Frustration At Work: Even The Gen Y Boss Has Issues With The Y Generation

Question #1: Is it possible for a Gen Y business owner to be frustrated with Gen Y employees over work ethic?

Answer: Not only do Boomer business owners experience frustration with young employees, Gen Y owners do too.

I visited a unique social enterprise in my town to find out why it has young people waiting in line to work there. I expected to hear about all of the ways this company pleases Gen Y and gets a high level of performance because they understand one another so well. It is an all-Gen Y workplace; operations are run by a Gen Y husband and wife, owner/management team and the Y Generation employees, interns and volunteers. High school students volunteer to earn service credits. It is successful and growing with 130 employees, 50 wholesale accounts across the country, and anticipating a doubling or tripling of staff for $2 million in sales in 2012.

Although I did find out that Gen Y love to work at the company even though the pay is nominal to none, I was surprised to learn that the Gen Y business owner Dave Hansow of Light Gives Heat, notices a "difference" in Gen Y employee work ethic, different from what he expected. He is experiencing what many managers report as an annoyance; the amount of texting and interacting with social media sites that affects completion of work. I have learned that generational differences between Boomer owners/managers and Gen Y create a significant level of frustration at work today because they differ so in some important areas. I expected that Gen Y managers would have a leg-up on Boomer bosses by engaging Gen Y employees in ways that prevent the typical objections. Then again, Gen Xers I talk with are pretty disappointed with Gen Y work ethic, too and I would say they are two generations most similar.

The owner explained that he has always stressed the "why" and purpose of the company with employees and hoped that would sufficiently inspire them for the work - to "be the change they want to see in the world". Now he believes that message will get employees started with enthusiasm but, it will take individual work ethic to fulfill it.

Question #2: Will the Gen Y owner/manager establish control for social networking at work and set guidelines for completing some tasks?

Answer: Yes, the Gen Y owner has decided to set specific break times for personal phone and internet use. Although the company intentionally has a strong social component, which obviously attracts Gen Y workers, he and his board of directors will be implementing controls over internet use and texting emails and will be establishing stricter completion guidelines for least-favorite tasks. It seems that a Gen Y boss can have issues with Gen Y work ethic, too.

He would also like to see employees demonstrate a clearer "understanding for the value of his time" by making choices on tasks without his guidance and by following through on the mundane tasks that some are reluctant to do, like mopping floors. These are other aspects of Gen Y employees that frustrate Boomer bosses; constant need for feedback and a dislike for work that doesn't challenge or teach them something new. The owner also plans to clarify expectations in the hiring process, something he admitted he could do better. The Gen Y boss must now tighten-up operations to keep the company on track for meeting its goals.

Honestly, I had surmised that Boomer bosses set strict guidelines on social networking and phone use based on what they don't understand about technology and Gen Y. Maybe it's not about that, entirely. Owners need to be in charge and managers are still responsible for seeing that work gets done.Social work environments don't have to be the flip-side of heavily controlled Boomer-like operations. Rather, worker autonomy should fit the company culture and be integrated and balanced with good management methods.

Here are 3 pointers on reducing workplace frustration for owners and managers of any generation:

Pointer #1. Set clear expectations for social media use on company time and for company purposes.

Pointer #2. Clearly explain what an excellent job looks like for any task. Many Gen Y have not had much work experience and may not know to ask for exactly what the boss wants.

Pointer #3. Establish clear career path goals with new-hires early on. Gen Y will be less likely to look for skills-building, learning, and networking opportunitites elsewhere if these are spelled out in advance.

And, Boomer-Gen Y generational differences are not the only cause for manager-employee conflict. The roles of boss and employee remain a strong workplace dynamic and will continue to be potential for frustration at work.