The Retention game: it’s not about the money
15-NOV-06
These factors have created one of the biggest issues facing companies today: the task of attracting ‘bright young things’, retaining them, motivating them, and getting the best out of them.
These young people know their value, don't want to pay their dues, and won't wait around for you to sort your systems out. “You need to be thinking of new job functions related to them - HR is out, talent management is in.
Ops management is out, and concierge is in,” says Juliet Newton of Avocado Vision, interpersonal communication specialists who help people understand the communication moment and communicate more effectively.
Newton goes on to explain that "How can we help you?" is a phrase that management needs to direct to employees. “These bright young things are asking questions about work-life balance and although the questions may seem trivial, they're important.
They are asking "If I can take my work home, why can't I bring my family to work?", or "If I answer emails on a Saturday, why can't I go and watch movies on a Tuesday?"; as well as questions about the work-worth balance: "can I be paid for my outputs, rather than inputs?", and "am I really making a difference in the company and in the world?"
Newton says that in a generation X world, life and work does overlap to some extent so employers need to accommodate this and allow more flexibility in the work place. “This flexibility should lean towards measuring employee’s outcome and not how many hours they spend at their desks.”
Bright young things are part of a generation accustomed to living by new rules, including the assumption that risk and change are good for business, and that organisations should take a more open, flexible approach to management, communication and planning. “They are at home with technology and mostly they want the freedom to be themselves,” says Newton. “In addition, their hearts also need to be engaged, and they need to feel they are making a difference to others.”
So how do organisations go about making these bright young things happy?
Newton believes that they need to be challenged on a regular basis. “They grow fast and learn fast meaning that change is a constant requirement. This means that bright young things usually only stay within one company for no more than two to three years.
For organisations to maximise on their investment in these employees they need to start re-courting them and re-invest them in a different part of the business where they can grow and develop further,” says Newton, who explains that employers should first ask their bright young things how and in what sphere of the business they would like to grow, and then find new opportunities and challenges for them within the company.
“At Avocado Vision, we implement the ‘manage your wells’ talent management philosophy. In Australia, sheep farmers don’t keep their herds by building impenetrable fences around them, but rather by managing their wells, as water is such a scarce resource there".
"At Avo, our culture is built around ‘well management’. The people who work here stay, not because of bullet-proof contracts, but rather because they are being ‘watered’ in many ways: challenging projects, learning environments, flexible working times and place (and technology that supports that), a feeling of belonging, and a sense of contributing to the people of the world in the work we do,” says Newton.
“We are flexible about our X-ers ‘life needs’. If going off to explore the world feels like something they need to do, they go with our blessing. When they come back, they are much more well-rounded, and able to deliver on bigger and better experiences than before they left”. “They can mix full time study with managing their responsibilities at Avo, and find ways to deliver their projects on time in their own time.”
In one of their conference talks, Avocado Vision, in association with Dr Graeme Codrington and TomorrowToday.biz, provides understanding about the new generation of employees and gives specific guidelines and creative ideas on getting the edge in your industry. The focus is on the interaction between the current generations of management and staff and is aimed at both leaders and employees.
