Generation Y
Generation Y are the most materially endowed generation ever. Currently aged 18-32, They are very tech savvy- bringing social media and productivity skills to the workplace.
The global generation- culturally diverse, mobile careers, travellers and globally aware. Gen Y aren’t just a product of their times, they’re also a product of their life stage. Generation Y in their 30’s are now moving into leadership roles, getting a mortgage and starting a family.
Gen Y have been called the Millennials, digital natives, the dot-com kids and the click ‘n go generation. Generation Y will live longer than any previous generation. They will work longer than previous generations with the retirement age and pension age pushed back. They will average more than 4 careers and 17 employers in their lifetime.
By 2020 most Baby Boomers will have retired while Generation Y will dominate employment, comprising 42% of the workforce. Gen Y are averaging around 2 years per role, voluntary turnover exceeds 15% and around 1 in 3 workers are employed on a casual or part-time basis.
Increasing compliance measures and regulatory requirements from carbon trading to sustainability reporting will add great complexity to work in 2020. Yet increasing regulation in the workplace is occurring right at the time that Generation Y are beginning their careers- a generation who show less compliance and more push-back against rules and authority.
The multi-tasking, multi-channelling Generation Y currently comprises just 1 in 5 workers but by 2020 they will be the largest generation in the workforce comprising 2 in 5 workers. Increasingly organisations will search for better ways to communicate and engage with them. Forget the training manual or the staff meeting- enter the company vodcasts, instant messaging, and even content-laden music.
We will see an increasing trend towards people unplugging, and hotdesking: the era of activity based working (ABW). So the rise of ping-pong tables, well-equipped lunch (and breakfast) rooms, mini-nap spaces, time-out rooms, and outdoor gardens and green spaces.