theceomagazine.com | 45If there’s a generation more roundly vilified than those who identify as millennials, it seems likely it hasn’t
been born yet. They’re too lazy to work, too demanding when they do land a job, and are more obsessed with
smashing avocados at music festivals than building anything that even resembles a meaningful career.
Or so we’re told by pundits and commentators on a near-daily basis. Interesting, then, that the genuine
experts disagree wholeheartedly, and are quick to point out that organisations that embrace and value the varied
skill sets of Australia’s young workers are largely more successful than those that don’t.
Leanne Cutcher is Professor of Management at Sydney University’s School of Business, and has
just completed a major global study of intergenerational workplaces. She says we need to reframe the
idea of experience, understanding that it can be more than an employee’s working history – something
in which millennials are clearly at a disadvantage.
“One of the words that came up a lot was ‘experience’. And what we found was the way in which that idea
of ‘being experienced’ is understood is often the difference,” she says. “We’ve found that if you have a very open
view of what ‘being experienced’ means as a manager of your team, you’re going to get much more innovative
practices developing. Someone recently out of university, for example, will have the most up-to-date
knowledge, as well as experience in working with the latest software and technology.
“This is a generation that wants to be valued, so a good manager in the C-suite will see that as an
energy they can tap into. Because the problem is, if they feel that they’re not being valued, they probably
will walk away from the organisation.”
It’s easy to assume the source of any inter-office anguish is these upstart kids, with neither the time nor inclination
to be told what to do by some meddling older person. But that’s not the case, with Sydney University actually
pointing the blame at older workers, many of whom see younger employees as a threat, and treat them as such. »
GENERATION Y
(BORN 1977 TO 1995)
Multitasker, eager, motivated
theceomagazine.com | 45The diverse workforce | INSPIRE