HSE HR - Leadership, Education & Development

Masterclass Series 2015Leading Generation Y with Dr. Mary Collins“This fascinating generation cohort (born between c.1980 – 1998) is entering the workforce at a pace. A Deloittereport this year predicated that by 2020, 75% of the global workforce will be “Generation Y”. It is thereforeimportant that we as managers understand the nuances of this generation and how best to engage and worksuccessfully with them......” said Dr. Mary Collins presenting at the First Master Class Series 2015.Dr. Mary Collins is a senior executive development specialist with the Institute of Leadership, RCSI. Prior to this,Mary was Head of Talent Management with Deloitte Ireland and has held a range of different OD roles in theTelecoms sector. Mary completed her professional doctorate in 2010 on enhancing the psychological contract ofGeneration Y in the professional service sector to enhance performance and engagement levels told the audienceof over 100 senior HSE participants that Generational Cohorts are defined as Individuals who share common eventsand experiences when they are born within the same historical period and the same socio-cultural context…. aninborn way of experiencing life and the world…Before Mary focused on Gen Y, she outlined a quick summary of the two generations who have helped to shape Gen Y:• “The Baby Boomers (1945-1961)” these are the Largest generation in history – 35% of workforce; their main Influences: post-war optimism and

large families – children seen but not heard; Values: hard work, loyalty, rewards; Status and job titles matter; Time-served – promotion by tenure;Currently comprise 87% of all CEOs and senior management; and that Boomers have ‘deep smarts’ and as they retire, knowledge transfer is becomingmore important than ever.

• The second group are “Generation x (1962-1977)” Defined by – Powerful leadership, ‘loads money’, ‘Yuppies’; Values – confident and independent,materialistic, Long Hours culture – promoted for hours spent in office. They are High achievers. They are Digital Immigrants – invented technology –learnt to use PC’s at school / uni etc.

Before Mary presented the characteristics of Gen Y she discussed the influences that have defined their lives. “Obviously, generation Y have grown up ina different time zone to their parents and the generations before them and as a consequence their mindsets and priorities are somewhat different” saidMary.

March 2015 Volume 1, Issue 1

• 9 / 11, the war on terrorism andthe war in Iraq – this hascontributed to a sense of short-termism.

• Emerging economies – Europeand the US are no longerconsidered in the elite class of‘super’ economies of the world.They have been joined by China,Russia, The Middle East andAsia, who all have increasinglyimportant roles to play in theworld economy. Globalisation –flattening of the world. they areused to having contact withpeople from all over the worldon a regular basis. It is quitelikely that a typical gen y traineewill have travelled the world andintegrated with people from avariety of cultures.

• They can chat and network withpeople on the other side of theglobe instantaneously – andthey do! Student fees / debts –student debt no longer refersjust to the credit card bill thathas been racked up on personalexpenses.

• Global Warming – They havebeen aware of environmentalissues social injustice from anearly age. It is on the newschannels every day, whether itbe global warming or let’s makepoverty history pop concert.This means they are civicminded and feel a sense of dutyin giving something back.

• Digital Natives – A generation ofpeople who had access to PCsfrom a very early age. Theycould type before they couldride a bicycle. And it is not justtyping they have had access tothe web and all that brings withit. They has enabled them toaccess information quickly andlearn without hierarchicalbarriers and led to a generationof curious and challengingpeople. It has also enabled themto network with great ease.

BABY BOOMERS1945 - 1961

GENERATION X1962 - 1977

GENERATION Y1978 - 1998

GENERATION Z1999 -

The World of Gen Y

Paula Lawler, Deputy National Director of HR & Ian Tegerdine, NationalDirector of HR , Dr. Mary Collins, RCSI & Caroline O’Regan, Asst. NationalDirector of HR

The Three Paradoxes of Generation Y( Gratton 2013)

1. Short-term focus, but equally committed

‘This generation is as engaged, committed and prepared to work as hard asprevious generations’. They don’t mind working. They just think there arebetter ways to work.’

2. Tech savvy, but value face-to-face

• Electronic communication augments rather than replaces face-to-faceinteraction. Particularly when it comes to performance and career discussionswhere personal interactions are still the preferred method.

3. Require recognition, but not necessarily more trophies

• Time Magazine rather negatively dubs Gen Y the ‘trophy generation’.

• The drive for regular promotion should not be confused with the desire forregular feedback, which many see as a vital part of their personal and careerdevelopment

Mary said this group want to work for organisations that

1. Foster innovative thinking

2. Develop their skills

3. Nurture leadership skills

4. Make a positive contribution to society. (‘Big Demands and HighExpectations’ Deloitte Millennial Report 2014)

According to Mary “Gen Y’s crave feedback but don’t want negativefeedback” this is a digital nation’ they want their leaders to haveleadership development, why? Because it affects them positively, theywant to see role models.

