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This post was co-authored by Laura Sherbin and Karen Sumberg. You say you want a revolution? Better set up a Twitter or YouTube account. Once derided as sandboxes for Gen Y slackers, messaging and social networking sites are the new soapboxes, organizing centers, town halls and, as the recent events in Iran have shown, an increasingly powerful news source. Much has been made of the youth engine driving Iran's demonstrations half of the country's 71 million people are under the age of 25 and nearly two-thirds are under 30. "Just look at a single photo of a rally on www.youtube.com/citzentube to see hundreds of hands raised in the air and holding a cellphone camera to get a sense of how tech-savvy this generation is," says Steve Grove, head of news and politics for YouTube (now owned by Google). "Now the activism that young people have always engaged in is being reflected in mass platforms for mass distribution. But it's not just about documenting an event," he adds. "It opens a conversation about what's taking place." Grove's expansive and enthusiastic take on YouTube is at the heart of Google's mission. This company has always stood for the democratization of information and connection. Until recently, it was a conversation mostly confined to the raised-on-the-Net younger generation and a few older outliers. Now, however, it is rapidly expanding across all ages and demographics. And, with collaboration a driving force in the 21st century workplace, new research by the Center for Work-Life Policy finds that smart companies are eagerly figuring out how to get employees of all ages to participate. Their secret weapon: Generation Y workers. Think of it as spreading the wealth. According to CWLP data, Gen Y (the 70 million-strong demographic dynamo born between 1979 and 1994) is a connected, tech-savvy tribe, comfortable with state-of-theart communication technology; 64% regularly participate on social networking sites compared with only 20% of their Baby Boomer colleagues. In fact, Boomers are looking to learn from the Ys: 88% see the Ys

as tech-savvy and 40% say they have already asked their younger co-workers to teach them about iTunes, text-messaging and social networks. Time Warner formalized this information exchange with an unusual version of a mentoring program in which the traditional roles of older mentor and younger mentee are reversed. The Digital Reverse Mentoring program matches college students from outside the company with senior executives for oneon-one meetings about Web 2.0 applications and the many emerging and mutating technologies changing the media industry. Time Warner recruited Gen Y mentors from college students who were not only passionate consumers of digital technologies but also creators of it writing blogs, posting videos on YouTube and making imaginative use of new media not only to better understand how new technologies are impacting Time Warner but also to obtain fresh ideas on optimizing the company's online presence. "Executives felt that there was so much knowledge to be gained from these college students," says Vera Vitels, vice president of global people development. "They were impressed with the types of conversations they had and very satisfied with the overall experience." So satisfied, in fact, that the program has been extended from four pilot cities to larger groups of executives throughout the company. Consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton has long been challenged to ensure that its far-flung workforce remains embedded in the company's culture. In 2008, the tech department created hello.bah.com, an internal database with social networking capabilities that enables employees to search for specific colleagues or people who share similar interests, post blogs and participate in wikis and other community building applications. Within 14 months after this grassroots application launched, 36% of Booz Allen's workforce had signed up. Ys who reach out to Boomers on the site help them utilize it more effectively; conversely, Boomers share their know-how in other areas with their junior colleagues. Quick, post that on YouTube. Laura Sherbin is a vice president at the Center for Work-Life Policy where she heads up CWLP's survey research. She is an economist specializing in work-life issues and gender. Karen Sumberg is a vice president at the Center for Work-Life Policy and an expert in Gender, career pathing and communications. She has led key research projects for CWLP including "Bookend Generations: Leveraging Talent and Finding Common Ground." Sherbin and Sumberg are co-authors, with Sylvia Ann Hewlett, of the Harvard Business Review article "How Gen Y and Boomers Will Reshape Your Agenda" in the July/August 2009 issue. More blog posts by Sylvia Ann Hewlett More on: Generational issues, Internet, Social media

Sylvia Ann Hewlett Sylvia Ann Hewlett is president of the Center for Talent Innovation and Sylvia Ann Hewlett Associates. She is the author of 11 books, including Winning the War for Talent in Emerging Markets. Follow her on Twitter at @sahewlett. Comments (8)

