people), laughed at the idea. My point here is this….I am sure SOMEONE has held six figure parties for their children, but it is not the norm. (In fact, who is to say the 16 year old recipient of the party even wanted it!) I am concerned these rare examples are being presented as the norm and playing on our Baby Boomer prejudices.

On a final note, we need to also be careful of the images we are presented about Gen Y. The photo I referred to in the article did not show Gen Y in a good light. They were partying, holding drinks and “acting the fool”. A week after I saw the article a friend of mine held a 50th birthday party. For the most part the party was a “dry affair” and we were by no means intoxicated. The photos I received after the party made it look like we were out of control…having the nerve to laugh, joke and clown around with friends! The nerve of us old folks to have fun! Many of the photos could easily been taken out of context and presented in a negative light.

Business leaders need to guard against these stereo types and avoid having an entire generation of talent branded negatively.