Some of the table feedback, capture the positive trends & negativetrends you notice among the ‘Generation Y’ people you interact with(staff, family, service users etc..) including....

Some positive trends included:“this group are assertive, intelligent, very sharp, resourceful, noboundaries, love challenge are focused, innovative and big intoresearch. They have a very strong digital relationship are digital savvy.Confident, extremely flexible, living life to the full are very globallyaware, well travelled, have high expectations and are ambitious.”

Some of the less positive trends included:“They are impatient, self indulgent, selfish, instant gratification, ‘knowit all’ arrogant, and entitled. They are less loyal and easily influencedtoo obsessed with social media – selfies – useless without theirmobiles, cocooned by parents, overly focused and like their managerto be their friend!”

Richard Bruton, HR GeneralManager

Jim O’Sullivan, Programme Manager& Colm A. Saidléar, Chief Physicist &Radiation Protection Advisor

Ian Tegerdine, National Director ofHR. Dr. Mary Collins, RCSI &Declan Hynes, General Manager, HR

Mary said that over the last 4 years there has been a 52% increase inteens play games online and when asked “What makes games soengaging?” the factors are

• Engrossing

• Feedback

• Problem solving

• Strategic thinking

• Collaboration

All highly valued skills in the workplace.

She outlined her framework below on how to motivate Generation Yemployees.

Mary outlined a framework for engaging professional service Generation Y employees and said that the 3 key strategies include:

1: Feed forward;

2: Mentoring/coaching and

3: Meaningful work.

Mary explained that Feed forward is feedback with a focus on improving future performance...(Kelan 2012) and that virtual is fine.. “millennials do notmake distinctions between conversing face-to-face, on a phone or via text or IM.”

And that we need to “Keep up the pace! – Gen Y’s have short attention spans (8 seconds)…. WITFM !!. That manager as Coach is key with Boomers’as the preferred mentors! Consider reverse mentoring.

The golden rule to engage Gen Y is to ‘Invest time, resources and energy to listen and stay connected with your Gen Y employees so that they feelconnected and empowered….’

Mary concluded the Masterclass by quoting Tulgan, B. 2012 that “Generation Y are the most high maintenance workforce in the history of the world…the good news is they are going to be the most high performing…”

Sinead Fitzpatrick and Jennifer Feighan

Kevin McConville, Asst. National Director, ERP Services

Sandra Brady, Niall Gogarty and Yvette Keating

Grainne O'Hara, Cathy Hennebry, Deirdre Sheehan and Patricia Heckmann

Fionnuala O’Brien, HBS General Manager & John Brehony, HR General Manager

Masterclass Series 2015

Statistical data

Important dates for your diary

HSE HR, Leadership, Education & Development, 4th Floor, 20/23 Merchants Quay, Dublin 8Phone: (01) 8817038 E-mail: catherine.kavanagh@hse.ie

Date, time and venue

24th September 2015 @ 10.30am, IMI

5th November 2015 @ 10.30am, IMI

2nd December 2015 @ 10.30am, IMI

Master Class topic

Emotional Intelligence and Culture change

Health Service Reform

Strategy and Leadership

Speaker

Ms. Maureen HewittManaging Director, Positive Success Group

Professor Chris Ham CEO Kings Fund London

Mr. Michael ShielAdjunct Professor of Strategy, Instead

Any additional commentsThe majority of comments were general “thank you” and “looking forwardto next masterclass” some other comments include:“thought provoking”;“more time for discussion and a final exercise on collecting ideas from the flooron how we in management can harness Gen Y and what to do to motivate andsupport Gen Y”;“it was really enjoyable and I have learned a great deal which I will be of benefitto my organization and my work”;“would like HSE to hear and respond to feedback”;“clinical managers need access to mentoring programmes”;“very good start to new programme of Masterclasses”.

Evaluation outcomesThe evaluation feedback was very positive, of the 110 participants who attended92 (83%) completed the Master class evaluation form. A series of questionsinvited participants to give their comments on the workshop. The outcomes arelisted below:

Question 1: What did you particularly like about today?“Dr. Collins was engaging and knowledgeable”; “very informative talk”; “participation between tables”; “research findings, discussion at tables, network opportunities”; “relevant, interesting, interactive approach, well paced”.

Question 2: What could we have done to make this Master Class more beneficial for you?Overall the comments were very positive, some examples of the feedbackinclude:“would have liked to hear more of Mary’s work in the health service”; “more direct action plans and more time for group discussions”; “each person to get a copy of studies”; “references included on the power point handout”;“more suggestions on how to coach this group”;“Start on time”; “include lunch”;“10.30 – 1pm advertised – but it was 1 hour shorter than advertised”;“travelled from cork, too short a time to get there and take the day off”;“more time for questions at the end of the session”.