This white paper’s copyright is reserved by IBM, Universum and Egon Zehnder. Not for commercial use.

IBM (International Business Machines)

IBM, founded 1911 in the United States, is the world's largest company for information technology and business

solutions as well as the permanent leader in the computer industry. IBM is also the leader of supercomputer UNIX servers

(main delegates are Deep-Blue and Blue Gene).

Universum (Universum Communications)

Universum, founded 1988 in Sweden, is the leading employer branding consulting company. Each year, over

300,000 people in 30 countries worldwide participate in their career preference and Ideal Employer Survey.

Egon Zehnder International

Egon Zehnder International, founded in 1964, is the largest managerial consulting partnership company in the world.

Its main service is committed to exploring, assessing, and recruiting the most intelligent business leaders to give clients a

greater advantage.

Generation-Y： Challenges and Strategies for HR Management

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This white paper’s copyright is reserved by IBM, Universum and Egon Zehnder. Not for commercial use.

Version 2.0 (Updated on 19 Nov 2008)

IBM (International Business Machines)

IBM, founded 1911 in the United States, is the world's largest company for information technology and business

solutions as well as the permanent leader in the computer industry. IBM is also the leader of supercomputer UNIX servers

(main delegates are Deep-Blue and Blue Gene).

Universum (Universum Communications)

Universum, founded 1988 in Sweden, is the leading employer branding consulting company. Each year, over

300,000 people in 30 countries worldwide participate in their career preference and Ideal Employer Survey.

Egon Zehnder International

Egon Zehnder International, founded in 1964, is the largest managerial consulting partnership company in the world.

Its main service is committed to exploring, assessing, and recruiting the most intelligent business leaders to give clients a

Index

Introduction 4

Summary 5

Who Are Generation Y? 7

What Does Generation Y want? 8

Salary and Benefits 8

Expectation for Career Development 9

Social Relationships and Networks 11

Preferred Management Style 12

Communication Channels and Performance Feedback

Leadership Style and Redefinition of Good Performance

Mentoring Systems

Purpose of Work 14

Preferred Methods of Compensation 14

Concerns of the New Generation 15

International Experiences 15

Corporate Social Responsibility 16

The Balance Between Work and Life 16

Channels for Finding Jobs 17

How Do We Manage Generation Y? 18

Further Thoughts on What Generation-Y Brings to Businesses 20

Introduction Great challenges accompany social progress and change. It seems like it was only yesterday that managers were struggling with how to attract and retain members of Generation X. Today, managers need to concern themselves with the challenges of the “Post-80’s” group: Generation-Y (Gen-Y).

Members of Gen-Y hope “to be promoted after working one or two years in a job”; they “hate the strict rank and file, but yearn for equality and freedom of expression”; “they are unwilling to work overtime, but hope to enjoy work rather than being a slave to it…”

While appreciating the change in atmosphere that members of Gen-Y bring, Chinese managers are beginning to search for solutions in order to make the traditional workplace meet the needs of their workforce’s younger members. We can learn from the experience of the United States: managers there

were unprepared for Gen-Y’s working style when they first entered the workplace, and this had a great impact on many companies. To respond to this new challenge, companies in the United States has spent several years and considerable resources in researching Gen-Y.

The challenge faced in the United States has grabbed the attention of Chinese managers. In China, since members of Gen-Y account for less than one third of the total workforce population, traditional management practices are likely to remain effective for some time. But the day when Gen-Y represents the majority of China’s workforce is not far off . In order to plan for this certain future, Chinese enterprises should begin to focus on the challenges posed by Gen-Y now—and prepare strategies that will foster a harmonious relationship with Gen-Y.

Summary

Three companies working together for the first time—IBM, Universum and Egon Zehnder—launched a survey aimed at the Chinese members of Gen-Y. The data collected in this survey mainly concerns topics related to the working lives of Chinese members of Gen-Y, including salary and benefits, career development expectations, preferred management style, and so forth.

