Day: March 27, 2010

The workplace is slowly changing. A multi-generational workforce needs different skill sets to manage. Author, thinker, guru and NetGen evangelist Don Tapscott continues our conversation. (If you want to read Part 1 of the interview, please click here). His research suggests that we are dealing with a smarter but “different” generation today and that requires decison makers to re-look at the way we have run organizations. After all, “IQ scores are up. SAT scores show an increase. There are more people graduating from college today than ever before. So they work hard and they are smart. They just work differently. This gen works in spurts. Taking a social media break is the equivalent of taking a smoke-break or a coffee break for the other generations. For this generation, working, learning, collaborating and entertainment are not separate activities. Working and learning is the same. There’s no reason why work should not be equally enjoyable.” You can read the NY Times review of Don’s book Grown Up Digital hereHe identifies eight norms of many members of the Net Generation: they prize freedom; they want to customize things; they enjoy collaboration; they scrutinize everything; they insist on integrity in institutions and corporations; they want to have fun even at school or work; they believe that speed in technology and all else is normal; and they regard constant innovation as a fact of life. (more…)