Generation Workplace Alert:Compelling Evidence For Mentoring Gen Y to Increase Employee Productivity

Aug. 22, 2011 - PRLog -- Grand Junction, Colorado - Tinker Barnett endorses mentoring of all young employees for improved job performance and resolving Boomer-GenY generational differences.  

Employee mentoring has been viewed in the past as a nice thing to do for new hires. Today there is conflict among four generations at work. Other generations believe Gen Yers are not ready and willing to give their best. Mentoring is essential for training and retaining young Gen Y employees just because it is a good fit for what they require.

Here are three reasons companies should mentor newly hired Gen Y professionals.

Reason #1. The Y Generation needs to be taught a few things before they get going on the job. There is something they all have in common; they don’t have a lot of work experience and are new to the professional workplace. And yet, new Gen Y employees want to hit the ground running and start making a difference right away. Gen Y often do not know what they need to know. In most cases it is up to businesses to teach them. Mentoring personalizes training and leading. It shows that your company cares about how a new hire is prepared to perform. It is the opportunity to understand why they think and feel the way they do and to use that information to influence them.

Reason #2. Gen Y love mentoring. Meister and Willyerd find there are three primary things Gen Y look for in their next manager “develop my career, give me straight feed back, and mentor and coach me”. A good mentoring program with detailed instructions, clear expectations, and consistent follow up can fill all of these requirements. Gen Yers are more trusting of senior leaders than Baby Boomers and Gen X were and are willing to be mentored. They are natural entrepreneurs, unafraid of taking-on responsibilities, and have a thirst for growth and knowledge. Mentoring is a good way to inspire Gen Y and increase company productivity.

Reason #3. To save money. Differences in generations and specifically, a gap in the Boomer generation and Gen Y expectations about work can cost businesses a lot of money. Despite the known costs of turnover and loss of productivity, 54 percent of businesses still do nothing to focus on employee retention or reduce their high employee turnover. Newly hired Gen Y will decide early, sometimes within weeks, to move on to another company if their expectations are not revealed and managed. Mentoring allows expectations to be pinpointed and resolved early on and in ways that engage and create enthusiasm for Gen Y. And, studies from the Gallup organization show that employees who have an above-average attitude toward their work will generate 38 percent higher customer satisfaction scores, 22 percent higher productivity, and 27 percent higher profits for their companies. Mentoring Gen Y can be a relatively inexpensive way for companies to save money in a multi generation workplace.

These steps for mentoring Gen Y to avoid high turnover and lost productivity are just part of an entire “mentoring Gen Y for success” solution.  

The complete step-by-step solution is fully documented in a new guide, “How to Mentor For Highly Productive Gen Y Employees” .The guide is available for immediate download at www.GenerationalDivideCoaching.com. And to help as many people as possible, this valuable report is available now for only $3.

Tinker Barnett has over 30 years of experience in employee supervision and mentoring young people. She is a member of Toastmasters International and Grand Junction Chamber of Commerce. Generational Gap Coaching is headquartered in Grand Junction, Colorado, USA and has a 30 page white paper and several other guides currently for sale at www.GenerationalDivideCoaching.com

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About Generational Gap Coaching: Generational Gap Coaching is a training, coaching and consulting company that helps businesses get top performance from their young Gen Y employees, saving thousands in turnover costs and lost productivity. We bridge the generation gap with Baby Boomer owner/manager and Gen Y teaching and coaching.