In response to a shrinking labor pool, employers are falling all over themselves to recruit and retain the most creative and techno-literate generation this country has ever seen. But Corporate America has a strange and strained relationship with this young generation of workers.
Baby boomer managers shake their heads, wondering why those born between 1965 and 1983 eschew the go-the-extra-mile work ethic of the boomers’ generation. Meanwhile, the younger generation rolls its eyes, mocking the notion of company loyalty and job security.
“Generation X” was originally the title of a 1964 British youth-pulp book. Billy Idol took the name for his ’70s punk-pulp band, as did Douglas Coupland for his best-seller ‘Generation X,” which depicted the lives of young Americans with few options beyond “low-pay, low-prestige, low-dignity, no-future McJobs.”
Since then, those in their 20s and early 30s have been designated by a nebulous letter of the alphabet and generalized as apathetic and angry. They’ve also been multi-labeled by marketers as “Twentysomethings,” “Baby Busters,” “The Bitter Bunch,” and a “generation of self-centered know-nothings” (pollster Andrew Kohut).
“Every generation has its label, like my dad was a ‘greaser,’” says Michael Gleydura, a 27-year-old bicycle technician and instructor for Century Cycles. “But the ‘Generation X’ thing, every time you hear it, sounds like punk kids or something. It’s like you don’t know what to name it because there are so many diverse people in our generation.”
Century Cycles owners Lois and Scott Cowan know a thing or two about that generation – most of their employees were born between 1965 and 1983. But the Cowans don’t see them as “GenXers.”
“It doesn’t matter what age anyone is, it’s just people are people. We try to do everything based on who contributes the most — what each person brings to the team — not on who’s been with us the longest or who’s the oldest,” Lois Cowan says.
The Cowans have to face the fact that members of this generation typically aren’t seeking a lifelong career from one job. “I don’t think today’s generation takes a job thinking, ‘I can make a career here and retire here,’ says Lisa Doyle, branch manager for Manpower. “They’re looking at it from a standpoint of, ‘What’s in it for me?’”
“People in my age range look for more ways to support themselves,” says Steve Madden, 25, who works full-time at Century Cycles. It’s “not necessarily a career” he’s looking for.
Madden is an avid cyclist, but he’d rather be making a living as a full-time musician. He says he’s found comfortable compromise working at Century Cycles.
“I’ve found the best thing I can live with myself doing is having the right people to employ me. I found the happy medium. I’m still being able to pay the bills without being frustrated by a ‘death job’ or a job that doesn’t suit me.”
Gleydura has a degree in biology, but works at Century Cycles because he enjoys it. “I want to prove that you can make a living enjoying what you do, whether you make a lot of money or just a little, because if you enjoy your job, you’re a healthier person,” he says.
The Cowans’ secret to motivating the young workers at their Peninsula, Medina and Rocky River stores is threefold: (1) set high standards for them; (2) keep an open door policy; and (3) create an entrepreneurial atmosphere that engenders a sense of ownership.
“We try to involve everybody, as much as we can in making decisions. When somebody steps forward and wants to go with something, we let them do it,” says Lois.
Dan Sirkin, an employee at the Peninsula store, specializes in BMX riding. The Cowans allotted him a budget to purchase his own inventory and made him entirely responsible for that section of the store’s offerings.
“We stress the fact that if somebody makes a bad decision and it costs the company money, ultimately, it costs them money. So they all know it trickles down,” Lois says. “Likewise, we do a lot of bonusing during the year when we have an especially good month or quarter.”
The Cowans also hold weekly motivational meetings with employees. Annually, they close shop for a few days and take their staff to a rented lodge in Hocking Hills, Ohio.
“At the retreat, we do motivational and training classes four or five hours a day and at the end of the day we cook, sit in the hot tub, drink beer, play pool and just get to know each other,” Lois says.
“The investment they’ve put into us has made me more loyal than I’ve been to previous employers,” admits Madden. “They [the Cowans] put a lot of stock into what we think around the shop. They keep me motivated and interested by investing their time and resources in me … They also have a better pay scale than most bike shops — that doesn’t hurt at all.”
The trust factor is another key to motivating this young generation of workers, Lois Cowan says. She recently sent two employees — Gleydura and 29-year-old Derrick Kortvejesi — to Minneapolis on a buying trip.
“They flew us out there and trusted us to spend a ton of money,” says Kortvejesi. “They just let us run. They don’t interfere because they trust us and realize we’re responsible and make good decisions for them.”
Reality bites
To help its managers understand and motivate younger workers, The Timken Co. recently sought out Timothy Viskocil, senior human resource consultant for HR Consulting of Northeast Ohio Ltd., to present his training seminar entitled, “You and Generation X,” which he based in part on “Beyond Generation X: A Practical Guide for Managers,” by Claire Raines (Crisp Publications, 1997). Viskocil elucidated the GenXers’ viewpoint by revisiting the stark realities of their lives, in contrast with the backgrounds of boomers.
“We’re talking in generalities here, and while these are some common characteristics, Xers aren’t all the same,” Viskocil says. “But if you can understand and tolerate the differences in opinions, you can start working together.”
“Unlike many people my age that defined who we were by our employment, this generation defies that,” adds Jay Littler, director of managed care at Summit County Childrens’ Services. He says that in his years of developing programs for youth, he’s come to understand their rationale. “They’ve been bombarded with change, heavily impacted by a time where downsizing affected a lot of families, and have accepted the fact that there are no certainties anymore.”
Viskocil points out that today’s new work force was the latchkey generation left home alone with Atari and Nintendo while their parents were frenetically climbing the corporate ladder. When downsizings left their parents paycheckless, they learned that “job security” was a sham.
Divorce shattered their childhoods, shouldered them with heavy responsibilities and spawned their reluctance to commit to anyone or anything. They learned early on to disrespect authority, thanks to players such as Richard Nixon, Jim Bakker and the hypocrisy of their parents.
They have no faith that politicians and pundits will solve society’s ills, such as unemployment, homelessness and AIDS — factors that breed even greater pessimism about the future. Rather than picketing, protesting and trusting authority figures to help solve problems thrust on them by their elder generation, they developed their own modus operandi.
“When they were our age, our parents had a maxim that went something like, ‘Trust no one over 30.&#
146; In our generation’s code of ethics, it’s ‘Trust no one,’” confides a 29-year-old who, consistent with the code, wishes to remain nameless. “It’s kind of a crappy way to be, but from personal experience, you learn you have nobody else to rely on. It’s just what we’ve been instilled with.”
Dim prospects
As if the weight of their world weren’t enough of a burden to bear, this generation also faces portentous financial problems, as the first generation in history predicted to earn less than their parents.
The American Dream isn’t even a fantasy for them, because most are struggling to survive, writes Elaine Cipriano, editor-in-chief of Seriously, an Internet publication authored by students at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.
“The starting wages of entry level jobs are declining, our college loans are coming due and housing costs are so high, 46 percent are still crashing with mom and dad. Despite our financial pressures, we are as likely as baby boomers to think about long term savings and retirement,” Cipriano states, noting that most of her peers believe it’s more likely they’ll see a UFO in their lifetime than a Social Security check bearing their names.
The economy seems stacked against them, so they’ve resolved to create their own opportunities — or not participate at all, writes Geoffrey T. Holtz in “Welcome to the Jungle: The Why Behind Generation X. “From their viewpoint, there is no alternative but to re-evaluate the “work ethic,” balance their professional, social and family life, and reinvent their economy.