Managing Your Leaders
careers, change, environment, generation Y, innovation, leadership Add comments
I’ve been giving a lot of thought lately about what it means for managing organizations now that Generation Y makes up a significant part of the workforce. I’ve also been reading some articles that discuss the difficulty and frustration managers today have with the younger workforce. Hopefully this post will help managers as they try to navigate leading their leaders as well as Gen Y’ers who are entering the workforce and are looking for opportunities to do their part in changing the world.
Characterizations Presentation:
I had the opportunity to participate on a panel at the 27th Annual International Space Development Conference in DC this past weekend. This was an opportunity to facilitate a cross-generational discussion on how we can all leverage our unique talents to work together towards a common goal. My role on the panel was to provide some background on the characteristics of the generation. To this end, I shared some observations on characteristics of Generation Y and thoughts on what this means for the workplace. The discussion started off by highlighting some data and characteristics. We then talked about what is considered to be a “failure” for a Gen Y’er. I think it’s interesting to consider what constitutes a failure as a first step in truly understanding the expectations for the workplace. Next, we talked about expectations for the work environment from the Gen Y’er’s perspective. To end, I gave some thoughts on to help bridge the disconnect between Gen Y’s expectations for the workplace and the reality of the “real world”.
We talked in generalities so it’s critical to understand that many young people born inside “Y” bookends don’t fit these characteristics. The goal is to generally define the “Y” label so that we can then focus on strategic and tactical approaches to fundamental disconnects between societal values and business needs. I believe that we can learn a lot from Gen Y’s self esteem, creativity and technological savvy to guide us into the future. I also believe that Gen Y’s confidence may be just what we need to navigate some of the complexities of our lofty goals in the space industry.
For Managers:
There is quite a bit of literature that is remarkably consistent in its descriptions of the four generations that now comprise today’s workforce, including Generation Y. Because of its relatively recent entrance into the workforce, Generation Y is probably the least understood. This is a generation that places less emphasis on loyalty and more on skills development. This is a generation that negotiates each new job with criteria such as the best overall working environment, opportunities for training and the work-life balance. Maybe most importantly, this is a generation filled with confident and driven leaders. Understanding how to lead your leaders can be an interesting challenge. If you haven’t had a chance to read the piece by Wayne Hale, former Space Shuttle program manager, entitled “Leading your Leaders” yet, I strongly recommend it. It’s an amazing insight from one of NASA’s leaders.
This is also a generation that is entering the workforce with high, and maybe unrealistic, expectations for their jobs. Since they were born, they’ve been told that they could change the world. They’ve now spent years dreaming, working, studying, cramming, and thinking about how they will use their job to actually change the world. All too often, eager students are ushered into the real world where their optimism and energy are quickly and mechanically hampered down by disappointing assignments, unconcerned managers, and disengaging environments. Suffice it to say that there exists a major problem and unhealthy disconnect for Gen Y’ers entering the workforce today, and this is not just a space program issue.
From my own observations, it’s clear that the managerial implications of Gen Y’s entry into the work environment are complex, underestimated, and best understood within the multi-generational context. Simply ignoring generational differences will undoubtedly have immediate and negative consequences for everyone. Effectively managing Gen Y in today’s workplace requires understanding the generation’s characteristics, managing expectations, and discussing perceptions. The best way to truly understand the personalities, lifestyles, opinions, attitudes and social values of a generation is to spend some time observing them, talking to them, and researching them on your own. In doing so, you’ll gain extremely useful insight that, if applied to your work environment, will not only improve productivity, but will also earn you respect within your workforce. For example, understanding the characteristics of a generation will uncover the fact that many young people prefer strong performance-based environments where results count more than job seniority (or security). This leads to an explanation on why they sometimes appear entitled when they don’t intend to be or why they view and value authority differently. It may also lead to the implementation of positive improvements in the organization, such as creating a system for performance-based compensation and incentive systems to better motivate employees.
