Will Gen Y Kill US Competitiveness?

September 29, 2009

I’m amazed at the continuing flow of stories I hear from colleagues about the alarming behavior that is common amongst the “Gen Y” employee group. While you can’t stereotype an entire generation, the theme is too common to ignore. And I’ve seen it personally with clients as well. The behavior exhibited will I’m sure strike a chord with what many of you have observed. Entitlement, aggressive, disrespectful, no value placed on experience, incredible overestimation ability and knowledge, need for constant recognition.

My question is whether or not these behaviors will last throughout the careers of a large percentage of the Gen Ys and how this will impact the US global competitiveness. This whole attitude of expecting a reward just for showing up does not bode well when India and China are rapidly improving their skills and raising the bar on performance. I know colleagues who actually have had to lower the bar on performance for their Gen Y group because the morale plummets when people aren’t getting constant praise and promotions. What will the consequences be ten years from now if we have an entire generation of entrepreneurs and employees who have an inflated sense of accomplishment and create inferior companies and products that they believe to be world class?

There is hope. I have to admit that I too had some of these same behaviors after graduating from college in the early 90’s. However, I very quickly was hit in the face with a shot of reality that made me understand how the corporate world really worked. I thought I could walk in and help generate new business for the international accounting firm where I worked based on my accounting skills and personality. It took one sales call with senior partners for me to quickly understand that bringing in business was more about who you know and not just about being smart and having the right attitude.

My concern is that I rarely have seen or heard of Gen Y employees actually reacting to being hit with these so-called doses of reality. In many cases, the inflated sense of knowledge and accomplishment is so ingrained that they are oblivious to a knock on the head that should clearly demonstrate to them that there is no substitute for experience. No matter how smart you think you are.

I can only hope that most of these individuals do wake up and realize the value of experience and putting in time to learn skills on the job, rather than justifying entitlement behavior as “the new paradigm” for a smarter and faster generation of employees that have outgrown the old rules of business. Otherwise, we could be in big trouble.

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Posted by Jeremy McCarthy

I Guarantee You Ask Illegal Interview Questions

September 17, 2009

Have you ever asked someone an illegal interview question?  I have.  I didn’t know that I had asked an illegal question.  I was younger and poorly trained, but I could just as easily have been older and poorly trained.  In fact, my experience is that probably 95%+ of all interviewers not only have asked illegal interview questions in the past, but they probably continue to do so today.  They don’t intentionally do it.  The fact is that in a state like California the laws are so strict that without training and constant reminders, everyone is bound to slip up and ask something that is technically not legal to ask.

Here’s a quizz.  Which of the following questions is considered “illegal” to ask in an interview in California?

  • Based on your resume, it looks like you grew up in New Jersey.  I did too.  What part of New Jersey are you from?
  • I noticed you have a cast on your leg.  Did you break it?
  • Are you planning to have children in the next two years?
  • I see you went to Notre Dame.  Are you Catholic?  I am too.  We have a lot of great Catholics who work here.
  • Your resume says you speak Chinese.  Did you grow up there or just learn the language?
  • When did you graduate from high school?
  • What part of the Bay Area do you live in?  Will commuting be an issue?

So, which ones are illegal?  Technically, all of them are illegal.  In California, and many other states, questions that don’t directly relate to the job qualifications are off limits.  Here’s more specific information:

  • Based on your resume, it looks like you grew up in New Jersey.  I did too.  What part of New Jersey are you from?

This question has nothing to do with the job qualifications.  And if the candidate tells you they grew up in an area that happens to be known for having a large ethnic or religious population, the candidate could potentially claim you used the answer to this interview question in order to discriminate against them.

  • I noticed you have a cast on your leg.  Did you break it?

The biggest risk with this question relates to physical disabilities.  What if the candidate tells you that have a physical handicap that required surgery and will require more surgeries?  When you don’t hire them, you open yourself up for a claim that you didn’t hire them because you knew they were handicapped.

  • Are you planning to have children in the next two years?

Kind of an easy one.  You can’t discriminate against someone for having children or planning to have them.

  • I see you went to Notre Dame.  Are you Catholic?  I am too.  We have a lot of great Catholics who work here.

Another fairly easy one.  Just because you share the same ethnic or religious status with someone doesn’t save you from a discrimination claim.

  • Your resume says you speak Chinese.  Did you grow up there or just learn the language?

Similar to the first question, you can’t ask someone where they are from or about their ethnic origin.

  • When did you graduate from high school?

While it is okay to confirm someone has a degree, you cannot ask them about when they obtained it.  This opens you up to an age discrimination claim when the person thinks you asked the question to see how old they are.

  • What part of the Bay Area do you live in?  Will commuting be an issue?

This is a tricky one.  Technically, it’s illegal.  While you may have concerns about someone commuting a long distance to your place of business, it is not part of the job.  If the person tells you they are commuting from an area with a particular ethnic or minority population, you risk a discrimination charge.  And if ANYONE in your company currently deals with a long commute, you can’t defend your decision not to hire someone based on where they live.  All you can do is be clear on the expectations for the hours they must be onsite and get their commitment that this will not be an issue.

While a lot of this might seem a little frightening, the truth is that candidates rarely file suit over discrimination during an interview process.  Something very blatant normally has to happen that is much more definitive than the interview questions given as examples above.  However, it only takes one disgruntled candidate to ruin your mood for the next several months while you go through a court case.  You don’t want to be known as the person who cost your firm a $25,000 settlement with a candidate because you asked how they broke their leg when they came in for an interview.

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Posted by Jeremy McCarthy