Gen Y1: A Communication Perspective

In the recent study ‘Millennials in the Workplace: A Communication Perspective on Millennials, Organisational Relationships and Perform-ance’, Professor Karen Myers and Kamyab Sadaghiani from the University of California, Santa Barbara investigate the impact of communicated values and expectations of Gen Y. Many ‘Millennials’ have distinctive characteristics that may make interacting with them different from with previous cohorts, but then again, each generation has arrived in the workplace with its own unique set of qualities.
The study overall compares communication styles across the various generations in the workplace, highlighting common myths about Millenials which have resulted from miscommunication and misunderstanding. Particularly unique about Millennials is the amount of attention they have received—not only from their parents, but from scholars, popular literature, and popular press. Critics depict Millennials as self-centered, unmotivated, disrespectful, and disloyal, but these characteristics can likely be rendered false through constructive interaction. Different elements are considered to be “foundational” for this generation, such as strong relationships with supervisors, a strong desire for lots of open communication and valuing teamwork and collaboration. Studies also claim that more than other generations, Millennials develop commitment to individuals, especially supervisors with whom they can develop meaningful relationships. Although challenging to integrate at first, this generation is likely to have different, often broader, perspectives about the world marketplace, work relationships, diversity, and information technologies which can in turn enhance organizational performance and productivity.