Office etiquette between different generations

On TechCrunch Erik Schonfeld recently wrote about a survey conducted by NexisLexis that concluded that Baby Boomers find mobile phones and Blackberries detrimental to workplace etiquette.  That really isn’t a surprise, but what is surprising is the perception of productivity. While 35% of Generation Y’ers thought texting and emailing during meetings improved productivity, only 20% of Baby Boomers agreed with that question. Maybe that’s because Generation Y, on average, has speedier thumbs

The survey had a focus on legal professionals, so the information may be screwed, but another interesting stat was that 72% of legal professionals find the use of laptops and mobile devices to be impolite, comparing to only 60% of white collar respondants. It would be interesting to see that data for more industry sectors – what industry is the most tolerant?

The bottom line is no matter what generation you fall within, every situation needs to be contemplated individually. Falling within Generation Y, I know when I’m in a meeting, seeing a collegue turn off his or her Blackberry can be a refreshing feeling. But on the same note, there are those meetings that seem to be built quite nicely for catching up on email. Whatever the situation, if it’s your meeting, maybe you can gauge your ability to engage by the number of busy thumbs around the table. Afterall, if the team doesn’t feel the message needs their undivided attention, how productive can the meeting possibly be?

Generation Y: self-activism is born

Generation Y, which is generally accepted as those born between 1980 and 1994, is a very different generation comparing to Generation X (1965-1980). Wikipedia describes Generation Y as:

They needed to be faster and more efficient (with the advent of better technology), smarter (increase in college enrollment), and more available (40-60 hour work weeks) than Boomers and Gen X. Therefore some of the defining characteristics of Gen Y are tech-savviness, family-centric, achievement-oriented, team-oriented and attention-craving.

Chip Walker from StrawberryFrog, a creative agency in New York, has a great post about advertising to Generation Y on MediaPost, he states:

A big part of Gen-Y activism is what I call “self-activism.” They treat themselves and their dreams almost like causes. It’s less based on idealism and more a matter of necessity: If they don’t activate the revolutionary inside, they simply won’t get anywhere in today’s hyper-challenging marketplace.

As I fall into the Generation Y category myself, I can agree with the above. You can call some of today’s successful brands “movements”. You can see evidence of this in Obama’s recent campaign for presidency, a successful campaign in terms of connecting with the younger generation. You can see it with responsible clothing brands and organic foods. If you want to reach Generation Y, and you have the right brand, traditional marketing just isn’t the best approach. Website banners (which I barely notice), radio (which I don’t listen to), and TV (which I don’t watch, unless I’m watching hockey) just aren’t going to leave an impact on me. Start talking Email, mobile or social and that’s a different story. Chip closes his article perfectly:

Would your brand fight for a cause it believes in? Would your employees? Most Gen-Yers would. Today more than ever, GenYers are seeking to summon their own passion, courage and determination. Thus, if you want to connect with them, it’s time to stop doing traditional marketing and start believing in something bigger than making money.

In many cases it’s probably easier to establish a new brand as “Generation Y approved” than it is to adjust an existing brand.

Working with Generation X

I sit at the tail end of Generation Y at 23 years old, 1986 is the Generation Y cut off. After reading “Those Crazy Kids”, an article from the July edition of Marketing Magazine, I’m see that I am in the same situation many others are. I find the opening line from the article sums things up nicely…

Predictable, boring and set in their ways is the common lament members of Generation Y use to describe their managers. And over-confident, under-skilled and entitled are the words they hear about themselves in return.

How true. I was retyping my notes in grade 7 while chatting on IRC and ICQ with “friends” I had never met, and never did meet. Approaching 60 WPM in grade 8, I’m now getting help with my French homework from chatline friends that live in Quebec. I started my first website which ended up earning 10x more than the monotonous paper route I had for 1 year. I graduate, move to Toronto and then back to my hometown Kelowna, hit the workforce and what do I learn? I learn that all the “business communication” tactics you’re taught in school were not taught to those at the helm of your average company. I learn that if there’s an appropriate subject line in an Email from senior management, that’s because it was typed by a mid-twenty year old assistant who was dictated the message. As life progresses, I learn more and more about this disconnect between Generation X and Generation Y. I learn that Generation X is satisfied with six or twelve month review periods when I want to meet monthly, if not weekly to see how things are going. I learn that adaptation and change is yearned for by Generation X, yet often cautioned against and avoided. I learn that Generation X thinks the “web guy” is best used for making text updates to websites. I learn that Internet Marketing is completely misunderstood, and website analytics are pretty charts with no actionable information. Essentially, I learn that I must educate Generation X on almost everything “new” I believe could be beneficial for a company before I can execute.

The danger here is that creativity can very easily dissipate through the extra effort involved in getting everyone on board with a new idea. I learn that it’s easier to stare at your feet while walking down the path of business than to keep your head up and be on the leading edge of new tactics and technologies. But how long will it take until you walk head-long into a brick wall?