The need for autonomy and flexibility of the younger generations Tutorial

In 'The Need for Autonomy and Flexibility of the Younger Generations', uncover why Millennials and Gen Z demand freedom at work. Explore the vital link between autonomy, trust, and engagement, and learn how organizations can adapt to foster a collaborative environment. Join the conversation about bridging generational gaps in a rapidly evolving corporate landscape. Don't miss out on these key insights!

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want or even demand greater freedom in the form of autonomy or flexibility,

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a demand that attracts misunderstanding and conflicts in business.

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As for the older generations,

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they get annoyed sometimes because they find the liberation that

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Ys and Z's grant

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incompatible with the corporate world.

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In this video

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I will address two key points of the demand of the youngest,

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but they are not the only ones asking for it

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autonomy and flexibility.

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Autonomy is a key issue in business.

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First,

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let's talk about decision making autonomy.

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Who decides what?

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The more adult and expert a person becomes,

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the more they need to be trusted to decide and act according to their own referee.

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Some adults make fundamental life decisions for themselves and their families,

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and at work they don't even have the freedom to decide on a 10.

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nor do they have the freedom to negotiate outside

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the lines drawn by the process with a client.

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Overly directive management without autonomy of decision and action can

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be seen as a hurtful and infantilis lack of trust.

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This type of management will lead either to submission or rebellion

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and certainly not to maximum commitment and efficiency.

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The issue of trust is central to the granting of liberty.

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Human beings are made to grow in freedom and empowerment.

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You cannot separate them.

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You cannot make someone more responsible and engaged

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if you don't give them more autonomy.

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Do you trust your employees?

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Giving more freedom does not mean resigning and letting everything to

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be done with the naive idea that it will be OK.

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Can you set up a delegation plan with the appropriate

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follow up gradually bringing your employees to more autonomy?

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Do you have a vision,

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processes,

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and values shared by all

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that allow you to keep a solid structure in a more empowered environment?

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The education that the younger generations have for the most part received

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has pushed them to have more choices in their life,

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leisure and outings,

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for example,

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and to express themselves more freely.

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The company inherits this greater freedom of trust

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and tone

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and must therefore establish a relationship of

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equals where everyone is respected and heard.

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Generations Y and Z

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believe they mustn't be silent just because they have less expertise.

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Their adult opinion deserves to be heard

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as much of that as an elder or leader.

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According to them,

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the hierarchical status is not a reason to silence anyone or

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to impose a way of doing things that does not suit them

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by making them fit the mold.

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In this relationship of equality,

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the younger generations seek participatory management

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in which everyone is a winner.

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Win,

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win,

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otherwise the hard work is not worth the effort.

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Treating the Y or Z as an adult does not mean saying yes to all their

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requests and granting them all the freedoms if

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they are incompatible with the expected results,

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but at least listening to them and seeking to understand them.

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Wis and Zs want the company to welcome their

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ideas and give them a chance to see them through

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even if it means experiencing failure.

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As a manager,

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promoting and supervising their initiatives will

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ensure better retention of talent.

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Some companies have also set up

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business incubators or other fab labs manufacturing

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laboratories to facilitate the implementation of their ideas in a project mode.

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With skills sponsorship between juniors and experts,

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I now want to focus on the autonomy of decision making.

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According to Frederick Laloux in his book Reinventing Organizations,

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decision making can take three forms.

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Number 1,

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authoritarian decisions.

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A person rules the law like a parent with a child who is too small.

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Things often move quickly,

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but people can find themselves discredited,

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irritated,

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or addicted to them.

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Thus,

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some managers complain that their employees

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are constantly asking for their decision.

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I invite these managers to encourage their employees to give

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their opinions and prompt them to decide for themselves.

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Authoritarian decision,

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whether due to the personality of the leader or the culture of the company,

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will demotivate Y and Zs,

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especially if their opinion has not been at

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least heard and at best taken into account.

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The second form of decision making,

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consensual decision.

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In consensual decision,

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everyone has a say and feels heard.