For more information, and probably a much better explanation than I could ever do, check out this article from Gonzaga University.
For Generation Y:
Each of us will spend most of our early career (ok, maybe entire career) trying to figure out this thing called “Life”. It’s no easier given that many of us are also still trying to make sense of the seemingly conflicting paradoxes that define who we are. Why is it that we are driven to follow our dreams? Why do some of us feel most effective when working in teams? Why do we get so frustrated with the lack of information from above?
For most, understanding who you are is an important first step in understanding your role in the workforce. Although not everyone falls into sweeping generalizations, there are some things that define this generation that most of us will agree with. I think it’s fair to say that most of us expect to contribute and make a positive difference in our organizations. We are a global generation that is, as a whole, more socially conscious, wired, and informed than generations before. We grew up in an environment of unprecedented freedom and encouragement. We can also be very disrespectful, unappreciative, and unmanageable. Understanding that we are a product of our environment is critical to understanding our role in the workplace. Everything from your parents to the technology you use to communicate defines how you view the world, how you interact with others, and how you are most effective in your job.
If there is one piece of advice I’d pass on to any Gen Y’er in the workforce, it’d be to seek out and connect with a good mentor. Find someone who is genuinely concerned about helping you navigate the workplace. Use them as a resource to research your environment from multiple perspectives. Ask them to explain the current corporate culture and mode of behavior. Ask them for honest, direct feedback and critically listen to what they have to say. A good mentor can be your most important asset in meeting your expectations and fulfilling your career goals.
For more thoughts, I encourage you to check out a blog I found in preparing for this post with some good advice for young professionals – you can check that out here.
June 4th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
One of the first experiences I had with the GenY “movement” came in February, when the original presentation was posted on NASA Watch and sent to me by many of my friends in industry. The most impressive part of that presentation was its ability to stand completely alone. No explanations were needed; the message was evident and it was heard by anyone who read it. The presentation went viral quickly, with people of all ages reading it and agreeing that yes, NASA has a disconnect problem.
While the current ISDC presentation has some great content, I feel there are a few “characterizations” of Generation Y (which I am a part of) that require spoken explanation to effectively communicate the point. I have passed this presentation on to many of my friends to get their first impression and find out if they can identify with at least a few of the characterizations given for our generation. Below are a few of their responses:
“Well, whoever developed this presentation is awful confident in themself.”
“Please don’t tell employers to ‘Earn respect, don’t assume it.’ We may not agree with their philosophy at times, but that does not mean we can feel free to disrespect them.”
These comments were passed back to me along with a note explaining that the general idea of this presentation is worthwhile. However, they felt that some of the characterizations made required more explanation before they could agree or disagree. It should be noted that these were friends completely out of the GenY loop and, therefore, a “set of fresh eyes” who could review the presentation as a representation of the general public.
Anyway, the purpose of my comments were to just forward the outsider’s perspective on this presentation. I am a big supporter of the GenY presentations and feel that they carry a message that many in Generation Y would like to be heard. Unfortunately, there are many who oppose change in any form. That is evident in the NASA Watch responses to this presentation. There will always be dissenters, I just encourage everyone who feels this is worth fighting for to continue on and ensure the overall goal of this movement is accomplished.
June 4th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
The crowd that visits this opennasa.com website has, with the exception of several folks, been silent in the debate on NASA Watch - and lack of opposing voices simply lends credence to their statements since all readers see is what they have to say. if you’re the “interactive generation” it sure is not evident in this discussion.
If you do not like NASA Watch then debate the topic here. If you aren’t willing to do that then I suspect that much of what you are trying to do will end up as yet another NASA Powerpoint pitch or become an issue that gets kicked down the road and not dealt with for a while.
June 5th, 2008 at 2:46 am
I saw plenty of people challenging the editorial position of NASA Watch. There’s no lack of opposing voices. The only reason I even went and looked was because I was ready to jump in if that was true. It isn’t. Nick himself directly responded to the criticisms levied at his presentation.
