Interesting post by Rusty Weston on Fast Company on the retention woes for Gen Y. This really caught my eye:

“Taleo teamed with Harris Interactive to conduct a survey of 2,045 adults ages 18 and older, a series of questions about their first jobs and first employers.

Three out of five respondents said that their first employer did not provide a clear path for advancement. Of course, the reality is that few employers provide a clear path to anything, much less to the corner office.

Other key findings:

• Describing how their first job made them feel, 13% said they couldn’t wait for Friday to arrive, 10% wanted to quit every day and 8% felt it was a waste of their time
• 19% of 18-34 year olds wanted to quit their first job every day, compared to 3% of those 55 years old and over”

My response:

In the work I do with Gen Yers and their bosses/leaders, the common complaint I hear is that Gen Y is bored. Because they have been so exposed to so much stimulation, the Millennials I have met say that they most want variety and meaningful work. Companies like Intuit are addressing this through top notch rotational development programs, which gives young workers tons of opportunities to do something different every day. Maybe it’s time to shift the way we all work…spice things up a bit, and keep it interesting.