Gen Y: Fighting for What They Believe In
In a recent study by Chip Walker, the No. 1 attitude unifying Gen Y was: “I would fight for a cause I believe in.” According to Walker, it’s clear that Gen Y has “an activist bent”, but what exactly are they fighting for? Here is Walker’s theory: “Belief in institutions like government and big business […]
Get a Grip on Employee Conflict
A client recently asked me to help him resolve some staff conflicts within his marketing team. At the surface, it looked like the staff were insubordinate, reactive and uncooperative. However, after some discussions with all of the staff, it became clear that the real issue was GRPI (pronounced grip-i), not insubordination. Is GRPI a rare […]
The Manager’s Million-Dollar Question
“Gen Y has created a need for a cultural overhaul that has not been this dramatic since women entered the workforce en masse,” Jenny Floren, CEO of Experience said in the January 2009 article Managing Generation Y as They Change the Workforce. An industry leader who has created a critical bridge between college and the […]
From the Horse’s Mouth
Today’s article is written by a Gen Y colleague. I thought it was time you heard about Gen Y straight from the horse’s mouth! Here’s what Jon has to say to Boomer employers and managers: A solid understanding of the Gen Y culture can help a potential employer hire and retain Gen Y employees. Yet […]
Reverse Mentoring
Mitre Corporation, a public interest company, has found a creative way to get the best out of generational workplace differences. It’s called reverse mentoring. “There’s a long standing feeling that there’s a communication barrier between more experienced employees and new hires. Senior leaders are looking for ways to engage the digital natives (employees who have […]
Time Wise with Gen Y
Everyone loves to multitask. Contrary to popular belief multitasking does not help productivity. The first efficiency loss is the time lost to mentally “switching” between tasks. Why? Two different things have to occur in our brains when we change tasks. First we have to “goal switch”, mentally deciding to go from project A to email. […]
Get Wise and Avoid “Why’s” to Improve Your Bottom Line
Here’s one tip that will not only change how you communicate with your employees, but also improve your bottom line. Avoid the word “why” in your conversations. The word why is actually a request for justification. Consequently, the receiver of that “why” feels that she has to justify herself, gets defensive and starts to shut […]
What Does Gen Y and Obama’s Inaugural Speech Have in Common?
What does Gen Y and Obama’s upcoming inaugural speech have in common? Gen Y Jon “Favs” Favreau, Obama’s chief speechwriter. 27-year old Favs shared a house with 6 roommates in Chicago a few months ago; soon he’ll be working at the White House and living in a Dupont Circle condo. How did Obama and Favs […]
3 Prong Approach to Surviving the Recession
Let’s face it. We’d all like Santa to wave this recession away and put new business under our tree. But the reality is that this economic downturn is not going to disappear any time soon. So what can the travel industry do to weather this storm? I recommend a 3-prong approach: 1. Focus on the […]
WIIFM: Getting the Best Out of Your Employee
It’s no secret that in the travel industry, focused and engaged employees are the most productive. It’s also no secret that engaging employees is one of the biggest challenges a leader faces. Many leaders intuitively know that employees are their number one asset, yet have no data to prove that it’s worth their time to […]