Given how you’ve treated the people that post here, Mr. Cowing, can you honestly say you’re surprised that most of the rest of us are busy doing other things than keeping tabs on a website whose editor has repeatedly gone out of his way to be an antagonist rather than a contributor?
Mr. Cowing, you’re not on NASAsphere. If you’re in the hallways of JSC, I’ve certainly not seen you there. When you have constructive criticism to offer that’s relevant to what’s actually being done, I’ll be all ears. If all you want to do is rehash how spoiled and arrogant you think we are, I’ve got better things to do.
June 5th, 2008 at 2:47 am
Keith,
A debate implies an intellectual discussion in which two or more opposing viewpoints discuss an issue in an intellectual setting. I am an avid reader of NASA Watch and have posted responses many times in the past. However, I have chosen to remain silent on the NASA Watch thread because it is not a debate.
Your original post was intended to start a debate, but what has ensued is a GenX vs. GenY competition to see who can stick out their chest the furthest. There is no way to address comments which refer to us as “narcisistic pansies” and, at the same time, attempt to further an intellectual discussion of the topic. As such, I think that many of us have chosen to avoid commenting on the issue at your site. I would like to work to reduce the generational gap, not expand it.
If you can bring together a group of civil-minded, forward-thinking individuals who do not respond solely to their emotions or sense of entitlement, I would be happy to participate in a debate on this issue. Until then, however, I must respectfully stand back and observe as those who have responded only increase the disconnect between generations.
June 5th, 2008 at 3:33 am
At its heart, this is all about a long-term strategic risk to human spaceflight. There are multiple aspects to this risk, in particular the questions of 1) people connecting with spaceflight and of 2) assuring the future spaceflight workforce can accomplish the missions ahead of us. The NASA Strategic Management Council and the NASA Advisory Council brought this risk to the forefront at their April meetings.
This strategic “next gen” risk — and therefore the next gen discussions — fit into a larger context. Some of the other things in this context are Shuttle transition, core competencies, and maintaining proficiency through the human spaceflight gap. Essentially, who do we need to be to accomplish the mission at hand? However, unlike things like Shuttle transition, this “next gen” risk has a strong generational aspect to it.
One aspect of the larger campaign to now address the “next gen” risk is the fantastic public discussion now underway. There are other aspects that are more about the deep changes that will be required. These other aspects are maybe more important.
The space industry has become monogenerational. Rebalancing it is a long-term effort and we’re only at the start of that process.
June 5th, 2008 at 3:47 am
It’s absolutely a multigenerational effort that is only beginning. When I sat in on the JSC 20-Year Vision panel looking at the overall message, I was encouraged by the fact that I was the only Gen-Y-er in the group. I was excited to see that the breakout groups had people from many different walks participating.
Those of us on NASAsphere have seen a dramatic opening of the internal discussion on where NASA is, where it is going, and where it should be going involving participants from across the agency.
This is not a paper tiger. It is not a hollow gesture devoid of meaning. It is the beginning of an effort to truly embrace the “One NASA” concept at all levels. I consider myself very fortunate that my immediate management couldn’t agree more and has supported my participation. Honestly, they love that I’m committed enough to the space program that it’s not just a day job for me.
June 5th, 2008 at 5:01 am
Hey Justin, take that chip off of your shoulder.
If you folks want to transform the agency and how it works - and a bunch of simple blog postings gets you this hot and bothered, then you ain’t the ones to lead the charge.
I have given your crowd constant exposure on websites that get nearly a million unique visitors a month. My sites are read in the White House and Congress and on the 9th floor at NASA HQ. Instead of whining and complaining USE THAT PLATFORM to make your case as to how you and your Gen Y coworkers are different in a productive way and how you can make things work better.
As for NASAsphere - I am not allowed - by definition - to see it or to use it - so how can you beat me over the head with my absence from it?