The survey was conducted during April and May 2008, mainly through telephone interviews, panel discussions, online questionnaires and professional seminars. The design of the online questionnaire was based on questionnaires conducted in other countries around the world by Universum. In order to ensure that the results of the survey would be helpful for improving and changing the management practices of Chinese enterprises,

IBM, Universum and Egon Zehnder conducted separately two seminars in Beijing

and Shanghai to consult representatives and experts from business, Universities, and the human resources industry for their views and suggestions.

This enabled the results of the survey to be comparable with other similar investigations elsewhere in the world while maintaining distinct Chinese characteristics, and guaranteed that the results of the survey would be both authoritative and relevant.

In order to ensure the diversity and impartiality of our survey data, we selected our survey participants from a variety of different groups, including Universum’s databases of Chinese students and professionals; forums at 60 of China's top universities; users of IBM's recruiting web site, and also IBM China’s Gen-Y employees. We received 9,156 valid questionnaires in total. The age, occupation, region, sex and education qualifications of these respondents are shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1:

An analysis of the data presented by these 9,156 questionnaire responses shows that members of Gen-Y have high hopes for themselves. They generally lack patience and hope that they can strike a balance between their lives and their work. They require a lot of guidance in their work and pay great attention to the social responsibilities of the companies for which they choose to work. They have the Internet and other modern technologies at their fingertips, and greatly value team spirit. The results of our survey also reveal that besides these areas of commonality with members of Gen-Y from other countries, Chinese members of Gen-Y have their own distinct Chinese characteristics. Buying a home is their greatest concern; they feel uncertain about the future; when looking for a job, they place great emphasis on salary; they have high expectations about the training and

development opportunities that companies provide; being promoted is the greatest motivational factor in their respective careers; they are economically dependent on their parents; yet they depend on their friends and classmates for career advice.

The survey results have strong prospects for application by HR professionals in Chinese businesses, and will be helpful to the management of Chinese businesses in meeting the new managerial challenges brought about by Gen-Y. If, however, managers remains complacent and cling to outdated principles, Chinese businesses will lose out on opportunities to gain ground in the competition for talented people in the 21st century. Only by respecting the characteristics of Gen-Y and by actively promoting new working and managerial methods can companies hope to retain and develop the Gen-Y talents.

Who Are Generation Y?

Every generation is the product of the political, commercial, cultural, and social factors of the era in which they grew up. Gen-Y is internationally defined as the generation born between 1980 and 2000. In contrast to the Baby Boomers (born between 1945 and 1964) and Gen-X (born between 1965 and 1980), members of Gen- Y were born during a time when the world was relatively at peace, the economy was continually growing, and technology was developing at an ever-quickening pace. These factors make Gen-Y more confident and optimistic than their elders. Members of Gen-Y have idealistic expectations for the world in which they live; they are sensitive to new techniques; they are enterprising; they pursue independence and achievement; they hope to enjoy work instead of being controlled by it; they expect pain and gain to be directly proportional; they have a more encompassing view of cultural values. Because of the One Child Policy, Chinese members of Gen-Y were the sole recipients of attention in their families. Their elders place great hopes on their shoulders. They were well-raised and received good educations. They think highly of themselves. But they are also selfish, and lacking in the areas of independent judgment and teamwork.

Growing up under this policy, Gen-Y in China bears a distinctive mark of the times. Gen-Y grows up with Internet, email, online

communication tools and mobile phones. Communication technologies have already been blended into their daily life and daily work, and have even affected their ways of thinking. The other end of these communication tools connect with the people who have the most effect on them—their friends and parents. Gen-Y communicates with their parents more frequently through SMS, phone calls and email than their elders do. In America, the effect that parents have on Gen-Y has become so great that a new term has entered the lexicon——“Helicopter Parents”. This term is used to describe parents who always “hover” over their children, or who, in other words, always keep their children in sight. Gen-Y asks their friends and parents for suggestions and opinions through QQ or E-mail. However, in China, because Gen-Y parents do not have as rich and varied experiences in the workplace, their influence on their children is mainly limited to social experiences.

