Engaging Gen Y

Last week I was asked by a client:

"We have a candidate for a summer intern position that is graduating from high school this year with a 3.3 grade point average. We think he is very smart. He completed most of his high school curriculum early and has been taking college courses and currently works in the high school IT department.

"When he was asked about his 3.3 grade point average, he said that he is really good at taking the tests but doesn't complete the homework if he finds the class boring.

"What is your impression of this? Does this throw up a red flag for you?"

My response: Not really, no. Much of public school education these days is a waste of time, particularly at the high school and college level. It is one of many reasons our nation is in decline. Very correctable, but our leaders lack vision, guts and... I've said too much already.

On the contrary, this lets you know that he needs to understand WHY he is doing something and WHERE he can grow in your organization. This should be constantly reinforced (with all employees). He will work for a PURPOSE more than a paycheck. To test my conclusion you could try the following:

1. Tell him 3-5 stories of problems clients had, how you solved them and how that enabled the clients to positively impact the lives of others. Touch his heart. If he seems bored or disinterested during these stories then do not hire him. At the end ask him to describe a situation where he has had a similar impact as part of his role in the high school IT department. Does he tell a story or explain why he works there in a way that demonstrates passion and/or purpose?
2. Ask him what he wants to be doing in 5 years. He may not know. 2 years? If he likes working for you then will he want to continue during college? Try to define a rough "career path" of learning, not titles, for the next two years if he stays with you. Does this excite him?
3. Give him 1-3 typical scenarios he might face on the job as homework. Ask him to solve them and bring them to his next interview.

Meeting Ideas

When a job candidate, employee or client makes a comment, try to understand the "disease" rather than the "symptom." In the example above the young man was not doing his homework in boring classes. That is a symptom. What is the disease? Being asked to learn things he feels he will never apply in his life.

Here are some ideas to discuss this in your next staff meeting:

1. Read the story from my client and ask your people to answer their question. Have an open discussion and do NOT jump on anyone who says something you do not like. Remember, that is a symptom. Be wise and consider what disease is causing that symptom (response).
2. Read my ideas, one-by-one, and ask for their thoughts. They may disagree. (If you get some good feedback, please let me know. I am still learning too!)
3. How can we do a better job at helping our employees understand WHY we do our work?
4. How can we do a better job at helping our employees understand WHERE they are growing in our company?
5. How can we do a better job at helping our employees understand our PURPOSE - how we apply our mission and values daily to achieve our vision of improving people's lives? (your vision may be different)