Next Generation Mentoring: Helping Younger Workers Find Meaning

With anticipated greater competition for top talent, organizations will need to find new ways to engage and retain younger workers. Organizations often misunderstand what drives their workers, leading to policies that have good intentions but may miss the mark. All workers want to find meaning in their work; however, meaning can look different for younger generations. For Generation X (born ˜1965–1980), meaning comes from work being an expression of who they are, with a high value put on being able to self-direct their work. For them, being able to put their own “stamp” on something, may trump more routine tasks that accomplish idealistic goals. For Generation Y (born ˜1981 to 1995), meaning comes from their work being connected to something they can personally relate to. This can take the form of more idealistic pursuits, but can also translate into other forms, such as working with technology. Opportunities for organizations to increase engagement of these workers include managing to performance not conformance, welcoming workers' whole selves at work, and supporting fundamental diversity. Ideas documented in this paper are based on the personal experience of the author combined with input from attendees at previous workshops and presentations on this topic.