June 5th, 2008 at 11:48 am
Mr. Cowing,
How you treat people matters, even if you don’t seem to think so. I think John put it well in his response above. You haven’t fostered a real debate at NASA Watch. The only reason I spoke up over there at all was to set the record straight on the baseless accusations being thrown about.
FWIW, I mentioned NASAsphere because it’s an example of how there’s more going on than you necessarily know about. I do believe you said much the same to me once.
I don’t think you realize that you are seen as part of the problem, not part of the solution. Based on what I’ve seen you and others post on NASA Watch, I don’t really think that’s the kind of exposure we want inside the Beltway.
Why would I want to use your platform if you have such obvious disdain for how this is being done? I specifically asked for constructive criticism and you fell back on passive-aggressive tactics wherein you tried to turn this back around on me (suggesting that I’m getting “hot and bothered” over nothing) and promote your own self-importance (White House, Congress, HQ, we’d better listen to you).
Of course, that doesn’t make much sense, now does it? Why shouldn’t I be concerned that people in the White House, Congress, and HQ are hearing from you that we’re a bunch of whiners who are trying to get a seat at the table without having earned it?
If you want people in the Gen Y crowd to take you and NASA Watch seriously, you’ve got to meet us halfway. You’re not getting the intended “take home message” from the Gen Y Presentation. That’s pretty clear to me. Well, I’m not getting why we should listen to you. We have constructive support for what we’re doing at sufficiently high levels already that I don’t see this as just a flash in the pan.
Thus far, all NASA Watch has given us is derision from you and your supporters. Thanks, but no thanks.
June 5th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Justin: Since you have all the answers … and have determined that II am part of the problem… why did you even bother to post on NASAWatch? You should be shunning it.
Based the tone you have taken here you become the very thing you despise.
Have a nice day
June 5th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
justin - keith cowing is not being self important at all. yea he can be irritating but those of us who know him on the hill see him as constantly pushing nasa to expand its horizons and be better at what it does. he has been doing this for the decade i have worked on he hill as a committee staffer. as a matter of fact, were it not for some comments he made several years ago at a huge aiaa conference in defense of gen y and the gen y postings he has put on nasawatch, i would not have been aware of these issues nor would i have been able to brief my boss on them. when cowing states that his sites are read at the wh and here on the hill he is not only stating fact he is also offering you a chance to grab his megaphone and speak your mind to this huge audience. i saw your posts here and on nasawatch and all i can say is that you have blown the opportunity to influence at least this one congressional staffer.
June 5th, 2008 at 8:15 pm
“I have given your crowd constant exposure on websites that get nearly a million unique visitors a month. My sites are read in the White House and Congress and on the 9th floor at NASA HQ. Instead of whining and complaining USE THAT PLATFORM to make your case as to how you and your Gen Y coworkers are different in a productive way and how you can make things work better.”
Mr Cowing, I have to step in and inform you that you need to stop adding a couple extra zero on your stats. But you can add an extra one that will stop reading your site also until you learn basic peoples skills. What an abnoxious person.
SpaceNews at Space.com is the only site anyone at NASA or the White House read. I doubt they have the time to read your whines added to the bottom of links to old news articles from other sites. There’s nothing to be gained from such a visit to your blog.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
Mr. Cowing,
To borrow from The American President: Sometimes you fight the fights that need fighting. I very clearly explained why I posted on NASAWatch. I was directly responding to the unmerited and unfounded attacks on the integrity and character of those who made the presentation and who have been involved in moving it forward.
I am neither ashamed, nor whining, nor a hypocrite for standing up for myself and others. I’ll leave you to shout at the rain now.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
Justin you are starting to sound a lot like the editor of NASAWatch these days. Not the best way to make the points to seem to be interested in making. You too have become part of the problem.
Have a nice day
June 5th, 2008 at 11:20 pm
Why has it become an Internet axion that when people who share a common interest get together, an argument inevitably ensues?
Keith and I are from the same generation, but the difference between us is that he once worked at NASA, while I’ve been out in heavy industry for the past 33 years.