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Jorge Lazaro Diaz

08/27/2009 10:22 AM

Earlier this summer I hired several college interns to help develop the online equivalent of our firm's live marketing events. I am very tech savvy, but the understanding of social media these "kids" brought with them was priceless. I held my own in my with Linkedin, but I'm still dependent upon them for making the best use of Facebook. And where they were at their best had less to do with their knowledge of a specific tools and everything to do with their ability to think through what combination of social media applications and approaches makes the most sense for a given campaign. They just get it. These interns have all returned to school for the semester, but I will continue to work with Kari in exchange for service hours in my nonprofit endeavors work helping out of work people (see www.CareerJockey.org). The social media approach we use will be all the stronger for it and I will continue to get mentored in this rapidly growing field. show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply

Sandy

08/26/2009 10:54 AM

I would suggest looking for someone who has demonstrated expertise in technology and social media marketing that is not necessarily someone who is under 25. There is more to consider than how to put up a facebook page. A full social media strategy needs to be considered before launching a campaign. There is an assumption here that comfort with technology is an endorsement of social media as well. I hear a lot of mocking of twitter from Gen Y (at least in Canada maybe it is different in the US). show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply

Brett Hummel

07/02/2009 03:02 PM

While I agree that there is a lot of potential in Gen Ys teaching older generations to use technology, and in the productivity gains that will come from incorporating social networking and other web 2.0 tools into the workplace, I do not think that companies truly understand what is taking place or how to use the technologies effectively. The youngest generation is not only asking to use these technologies in their office lives, but rather for companies to transform how they operate and do business. Millennials are looking to change the model: making a company much more flexible and agile, less hierarchical, and rewarding not time spent in the office but results. While there are exceptions, I do not believe that a majority of companies have accepted this new mentality, and with this recession I think that many are fighting this mentality. It seems that many companies are not really integrating these web 2.0 platforms into their operations, but merely going along with the crowd in establishing Facebook pages or Twitter accounts. I rarely see companies customize these tools either externally or internally to maximize their impact on their employees or customers. They also do not understand how to actually connect with this generation, and do not realize that Gen Ys see most corporate pages on Facebook as invasions of their personal space or the fact that only 22% of Twitter content is created by Millennials. As a result, most of the money that companies spend on these tools for... show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply

Andy

07/02/2009 12:42 PM

I too have seen this current rhetoric on Gen Y's skills in social media which totally seems to ignore Gen X. As a member of Gen X and leader in social media I find this Gen Y focus to be frustrating and even a bit discriminatory. Since when is it ok to make business hiring or collaboration decisions purely based on age? If we apply this same logic shouldn't all baby boomers just go ahead and retire and enjoy their golden years? Of course this doesn't make sense and neither does the point of this article. I will chalk it up to another baby boomer (base on her wikipedia profile) who just doesn't get it. show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply

Scott

07/01/2009 03:03 PM

I have to agree with Suz. Gen X is saddled with managing the "grandparent(Boomers)/grandchild(Gen Y)" love fest in the workplace. Gen Y may know how to implement the message but has yet to really learn what the message needs to say and how to frame it. Maybe COLLABORATION between the groups is a better answer than siloing the generations. show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply

Tom Ferry

07/01/2009 02:48 PM

Thanks to all three ladies for the blog. In order to engage people, we have to speak in a way they want to get the message! show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply

Priyanka D

06/30/2009 01:55 AM

this is another reason why social media is a good marketing strategy for companies, cause gen Y will really take to it. Its a great way to involve the gen y. show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply

