Recently at Graff
Bay City we’ve begun to hire younger employees, most of which are
either Generation Y or Millennials. Why are we concerned with hiring
Gen Y and Millennials? The first reason that probably comes to mind
is because they are the largest demographic group in our country. But
that's not the only reason.
As a product of Generation X, I can
confidently say that we need the creativity and the “not overly
serious” type of attitude that both Generation Y and Millennials
can bring to our workforce. I believe, especially as someone who is
a type of a workaholic, that what our younger generation brings to us
is a knowledge of balancing work life and home life. I admit that I
get frustrated with my children at times because they don't have the
same workaholic tendencies as myself and my husband, however they are
teaching us to work smarter, not harder.
Growing up in the boom of early to
mid-1970's and during the recession in the early 1980's, we didn't
have much choice but to work very hard since when we were teenagers
jobs were not easy to come by. Our parents were some of the first to
have both the husband and wife working in the family and that is
where I learned that if you worked hard and had a good head on your
shoulders you would go very far. And when it comes to our kids,
Generation Y and Millennials are the product of many in my generation
and we have taught them that education and good work ethic will
provide them a career and lifestyle that they dream of having.
But, a couple of mistakes that I
believe we have made raising these children are first, trying to live
the life we dreamed of having through our children and second,
letting technology replace family time and face to face conversations
that are so very important as our children come of age. With that
being said I think the Generation X population is very quick to adapt
and has learned that we need to teach our children that we are very
lucky to have the freedoms we have in our country. Showing them that
if they utilize their education, creativity, and good work ethic,
there is still a lot of opportunity to make our country even better
than what it is today. I see attitudes changing daily, whether it's
conversations revolving around limiting technology time with
children, focusing on making sure our children experience travel and
the outdoors, along with teaching our children to be smart,
respectful individuals that bring new ideas and work hard to
implement these ideas. I believe it is okay to fail, as long as we
learn from those failures.
Most recently, I have been watching my
17 year old son, Jack, work in a position at the dealership that I
would normally fill with someone who is 25 years of age or older.
This position with the T.E.C. Center (text, email, call center) is
normally filled with someone a bit older so that we can ensure a
mature attitude, since this position works with our guest first
before anyone else in the store. But while experimenting with the
T.E.C. Center for the last 2 years we are learning that in this first
impression center, it's very important to have several different
personalities present. Because, for example, if we want Gen Y and
Millennials to eventually use our services and buy our products then
we need someone whom they are comfortable communicating with; someone
similar age in age to them to greet them first. During this learning
process we have already incorporated two team members in this
department under the age of 21.
That's not to say it's the perfect
solution, Jack certainly makes his share of mistakes, as we all do.
But having the opportunity to watch and learn from him, and the
younger generations, has taught me that all industries need youth and
creativity. Each of our departments now have a very good mix of long
term team members (mostly Gen X) and younger team members that we
will train and work with to become long term team members. These
younger team members will be the ones that will drive us to learn how
to communicate with Gen Y and Millennials, and show us why it is
important that we do communicate with them. Us Gen X and Baby
Boomers in the store definitely shake our heads at times (or should I
say SMH) when working with the younger people, but we also see how
important it is to have their influence. Even watching this younger
generation work with Baby Boomers, we admire their unique ability to
adapt to whomever they are communicating with, and do so without
losing their individuality.
In coming to a close, this message
isn't to say that we all haven't experienced frustration with Gen Y
and Millennials, because at times we have. However, I don't blame the
whole generation. I believe that with people of any age there are
going to be those in the workforce that need more guidance, or have
been put in the wrong role for their ability, and then there are
going to be those who shine. There's the chance for becoming involved
with less than enthusiastic employees no matter what age they are.
I plan to continue to mix our workforce
and learn from all ages on our team. As we read in the news that
Google, Apple, Intel, and many other technology companies are hiring
more Gen Y and Millennials in order to evolve have capacity for a
younger workforce. Through this experience, it has showed me that it
is crucial for retail and service industries to incorporate our youth
if they want to remain successful as the Gen X generation starts to
age and we grow out of the Baby Boomer generation.
Take on the challenge and invite the
youth into YOUR workforce, you won't be sorry. I also invite our
youth to take on the challenge of working with Generation X and the
Baby Boomer generation to learn from them the art of communication,
negotiation, and great work ethic.
Lisa Rechsteiner
General Manager
Graff Chevrolet, Inc.
The 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe was spotted and revealed only a little about what design changes are happening with the Chevy vehicle. The headlights now appear to have a tiered treatment, with the lights getting progressively bigger near the bottom. The face of the Tahoe also appears to have been reworked a little, as it now slightly resembles the new Chevy Silverado.