But none of that really means anything…other than Keith actually knows the inside workings, and the politics of those workings that will lead you to seek a career at Pixar!
Keith is attempting, without much success, to help you of the next generation learn how to communicate, to get your points across.
Too much of what passes for “dialogue” today is nothing more than an argument…I use the current style of political debate as an example. 40 years ago, a “moonbat” might have been found in the comic strip “Dick Tracy”.
Another example is why I abandoned “NASASpaceflight.com”. I started a “what if” thread that was meant to see if people were thinking about options, and all I got were snarky missives berating me for daring to challenge a decision!
We graybeards will be leaving soon, after the STS program is completed. Then it will be yours to run as you see fit. A new system to learn how to use, complete with built-in heartbreaks. But make the best of it, learn from it, and improve it.
Tonight, I will challenge your generation as a group to do something radical, to design *on your own time and without NASA-purchased software*, the architecture that will truly be spacefaring.
I give you this paradigm: this year is the 250th anniversary of the City of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh’s predecessor, Fort Pitt, was once a lonely outpost on a wild frontier. People came in wagons, and like Lewis and Clark, built boats for the journey westward.
Push the frontier! Make Project Prometheius happen! Build a “super Voyager” capable of at least 0.5C, and sent it to the nearest solar system that research shows may harbor Earthlike planets.
But don’t become us. Be better than us. We did the best we could with what we were given, but we spent the past 26 years riding into space in our parent’s ship.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:00 am
It seems to me that the open dialogue Nick and his collegues have created is a good thing. If we don’t have some civil discourse on this topic, how can we ever expect to solve any other larger problems or issues? I think I may be sandwiched between the two generations, somewhere, which is fine. It appears to me both sides make some valid points. The whole point of the presentation must be effective if it gets people talking, thinking, getting mad, speaking up, and communicating. If that’s what it takes to get the job done, I think it’s great. However, I don’t think being snarky to one another is a good problem solving technique. Can’t we all learn to play fairly? Isn’t acknowledging each other’s differences a key to continuing the exploration we have in front of us? I learn just as much from those “fresh out” of college, as I do the greybeards. The world would be a really boring place if we all always agreed with one another. Go ahead, talk amongst yourselves. Then share it.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:31 am
hey guys,
i dig the passion that is coming through in these comments! but i’d really love to bring the discussion back to NASA and openness, and the substance of nick’s post — discussions back and forth on individuals might be more appropriate in a private forum… jessy
June 6th, 2008 at 1:45 am
David: Hate to break it to you but they read space.com, and SpaceRef.com, and NASAWatch.com at the WH and NASA. Indeed, had you been paying attention a few years back you would have seen the job position openings that readers at OSTP and OMB asked me to post on NASAWatch.com. I wonder why ….
Its really easy to see this traffic anyway since NASA.gov, EOP, OMB, and Congressional IP addresses are widely known and very easy to detect through reverse DNS. As for adding zeros, sorry, but I don’t do that. Don’t need to.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:39 am
random staffer,
I am truly sorry to read your response. (I’d answer this in private, jessy, but I don’t have this individual’s contact info.) I don’t doubt that NASA Watch has the audience that you say it does. I know full well of Mr. Cowing’s reputation inside the Beltway. That’s precisely why I had to respond to the accusations levied against this group. I just don’t see them as being constructive at all.
If standing up for what I think is right was enough to blow my chance to influence you, then I guess I’m going to have to live with that. I wish that you would instead focus on the content of our presentations and discuss with me and others the ideas and projects we’re getting started.
My contact information is freely available on this site. I can understand the reluctance of a staffer to openly discuss issues on a blog. When I was an intel officer in DC, I stayed far away from these things.
If you’re interested in having such a discussion on matters of substance, I would be more than willing to take this private. Please do e-mail me at your convenience. I’d hate to miss out on an opportunity to expand our audience just because I had a spirited disagreement with someone you favor.