Today, a great number of Gen-Y is entering the workforce. They bring fresh energy to the workforce, and yet are poised to rewrite the rules which govern it. The challenge for companies is to be able to understand, adapt to and develop Gen-Y, while wisely making use of their talents.

What Does Generation-Y want?

Managing changing demands of new generation employees are critical to the success of corporate talent strategies. Gen-Y, as a mighty new constituency in the workforce, is on the rise. Their work styles are a natural response to social change and they will inevitably become the social pillars of the new generation that succeeds them. If the management of Chinese businesses overlooks this, they could make a number of mistakes and false assumptions about the demands of this group which could undermine and impact their efficiency.

As such, managers must familiarize themselves with the demands of Gen-Y as soon as possible. Once they understand what Gen-Y needs most, managers will know what their company’s focus should be. So what does Generation-Y want?

Salary and Benefits

Compensation for services rendered is a core component of human resources management. When asked whether their present wage level meets their needs, 35.1% of respondents who have work experience indicated that they can support themselves, 27.3% of them said they are fully supported by their parents, and 18.5% of them have some savings after expenses. In the current market, an annual salary of 70k to 100k RMB is the standard starting salary provided by most foreign enterprises and large or medium-sized state-owned enterprises when recruiting fresh graduates. Among the respondents who get their salary in this range, 90% of them say that their income can fully support their life, and 35% of them say that they have some savings after expenses. Among

the respondents whose annual income is lower than 50k, nearly 80% of them say that they can support themselves.

Salary aside, the most attractive benefits for Gen-Y are opportunities for further education provided by the company, followed by housing allowances and medical insurance. In contrast with Gen-Y workers in Europe and the United States who regard year-end bonuses, additional vacation time and the overtime pay as the most attractive benefits, Chinese members of Gen-Y places a greater value on educational opportunities. This may be attributed to the fact that China, with a high economic growth rate, is full of opportunities. The more knowledge and skills you possess, the more possibilities and opportunities you will be able to grasp. The high price of housing and medical care makes housing allowances and the medical insurance key bargaining chips for companies to attract Gen-Y employees. Technical training ranks fourth among the most attractive benefits to Chinese members of Gen-Y. Actually, there is still some debate as to whether or not technical training is in fact a benefit. In some companies, it is regarded as an investment, and is initiated by Business Departments, rather than by Human Resources Departments. Since it is an investment, companies expect repayment, and so hope that employees can make greater contributions after the training. However, employees regard it as a kind of benefit; for where there is no training, employees feel that their benefits are being infringed on. However, when they are provided with training, many employees don’t value it highly enough. With regard to the contents of the training,

study or participation in company-sponsored examinations is driven by personal educational interests, and projects or tasks where training is offered for a period of time as workers rotate through different jobs are most popular with Gen-Y. Online training and compulsory learning programs which are taken under pressure from work or directed by the companies or schools and fixed, long-term job rotation are most unpopular with Gen-Y (See Figure 2). In telephone interviews, some Gen-Y pointed out that the training provided by the company tends to be very rigid. The knowledge is outdated, and cannot be used to solve the practical problems of business. However, the training courses launched by

internet companies such as Shanda Entertainment have obtained great favor with Gen-Y through their flexible and innovative online format. “An MBA degree is good for future development, but tuition is too expensive. If it were sponsored by the company, then it’s obviously a type of benefit,” one Gen-Y worker said during a telephone interview.

Through training, they hope to improve their ability to solve practical problems, to add to their own value in the labor market, and to gain competitiveness for their continued career development. They hope for the content of the training to change as they progress, while they also demand that the training be innovative, lively, and easy to accept.

