Integrity of Communication
I came to odds once, with a baby boomer manager, who directed me to “spin” some benefits in a communication to potential clients that I had been working with.
“It’s marketing 101,” she insisted, when I defended my copy as being honest and direct. There were no benefits for the client that I could fathom and when I raised this point she urged that I had best “learn how to spin” marketing copy.
“So you want me to learn to lie,” I thought.
In response I told her that I valued open, honest communication and while I was happy for my draft to be altered, I would not put my name to a communication that I did not support or believe.
Now, we both cared about the project but that I did not “comply” with her direction was solely a values based decision. I did not want to comprise my being open and honest to learn how to “spin” invented benefits for our clients.
I perhaps naively thought such values would be respected but as time showed, she saw me as creating barriers to getting work done rather than being a person of integrity.
Baby Boomer vs Generation Y
In retrospect it is very clear that our generational differences, Baby Boomer vs Gen Y were at the root of our conflict:
[Gen Y are] are less afraid to confront and discuss issues with their peers and their superiors.
And how does this freedom and authenticity translate into the business world? It doesn’t.
It would crush the carefully constructed hierarchical structure to pieces. It’s a strange and obscure network of relationships that determines the real power in businesses.
If everything is said candidly and openly, this network loses its function. People lose their power. Read Source
Gen Y’s need for Authenticity
Because Gen Y want to feel that we work to contribute to something meaningful in this instance the idea of inventing the truth, a.k.a lying, was in stark contrast to my personal need for authenticity yet to my manager it was a learned and acceptable way to convey one’s point.
- For me, voicing my personal values, was part of being true to myself but perhaps my manager considered it insubordinate and a threat to her authority.
- For my generation (and other people) working together involves connecting and collaborating but many of the old school still adhere to the hierarchical methods of directing and controlling which were once the status quo.
- Consequently, to challenge my managers perspective, and assumed authority to direct my “compliance” was to risk my position within the heirarchy.
However, what must be understood about Gen Y is that our need for authenticity is a much stronger driving force than the false sense of security promoted by “employment”.
We are a generation willing to take risks, for ourselves and the things we believe in, which is a symptom of our stronger entrepreneurial tendencies.
Gen Y Perspective
While I am not exactly objective about the scenario related here it is simply a means to discuss what I see as the generational mindset difference between “manager employee” relationships of the past and the more entrepreneurial, collaborative teams of our future.
To qualify my point of view, I recognise that in some industries “employment” will always remain the most effective form of getting work done, retail for instance.
But I believe it is time to recognise that many forms of work in our knowledge economy – web development, design and many creative tasks – need no longer operate as a manager employee relationship.
Indeed, contract outsourcing this type of work will increase productivity and save companies time and money by facilitating a more flexible, motivating work environment for people with specialised talent and skill.