June 7th, 2008 at 9:51 pm
I originally posted this on NASA Watch…
Below are my opinions on this issue. I do not expect that you will agree with them, I only ask that you respect them in the same way I have respected yours. Without mutual respect, we will not have a future in space to debate.
That being said…
When President Kennedy announced that the U.S. would set foot on the moon before the end of the 1960s, the early space pioneers did not stand up and question the ability of a bunch of engineers in their mid-20s who wanted to take them there. Instead, they took their place beside you as America rallied behind your effort to place humans on the moon. Chris Kraft, Gene Kranz, Dr. John Houbolt, and many others became mentors to you, developing and teaching you the skills necessary to design, build, and safely operate the vehicles which placed humans in space and continue to do so today. Without their willingness to work cohesively with you, you would not be designing the vehicles that will take us back to the moon and on to Mars.
And when it came time, they turned the space program over to you.
In order to ensure the survivability of NASA and human spaceflight, there is one, inevitable fact that each of you must come to recognize. You may not like it, but you will one day retire. When that time comes, you will have to relinquish the reigns to your space program and pray that we don’t screw it up. This agency will soon experience a mass influx of my peers. The thought crossing your mind should be, “Am I doing my part to prepare them for the task at hand?” It should not be, “sit down…shut up…get back to work…this is MY space program!”.
For those of you who are reading this and are already thinking that I am just another one of those ‘rebel rousers’ looking to take my spot at the table rather than earn it, I ask that you think about the following:
- How did it make you feel to see Neil Armstrong take that first step?
- What was it like to see the Space Shuttle roar off the launch pad for the first time?
- What did you feel after the loss of your friends and colleagues on Challenger and Columbia?
It is those same feelings that stir and excite me. You get to work for NASA!!! You are flying THE Space Shuttle!!! You know those people orbiting 200+ miles above us!!! I want to do that, too. Can you blame me? If you can, I only hope that at least one thing in your life excites you as much as the space program excites me.
Am I confident in my skills? You bet I am! Is that a bad thing? Absolutely not. Will I let that confidence lead me to make un-informed decisions on the job? Absolutely not. I have witnessed first-hand the consequences of doing so.
If you have been reading this, by now you are probably thinking to yourself, “This kid is crazy. He thinks his little time as a co-op has prepared him for making potentially life-altering decisions.” Rest assured, I know I have a long way to go. As each of you had your coming of age, so will I.
I am not asking to take my seat at the table. I am simply asking to be let into the dining room.
So what is my purpose in writing all of this? My hope is that it will show you and I are very similar. To borrow from the phrase Keith quoted and adding my own spin, “As I am, you once were. As you are, I will soon be.”
My desire is that you will look past my flaws and see the fresh canvas. You have the opportunity to paint the stars. As you do, I will try my best to understand that a masterpiece takes time. However, what we must both understand is that a masterpiece is only a masterpiece if it is one day finished.
When that day comes, will you be able to step back and admire your work?
………………………………………………….
After writing this, I realized I did so without mentioning any of the characteristics specific to “my” generation. My willingness to participate in space exploration has nothing to do with my iPod, Blackberry, Facebook, or ability to use all three while driving. My willingness was born out of a desire to explore. I want to see that blue marble we call home. Frank White has described this as the “overview effect.”
But beyond Earth, I see that reddish-orange-brown marble and call it our future.
June 9th, 2008 at 11:19 pm
For more information on this subject I encourage you to check out these whitepapers written by McCrindle Research - an australian agency specialising in the fields of social trends, generational studies, and demographic shifts. They specialize in studies of the changing customer mind set and the demands of the ever-changing market segment. Their research, although focused on the Asia Pacific, includes some very good insight for the American workforce as well.
Here’s a link to McCrindle Research
June 10th, 2008 at 1:07 am
Interesting stuff from our friends Down Under. Lots to absorb. Good compilation diverse material, something for everyone professionally and personally.