Expectations for Career Development

The survey shows that most Gen-Y employees do not want to work in the same position for too long. Less than half of the respondents are willing to work in the same position for over two years. Over 37% of the respondents choose 1-2 years (See Figure 3.1) as the longest they would like to spend in a given position. When they consider changing positions, 38% of the respondents chose promotion, 30% of

respondents chose to change work between different departments, 18% chose to add responsibilities to their current position, and 8.3% of the respondents considered changing jobs within the same department. Only 5.6% of them want to work for another company (See Figure 3.2). In other words, more than 94% of the respondents prefer to seek a wider range of work experience within the company, rather than leaving the company entirely. This set of data breaks people's stereotype of Gen-Y as

Figure 2:

having low levels of stability and favoring arbitrary job-hopping. It also suggests that the vast majority of Gen-Y members hope to find stable long-term development within a single company.

When asked about promotions, 52% of the respondents think that all factors should be considered comprehensively, including one’s abilities and company development

opportunities when being promoted, among other factors. Some 34% of respondents think that employees should be promoted when they perform very well, no matter how long they have worked in a given position. A high regard for qualifications and seniority is most disdained by Gen-Y.

Figure 3.1:

Figure 3.2:

Social Relationships and Networks

For Chinese members of Gen-Y, parents play the role of friends, consultants and sponsors (See Figure 4). On one hand, Gen-Y needs the financial support of their parents; on the other hand, the influence of their parents on their career choice is limited. The traditional view is that bosses or teachers should have the greatest influence on Gen-Y with regard to their career development. However, when members of Gen-Y encounter difficulties in their career development or at work, they will first seek help from their classmates, parents and elders, while a part of them use search engines such as Baidu and Google to search for answers (See Figure 5). One student said in a telephone interview, “the answers given by strangers on the Internet are often the most reliable. Since there is no relationship between us and we

don’t use our real names, so they are willing to tell the truth.” The views of school friends on BBS forums are also an important source of professional advice for Gen-Y.

Gen-Y is also called “the Net Generation.” 40% of the respondents surf the Internet an average of 8 hours every day. Reading news, checking e-mail and searching for information are their main Internet activities. Most of Gen-Y is the only child in the family. They do not many people to communicate at home is an important reason why they are so dependent on the Internet. In one way, this over-dependence on the Internet lets them acquire vast amounts of information for reference when making decisions; in another way, it also affects to some extent their ability to think independently and make decisions.

.

Figure 4:

Preferred Management Style

Communication Channels: Although

Gen-Y is infatuated with the online world, 66% of the respondents say they still prefer to communicate with their bosses and colleagues face to face during work.

Performance Feedback: Half of the

survey respondents hope to get immediate feedback when a job or task is completed, while only a small part of respondents prefer to get evaluation at set times (See Figure 6). This has brought about new challenges to the present annual evaluation systems commonly used by the Human Resources Departments.

Figure 5:

Leadership Style: the majority of respondents like an encouraging boss and hope to receive positive evaluation from the boss. At the same time, they want their boss to give them adequate space for free time (see Figure 7). In telephone interviews, many people hoped the boss would be a person that could “convince them to be outstanding in business, to be a role model for them”, and give them lots of feedback.

Redefinition of Good Performance: to

be good at teamwork, to complete tasks with excellence, and to work with great efficiency are considered three standards of good performance, while long hours of overtime, high academic qualifications and high-level jobs, are not necessarily linked to good performance.

Gen-Y’s poor capacity for cooperation is causing many headaches for businesses, and serious “individualistic tendencies” are often mentioned. In telephone interviews, many respondents said that “teamwork can improve efficiency,” and that “to be good at teamwork is the universal demand of many enterprises when

recruiting staff” and that they “have been making efforts in this direction.” We can see that values consistently proclaimed and advocated by enterprises have slowly been accepted by Gen-Y.

