How to Keep Young Talent in Canada

How can we begin to negotiate the disconnect between Generation Y and the organizational cultures they encounter?

It takes two to retain. Talent, that is. Young Canadians have made it clear that becoming an employer of choice requires building better bridges between young people and the organizational cultures they encounter at work. This means genuine employee engagement and intergenerational conversation – something young hires say is lacking in many organizations in Canada.

Retention continues to be a hot issue among governments and employers across Canada, as many struggle to attract and keep young workers. The knowledge economy, an aging workforce, shifting values, youth out-migration and increased global competition for talent are putting pressure on employers to re-imagine their organizational cultures and re-evaluate their human resource management strategies.

Against this backdrop, how can we begin to negotiate the disconnect between Generation Y and the organizational cultures they encounter?

This is the crux of The Road to Retention, a new report released by the Public Policy Forum. It documents the results of a cross-country engagement series that convened approximately 300 young Canadians from a range of regional, cultural, sectoral and socioeconomic backgrounds, as well as select established industry leaders. These young people explored their values, influences and aspirations regarding work and the workplace, discussed with their elders how these shape their decisions about whether to stay with or leave a job, and put forward recommendations on shaping successful organizations for the future. The series evolved into an open, powerful, youth-driven dialogue that offered an opportunity for much needed inter-generational conversation.

The following are the results: recommendations for organizations in all sectors – private, public and not-for-profit – on how to attract and retain young talent.

Recognize and nurture new ideas and creative thinking. Young employees need to believe that employers are genuinely receptive to fresh perspectives, innovative solutions and risk taking, and will not only experiment but also act on new ideas.

Understand that the boundaries of the office have shifted. Flextime – not face time – is a priority for young workers. They want to be evaluated by their results, not their commitment to a traditional 9-to-5 workday. They believe working remotely and fusing their professional, social and personal lives can enhance the quality of their work.

Stimulate intergenerational conversation. Organizations need to find time and space for Generation Y and Boomers to interact, share, inspire and collaborate. Cross-generational conversation and collaboration are critical to succession planning, and also to bridging established patterns and new ways of approaching problems.

Show young employees how they can grow. Young employees look for mentors and lifelong learning opportunities to broaden their horizons, stimulate new perspectives and provide them with opportunities to bring fresh insights to their workplaces.

Maintain a real open-door policy. Managers must be truly approachable and not physically disconnected from the people they manage. In addition, youth value open, frequent, and informal dialogue to get feedback on their performance and areas for improvement.

Rethink benefit packages. Youth value employers who promote healthy lifestyles and consider the well-being of their employees. They want benefit plans that are flexible and evolve with their careers. For instance, young employees may be more interested in subsidized public transit passes than family-leave benefits.

Be a corporate citizen. Young people choose organizations that uphold a strong social mandate, are actively involved in their local communities and encourage employees to volunteer. The “people, planet, profit” bottom line has become the marker that many young people use to evaluate whether or not an organization is truly in the black.

Now is the time to engage young employees and all employers in discussing and implementing these recommendations. As the competition for talent intensifies, innovative approaches to human resource management are needed, both to maintain Canada’s comparative advantage and to shape the next generation of leaders.

The Road to Retention is available in English and French on the Public Policy Forum website.