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However,

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this decision making process is sometimes slow.

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The systematic search for consensus can lead to never ending discussions.

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Some people will misuse the consensus process

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to block decisions or to bargain.

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Power struggles can set in below the manager's authority.

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In short,

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there are advantages and disadvantages to consensus,

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as there are to authoritarian decision.

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They are both to be well prescribed.

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The third form of decision making

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is soliciting advice.

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Each employee has the freedom to initiate a proposal,

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a new product,

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a process change,

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the purchase of a new machine.

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The initiator of the proposal will best sell their

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idea by showing how it serves the company's objectives.

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They present their project to all of those concerned and collect their advice,

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transforming and enriching their project according to the feedback.

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This avoids the torture of seeking a consensus on all decisions.

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But all those concerned have an equal right to participate.

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Everyone is free to seize opportunities and make decisions,

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but they must listen

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to what others have to say.

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According to Bake,

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an executive AES,

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an international company with 40,000 employees in energy.

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The process of soliciting advice

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is creator of a feeling of belonging.

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It makes people humble.

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It allows learning.

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It improves decisions,

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and it is a source of pleasure.

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It is an intelligent process that

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restores freedom of initiative and decision making

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by avoiding conflicts generated by authoritarianism,

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anarchy,

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or stagnation in the search for consensus.

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It is a mode that will suit all generations.

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We talked about the needs of employees,

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especially Generationss Y and Z,

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for more freedom in their decision making.

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Now let's talk about the growing need for freedom in the organization of work.

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In other words,

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the need for flexibility.

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Working in a flexible organization for young people means first of all,

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working on transversal subjects,

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moving from one mission to another and thus discover other departments,

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other professions,

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other types of management.

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Even if it means working directly with the manager of our manager

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without being blocked by the hierarchical ladder,

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the youngest want their position and missions to evolve.

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They want to experience diverse missions,

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even if they reach them through leaps and bounds.

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Opportunities and the desire to learn,

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to grow,

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replace the ancient logic of straight

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hierarchical evolution.

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The Y

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stays on average 3 years in their job.

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After 6 months they already want to discuss their next move.

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The average falls to 2 years for the same job for the Zeds.

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Y and Z see lifelong training as essential to their professional

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success and expect you to open the doors to them.

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I have supported employees in conflict with their manager

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because the latter kept them in their jobs or refused to offer them new training.

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This flexibility of movement

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through internal mobility and training constitutes a risk of resignation

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for those who feel that their manager is not

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playing his role of developing the employee's potential.

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The pragmatism and relationship to time in the virtual world

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of Wise and Zs makes them sometimes very impatient.

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As a manager,

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it is important to promote training and facilitate access to

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new assignments and mobility while organizing and framing it.

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All of this should be discussed,

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explained,

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negotiated between adults.

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Flexibility for Y and Z also means the possibility of deciding

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their own schedules and telecommuting from home or a third place.

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They want to be masters of their life balance.

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This life balance is more important than their professional success.

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They have a good grasp of virtual technologies and know that

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even cooperation at work is possible through collaborative online tools.

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You can work from anywhere any time and still be very efficient.

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Previous generations are often resistant to these virtual tools.

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They sometimes feel unable to learn how to use them,

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or they condemn them without having tested them.

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Seniors need to be pushed,

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trained,

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and reassured on the subject.

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Exes and seniors have accepted and continue to accept without

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difficulty the unit of time and space imposed by the company

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to go to a workplace.

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Every day and follow a specific schedule.

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This strict framework of working time,

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place of work is increasingly denounced by young people

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and generates conflict in companies where it

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is still imposed but not always necessary.

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A key issue therefore,

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that of freedom in the business world.

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The opinions of the generations on decision

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making autonomy and organizational flexibility are so different

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that both can blame each other or demotivate themselves

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in this era of change for human and economic reasons,

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many companies are betting on the development of autonomy and flexibility.

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The change is not trivial.

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These companies must rethink virtual management,

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trust and motivation,

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bringing all generations together on the same path.

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