One article that I found to be interesting discussed the way to retaining young workers was not by offering them money incentives but by giving them a mentor to follow instead. The article suggests that innovative CEO organizations that are trying to recruit the next brightest minds will only be able to execute that task effectively by giving young adults someone who help them along the way. According to the 14th Annual Global CEO Survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers, 98% of Millennial’s believe working with a mentor is a necessary component in development. In fact, they ranked training and development three times higher than cash bonuses as their first choice in benefits(Vivian Giang, “If You Want To Retain The Best Young Workers“, businessinsider.com). The younger generation is showing to be very different from that of their (grand)parents generation in terms of normative commitment. Young workers in often times do not fell attached for the organizations in which they work for and one in four employees will leave their companies within a 12-month period. New technology and social media are two major influential systems on young people. Now, organizations are beginning to implement new strategies and restructure the function of Human Resources in order to refine employment engagement and motivation among young adults employees.
Being a young adult myself and becoming a part of the workforce I know that I personally enjoy receiving incentives myself. However I think having a mentor is something that should sought out more so. Mentors are very helpful and can be very good influential aids for young adults to get a step closer to attaining a career they want in the future. As young adult I’m sure we all have had a mentor that helped us with school and/or sports. Why not have one to help us in the business world? Sometimes mentors can be a voice of reason and they can help young adults align are abilities, strengths, goals and desires. Again money incentives are good but don’t last long and can go also stop having an affect on our motivation over time. Mentors will have a lasting impact on the decisions we make and help refine our skills. Having a mentor pays for itself over time and increases an employees potential making them worth more. I think this is a case of extrinsic vs. intrinsic: does a person want material incentives or the internal incentives that will make them a highly marketable candidate and possibly one day a leader of any organization.
Link: http://www.businessinsider.com/young-workers-mentor-2011-7
I agree that having a mentor is a very important aspect in development. A mentor gives the young employee someone to learn from and ask their questions to. However, I would not remain with a company simply because I had a mentor and had built a strong relationship with them. A true mentor would support you no matter where you moved on to. Also, there is no reason why a person couldn’t build the same relationship with a mentor at a different company. While it wouldn’t be the most important thing, cash bonuses and compensation would have an impact on whether or not I would stay with a company.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting concept, even though people like money it seems like personal development is more important especially at the beginning of one's career. I personally would prefer a mentor over a bonus check, because mentor can teach you things you could never have thought about before and can lead you to even greater advantage at your job. In this case you may be more valuable to the company and having shown results(with tips from the mentor)one might then be eligible for that bonus check that he really deserves for all the contribution he has done to the company.
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