Four studies about Generation Y (also referred to as the Millennials) crossed my desk in a single day at the end of April. Each was looking at this population from different perspectives. One article was from the National Law Journal advising trial lawyers to avoid stereotypes about the younger generation when considering juror selection. The second article was a survey from the Food Marketing Institute, reporting on grocery shopper trends. The third article was a summary of research studies on the spending habits and debt patterns of young Americans. The final article was a commentary on the USA WEEKEND Teens and Volunteering Study. If such diverse groups as trial lawyers, grocery store owners and financial/credit marketers, are studying the values and characteristics of Generation Y, perhaps this is a good opportunity to compare their findings with the latest volunteering study.
All four studies note that Generation Y entered the world at a time when children and family were fashionable. Las Vegas was marketing itself as a family destination and “baby on board” signs were in vogue. Gen Y children have been wanted, valued and coddled from birth. They have lived highly structured lives. From their preschool days they have had scheduled playgroup dates, and participated in team sports, music lessons and a wide range of stimulating activities. Parents have micro managed their schedules and remain highly involved in their children’s lives.
More than 90% of teens now say they ‘get along’ with their parents, and nearly 80% say they get along ‘very well’ or ‘extremely well.’ One survey found 82% of teens reporting ‘no problems’ with any family member versus just 48% who said that back in 1974, when parents and teens were far more likely to argue over basic values. (Howe & Strauss, 2005)
Managers of volunteer may see this parent/child relationship played out when a teen’s parent calls to schedule an interview for their child for a volunteer position in your organization. Or, the parent may accompany the teen for an interview and fully expect to be part of the interview process. The teen will also assume their parent will be part of the interview.
Parents frequently call to negotiate hours, or reschedule appoints for their children, from work hours to college schedules. While managers of volunteers might assume there is parental pressure or lack on genuine interest on the part of the teen, most often this is not the case. Young people today look to their parents for assistance with scheduling their lives and often report wanting their parents to be part of their decision making process. Managers of volunteers are cautioned to proceed cautiously when getting a call from a parent. Times have changed and the dynamics of who make the phone call or who shows up for the interview has also changed. Do not be too quick to discount a potential teen volunteer because a parent calls to schedule the appointment.
Specific comments from the recent marketing surveys have wonderful kernels of information that can help managers of volunteers develop marketing and recruitment strategies for Gen Y volunteers.
Teens seem to be conforming to traditional values, rules and standards. What has changed is what conformity looks like, and this change can throw off even the savviest litigator [manager of volunteers]. It is not surprising to find honor students with green hair and college virgins with four tattoos. . . relying on stereotypes about what green hair and tattoos signify can get the trial lawyer [manager of volunteers] into trouble. . . appearances can be deceiving.
(Trask, 2005)
Generation Y is a generation on the go. Features they deem important are fast checkout, self-checkout and quick, convenient meal solutions. . . They love a variety of foods, including ethnic, organic and gourmet foods. They eat out more often than anyone and are extremely high in their use of coffee bars. (Food Marketing Institute, 2005)
These comments highlight defining characteristics of this generation. They are highly tolerant of differences. Green hair, tattoos, piercings, and ethnic foods are a small part of the diversity this generation has grown up with. Products of the civil rights movement and the children of boomer parents, they reject prejudice and are incredibly tolerant of other people – their looks, experiences and preferences. They expect that same open mindedness regarding them.
As a generation on the go, they expect most things in life to be fast and convenient for them. They are the 24/7-generation, used to shopping online at 2 a.m. or researching a product on the net so they can be prepared, informed buyers. While their grandparents grew up in the shadow of the depression and believed that patience was a virtue, this generation grew up in the information age where you never have to wait for anything. They believe the patient are more likely to be run over then rewarded.
Variety and stimulation are the norm for Generation Y. Life is full of experiences and they want to live a life filled with endless variety and change. These multitaskers have never lived in the status quo. Live has been a constant flow of change and they seem to thrive on variety.
The business community has already begun to incorporate data from this market research into their recruitment campaigns. Consider this except from the Cardinal Health web site (http://www.cardinal.com/college/internships/) describing their youth intern program.
Cardinal Health provides college students the opportunity to do more than just think about their future careers... they can actually try it. Your contributions will start on the first day, working on meaningful and exciting projects that will give you the hands-on experience you need to build a solid foundation for your career.
Cardinal Health is a global, dynamic company, and the environment is professional but relaxed. Our performance-driven, innovative, collaborative and ethical employees are motivated to succeed in our fast-paced work environment. The atmosphere, like the dress code, is business casual. Employees strive to achieve a work-life balance. We work hard, but we value time for family and social interactions as well.
The experience is hands on (they can try it), begins immediately (start on the first day), and promises to be “meaningful” and “exciting.” The second paragraph is filled with values laden words designed specifically for this generation: innovative, collaborative, fast-paced, business casual, and work-life balance. These are the very words and phrases managers of volunteers should be building into their volunteer jobs descriptions and marketing materials. If the marketing industry has identified the characteristics and the business community has created the recruitment tactics, shouldn’t the nonprofit world also be crafting new messages for this young generation?
Generation Y is exhibiting a strong interest in volunteerism. Following are a few of the findings from the Teens and Volunteering Survey from USA WEEKEND.
The experience was rewarding because:
Neil Howe and William Strauss, authors of Millennials Rising, were asked to comment on USA WEEKEND’s 2005 Teens and Volunteering Survey.
These numbers reflect the can-do spirit we have been seeing in this population.. . this generation has a growing reputation for service that’s making waves across the nation. A higher share of high school students are community volunteers today (more than 65% than ever before measured, going back half a century. . . . They’re smart, teaming up, doing well – and volunteering at a level and intensity we haven’t seen since the 1940’s. Millennials – America’s new ‘Junior Citizens’ are destined to be a political powerhouse of a generation in our not-too distant future. (Howe & Strauss, 2005)
References:
Food Marketing Institute (2005). American Shoppers Growing Increasingly Diverse in Shopping Preferences and Behaviors. Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved April 27, 20005
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050501/nysu015.html?.v=8
Howe, N. & Strauss, W. (2005). Generation Give and give and give. USA WEEKEND Magazine. Retrieved April 27, 2005. http://www.usaweekend.com/05_issues/050424/050424teen_survey.html
Stewart, J. (2005). Generation IOU. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved April 27, 2005
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0504260386apr27.1.6883280.story?coll=chi-business-hed
Trask, T. (2005). Getting to gen X and net gen as jurors. The National Law Review, Monday January 31, 2005. Pp. S4-S6.
USA WEEKEND (2005). Teens and Volunteering. Retrieved April 27, 2005
http://www.usaweekend.com/05_issues/050424/050424teen_survey.html#surveyall