However, a large problem facing companies is how well self-centered Gen-Y employees can enact good teamwork. One’s team working ability generally can be deduced from the following factors: whether the players have a sense awareness of the overall progress of the team’s work and the internal situation of the team; whether the players are willing to share experiences and are good at learning from others; whether the players can assist each other and think from the perspective of team interests rather than simply personal gains or losses; whether the players are open minded, willing to agree with others, respect other's work; and whether the players are friendly and tolerant of colleagues, and only criticizing others when things are not right.

Mentoring Systems: Some 70% of those

surveyed hope to establish a mentoring relationship with mid-level and senior leaders

Figure 6:

in their company from whom they can receive guidance for professional and personal development. In addition, more than 17% of the respondents hope to receive help at work from colleagues who joined the company before them.

The demand for a mentoring system reflects Gen-Y’s need to feel cared for, which

is directly related to the environment in which they grew up. As the only-child generation, Gen-Y received double attention from both parents and grandparents from a young age. So as they enter into the workforce, they look forward to the same degree of attention and care as before, and to be given direction in work and life.

Driving Factors Purpose of Work: Some 55% of the

respondents consider the basis of economic life and the pursuit of a happy life as their ultimate goal, while 36% of respondents consider realizing their individual value, and proving their individual capabilities as their ultimate goals in work.

Preferred Methods of Compensation: Gen-Y’s favorite methods of compensation are promotion, overseas training opportunities and cash (see Figure 8).

Most of Gen-Y has just entered into the workforce, and so for them to be promoted and take on more responsibilities is the most appealing way to reward them at this stage. In order to retain Gen-Y employees, some larger companies have given them high-level job

Figure 7:

titles, but without any corresponding authority. In our interviews, Gen-Y workers expressed

resentment towards this kind of promotion scheme.

Gen-Y welcomes overseas training opportunities more than cash rewards, which is worth noting as it shows that China's Gen-Y maintain a strong spirit of learning and enterprise, while also placing great value on practicality. Those who wish to retain the best talent must be willing to spend on staff training and help them progress continuously.

Concerns of the New Generation: Some 41% of the respondents consider housing their greatest current concern (see Figure 9). One Gen-Y respondent exclaimed in a telephone interview: "current housing prices are too high. I cannot afford it at all. And without a house I cannot find a wife." Even those who have gotten financial help from their parents to complete down payments also feel the pressure of monthly loan payments. In the traditional Chinese view, one should first get married, and then establish himself. However, owning a

home is an essential element to having a family. So for young Chinese men, not being able to afford a home means difficulties in courtship. Even when renting housing, the rent is also a large expense. Because of the great significance of housing to Gen-Y, those businesses which provide housing subsidies can enjoy a high degree of loyalty from their employees.

International Experience Some 89% of the respondents believe that

the international environment is either very important or relatively important to them. The international environment, as they understand it, includes dealing with foreign customers and working in multinational companies, and only 8% of the respondents associate it with seeking professional development abroad. For Gen-Y workers who have many opportunities to see the Western world, short-term foreign training

Figure 8:

is acceptable, but working abroad long-term cuts one off from the rapid development of the domestic market, and travel to countries with hard living conditions are considered even more carefully. Therefore many enterprises declare it to be a sea change.

Corporate Social Responsibility Some 90% of survey respondents consider

it very important for businesses to give something back to society. Supporting education and scientific research, and providing help to local development are considered the best ways to give back to

society. Why does Gen-Y attach so much importance to a company’s social responsibilities? Many members of Gen-Y believe that those companies who are responsible to society will necessarily be responsible towards their employees. However, Gen-Y generally has suspicions of government charity. They hope that the departments involved increase the transparency of the donation process, so as to make ensure that donations flow to the needed places.

The Balance Between Work and Life Striking a proper balance between work

and life is one of Gen-Y’s most important career goals. The parents of Gen-Y overexerted themselves throughout their lives in order to maintain their families’ livelihood, leaving little leisure time to enjoy life’s pleasures, some of whom were even laid-off in their fifties and

suddenly became marginalized. This led Gen-Y to re-examine the meaning and value of work.

