Gen Y......The New Workforce

Today I read an interesting article from the Recruitingtrends.com website. The link to the article is:

"Trends in Gen Y Workers, Research Reveals seventy percent of recent college graduates leave their jobs within two years of being hired, according to a survey exploring the working and job searching habits of so-called Generation Y.

**43% of Gen Y are not in the career they expected to be in after college, either because they couldn't find a job, or another opportunity presented itself

**60% are currently looking for another job or career, despite the fact that 57% indicated that they are also happy at their current job.

**74% of recent graduates are in a career that aligns with their college major"

The thing that I notice in these figures is that in today's workforce, while many people are happy in their current roles they are open to exploring opportunities else where if a new role matches an individuals career plans or addresses some need they are looking to fill. Being happy in a role or company does not automatically mean a person will stay there indefinitely. I find this is not unique to just Gen Y, but this happens with most people in the IT profession at all levels.

When I talk to candidates, I think it is important to work out first what a candidate wants to do and then we can see what the 'best fit' opportunity may be. If you are going to move from a role you are happy in, it needs to be for the right reasons, so if you are talking to us let's work out what you are looking for and see if we can find that fit whether it is career advancement, work/life balance, travel, etc......

I think this is quite an interesting subject (from the perspective of a Gen X'er), if you are looking for information on the different traits, motivations, drivers, etc... of the different generations (Baby Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y), there are a few good books and articles out there by local Australian Bernard Salt and also by Kevin Wheeler who is based in the US which would certainly be worth looking up or having a look for at your local book store.