Suz

06/29/2009 01:12 PM

Hm. Small wonder gen-xers are a wee bit disgruntled: a(nother) generational discussion focusing exclusively on Boomers and Y-ers. Off to read more of Tammy Erickson's work and, perhaps, to gripe with members of my own tribe. show more show less Flag Like ReplyReply 0 new comment was just posted. Show Real-time updating is paused. (Resume) Add New Comment Post as Let Gen Y Teach You Tech This post was co-authored by Laura Sherbin and Karen Sumberg. You say you want a revolution? Better set up a Twitter or YouTube account. Once derided as sandboxes for Gen Y slackers, messaging and social networking sites are the new soapboxes, organizing centers, town halls and, as the recent events in Iran have shown, an increasingly powerful news source. Much has been made of the youth engine driving Iran's demonstrations half of the country's 71 million people are under the age of 25 and nearly two-thirds are under 30. "Just look at a single photo of a rally on www.youtube.com/citzentube to see hundreds of hands raised in the air and holding a cellphone camera to get a sense of how tech-savvy this generation is," says Steve Grove, head of news and politics for YouTube (now owned by Google). "Now the activism that young people have always engaged

in is being reflected in mass platforms for mass distribution. But it's not just about documenting an event," he adds. "It opens a conversation about what's taking place." Grove's expansive and enthusiastic take on YouTube is at the heart of Google's mission. This company has always stood for the democratization of information and connection. Until recently, it was a conversation mostly confined to the raised-on-the-Net younger generation and a few older outliers. Now, however, it is rapidly expanding across all ages and demographics. And, with collaboration a driving force in the 21st century workplace, new research by the Center for Work-Life Policy finds that smart companies are eagerly figuring out how to get employees of all ages to participate. Their secret weapon: Generation Y workers. Think of it as spreading the wealth. According to CWLP data, Gen Y (the 70 million-strong demographic dynamo born between 1979 and 1994) is a connected, tech-savvy tribe, comfortable with state-of-theart communication technology; 64% regularly participate on social networking sites compared with only 20% of their Baby Boomer colleagues. In fact, Boomers are looking to learn from the Ys: 88% see the Ys as tech-savvy and 40% say they have already asked their younger co-workers to teach them about iTunes, text-messaging and social networks. Time Warner formalized this information exchange with an unusual version of a mentoring program in which the traditional roles of older mentor and younger mentee are reversed. The Digital Reverse Mentoring program matches college students from outside the company with senior executives for oneon-one meetings about Web 2.0 applications and the many emerging and mutating technologies changing the media industry. Time Warner recruited Gen Y mentors from college students who were not only passionate consumers of digital technologies but also creators of it writing blogs, posting videos on YouTube and making imaginative use of new media not only to better understand how new technologies are impacting Time Warner but also to obtain fresh ideas on optimizing the company's online presence. "Executives felt that there was so much knowledge to be gained from these college students," says Vera Vitels, vice president of global people development. "They were impressed with the types of conversations they had and very satisfied with the overall experience." So satisfied, in fact, that the program has been extended from four pilot cities to larger groups of executives throughout the company. Consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton has long been challenged to ensure that its far-flung workforce remains embedded in the company's culture. In 2008, the tech department created hello.bah.com, an internal database with social networking capabilities that enables employees to search for specific colleagues or people who share similar interests, post blogs and participate in wikis and other community building applications. Within 14 months after this grassroots application launched, 36% of Booz Allen's workforce had signed up. Ys who reach out to Boomers on the site help them utilize it more effectively; conversely, Boomers share their know-how in other areas with their junior colleagues. Quick, post that on YouTube. Laura Sherbin is a vice president at the Center for Work-Life Policy where she heads up CWLP's survey

research. She is an economist specializing in work-life issues and gender. Karen Sumberg is a vice president at the Center for Work-Life Policy and an expert in Gender, career pathing and communications. She has led key research projects for CWLP including "Bookend Generations: Leveraging Talent and Finding Common Ground." Sherbin and Sumberg are co-authors, with Sylvia Ann Hewlett, of the Harvard Business Review article "How Gen Y and Boomers Will Reshape Your Agenda" in the July/August 2009 issue. Posting Guidelines We hope the conversations that take place on HBR.org will be energetic, constructive, and thoughtprovoking. To ensure the quality of the discussion, our moderating team will review all comments and may edit them for clarity, length, and relevance. Comments that are overly promotional, mean-spirited, or off-topic may be deleted per the moderators' judgment. All postings become the property of Harvard Business School Publishing