Getting help with work from superiors and colleagues, doing what they are interested in, having a warm and comfortable working environment, modern office equipment, and appropriate holidays are all considered helpful in maintaining the balance between work and

Figure 9:

life. Bringing pets to work, frequent business trips and fixed working hours are seen as impediments to having a balanced life (See Figure 10). This stands in stark contrast to the traditional understanding which considers the

regulation 8-hour work day as a very good balance. But the balance Gen-Y wants can be realized by businesses through flexible, employee-oriented systems.

●Channels for Fnding Jobs Internet job boards, friends, and career fairs are the most commonly used channels for job

seeking by Gen-Y. For Gen-Y with over two years’ work experience, headhunting is also an important channel.

Figure 10:

Figure 11:

How Should We Manage Generation-Y? Based on the analysis of the unique

characteristics of Gen-Y’s demands, it is not difficult to see that Gen-Y is asking for a higher level of management from human resources and business managers. However, for companies that have understood the needs of Gen-Y, it is much easier to face the question of how to manage Gen-Y employees. Following are some coping strategies for Chinese enterprises to learn and refer to.

Creating Conditions to Help Maintain the Balance Between Work and Life for Gen-Y Gen-Y is a happy generation, as they are

skilled in allocating work hours and private time and know how to balance work and personal life. It is a proven fact that that a balanced attitude toward life is more conducive to a person’s career development. Therefore, companies need consider how to embrace a

more relaxed view of work time in human resources management.

First, help Gen-Y find work that they are interested in. When interest and work combine together, life and work are integrated into one. This is the ideal work situation for Gen-Y employees. Therefore managers should help them find interesting work content, as well help them discover their true needs and potential, and establish a "personalized" human resources management database.

Second, create a comfortable, home-like work environment. This can increase Gen-Y’s sense of pleasure in working and even in their work-life balance. In this regard, Google is a well-known example.

Finally, equipping the office with modern equipment, approving employee holidays, and implementing flexible working hours are also important aspects that allow Gen-Y to feel

balanced between life and work. Helping Gen-Y Employees Develop

Career Competitiveness In addition to large salaries, continual

improvement of their competitiveness in the workforce is one of Gen-Y’s most important professional aspirations. Training is the commonly used method for Gen-Y to improve their competitiveness. However, the current situation is awkward in that even though employees have demanded training and companies have spent a lot of capital on various types of training for their employees, most employees lose interest when the classes actually begin. Because of this an appealing set of training courses, or customized training for employees, and dynamically upgrading the content and form of the training are the keys to making training more effective. Further study, such as MBA courses, sponsored by the company is the ideal benefit of many employees. However, the number of such projects is usually extremely limited.

The mentoring system however is relatively easier to institute. At present, while the number of companies that have introduced mentoring are not a minority, the problem is that many companies’ mentoring systems are not executed properly. Either the experienced mentors have no time to attend to their apprentices due to their own work, or the company lacks supporting evaluation and incentive mechanisms. Both of these often cause the mentoring system to exist in name only.

Establishing Good Communication and Feedback Mechanisms for Gen-Y Employees

Management is achieved through communication, whether by the release of human resource policies, or by the collection of

staff suggestions or by various types of interviews. HR should take the initiative in assuming the role of communicator. Gen-Y pursues independence, does not fear authority, aspires to be respected and demand freedom of expression. In this respect, the traditional management style of order and control Moreno longer works. Companies should build a broad and flexible communication platform, that include holding daily conferences, using MSN, having internal forums and creating a “Presidential-mailbox” as commonly used modes of communication.

As for performance feedback, compared with their predecessors, Gen-Y are more demanding for feedback on their work. Biannual or annual assessments have fallen far short of the needs of Gen-Y. It is much better to give immediate feedback at the end of each project or task, for receiving immediate feedback is one of Gen-Y’s hopes for humanizing the system and obtaining concern and cultivation from one’s boss.

Giving Gen-Y Employees Promotions or a Change of Job Functions Every Two Years Many companies meet enormous

challenges in achieving this goal, because most companies already have a relatively fixed promotion system. However, Gen-Y is a generation with little patience, and they want their work to always be fresh and challenging. After two years of continuous work in one position, most Gen-Y workers no longer have any enthusiasm. If not promoted or moved to

another position, they are likely to seek opportunities in other companies. However, this is not necessarily a bad thing. This phenomenon precisely shows that Gen-Y has a strong ability to learn—and at a fast speed— that they attach importance to the fun in work, and are not willing to mechanically duplicate their efforts. If companies can make good use of these characteristics of Gen-Y, then they can greatly increase efficiency and output.

Providing Competitive Pay and Additional Housing Subsidies China's Gen-Y is both idealistic and

realistic. In contrast with European countries and America which have a relatively comprehensive pay system, at the present time in China, competitive pay is always the selling point for a given company. Moreover, a substantial income is the prerequisite for a high-quality life as well as a kind of

affirmation for Gen-Y, especially given the present huge pressures involved with home ownership. If a company can provide housing subsidies, it is bound to increase the loyalty to the company of Gen-Y employees.

Establishing Idols While China's Gen-Y generally lacks

long-lasting and firm beliefs they still have their own heroes. For example, Gen-Y views those who achieve business success through their own efforts and charm as their idols, and they are often proud of working in the idols’ companies. That is why Alibaba, Baidu, Shengda, and other companies are frequently listed as ideal employers by Chinese university students. As with Bill Gates and Microsoft, Steve Jobs and Apple, these companies possess Gen-Y’s admired idols or spiritual leaders, and are always more attractive and cohesive.

Further Thoughts on What Generation-Y brings to Businesses It is clear that changing and adjusting

business management systems, human resources strategies, leadership management styles, working methods and so forth are the main challenges that Gen-Y employees bring to Chinese HR management.

The HR and management of Chinese businesses need to seriously consider management changes in order to adjust their organizations to deal with Gen-Y, and combine the advantages they bring with their business development. At the same time, the following issues should be given further attention and in-depth consideration by HR and management in Chinese businesses:

How will Baby Boomers and Gen-Xers

react if the company develops specific human resources policies for Gen-Y? In essence, Baby Boomers and Gen-Xers have the same demands. As a result, how do company policies create a balance between these three generations?

HR managers increasingly feel that it is

better to change themselves rather than change Gen-Y. If they want to manage

Gen-Y employees, they must understand the ideas of Gen-Y, study the language of Gen-Y, and even learn faster than Gen-Y.

A small number of Gen-Y employees are

in positions of leadership, and it will be an inevitable trend that Gen-Y leaders will lead Gen-Y employees. Their leadership style will certainly be quite different from previous generations. What impact will be brought about to company management? And how should the company prepare for the new generation of leaders? In any event, companies that are able to

evolve with their employees are inevitably full of vitality and competitiveness. Such companies have smooth flows of information, act nimbly, and are filled with infinite possibilities. Gen-Y are a different generation, that bear a clear imprint of the times in which they grew up. We cannot condescendingly judge this generation with existing value systems, but rather must find their merits within them and make full use of their wisdom and creativity, because Gen-Y represents the future.

Thanks：

We express here special thanks to the following enterprises and organizations which

participated in the seminar and put forward valuable suggestions: Johnson & Johnson (China), Deloitte, Shengda, ABB (China), Dupont, PepsiCo (China),

Danone, Cisco, eLong, Google, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Motorola, Nestlé, Schneider Electrics, Volvo, Yahoo!, Peking University, Beijing Normal University and Beijing Foreign Enterprise Human Resources Service Co.