Reference no: EM133034418

Case

Lifelong commitment to one employer is a thing of the past. An analysis by Princeton economist Henry Farber revealed that the percentage of private-sector employees who remained with the same employer for 10 or more years has dropped from 50 percent in 1973 to less than 35 percent today. Those with 20 or more years with the same employer dropped from 35 percent to 20 percent. To be sure, some of this movement is employer-driven. Lifetime job security is long gone for most positions. So are benefit packages that would keep employees secure, such as rock-solid pensions and generous health benefits. But does a generational shift in values also explain the drop? According to Pew Research, 66 percent of Millennials say they want to switch careers some time in their life, while 62 percent of Generation X members and 84 percent of Baby Boomers say they would prefer to stay at their current job for the rest of their lives. Another study suggested that while 64 percent of Baby Boomers "really care about the fate" of their organization, this figure is only 47 percent for Millennials. Yet another study indicated that two-thirds of Millennials had plans to move or "surf" from one job to another as a means of gaining desired skills and increasing their pay. One Millennial, Rebecca Thorman, notes that mobility makes sense only because if you aren't mobile, you limit your options. She says you can't expect your pay to grow "by staying at the same job . . . You just can't." These values don't sit well with some employers. "We prefer long tenured employees who have stuck with us and been loyal," says Dave Foster, CEO of AvreaFoster, an advertising agency in Dallas. "It appears that a lot of Millennials don't think that one path is the answer. This is a problem because the commitment isn't there." To attitudes like that, Thorman retorts, "We're not going to settle."

Question 1. In your experience, do younger individuals differ from older individuals in their plans to remain with one employer for a long time? Do you think these differences, if you believe they exist, are due to shifting economic realities or to changing work values?

Question 2. Do you think you should feel free to "job surf"- purposely moving from job to job as soon as the desire strikes? Do you think employers have a right to ask about "job surfing" plans when they interview you?

Question 3. If you had an interview with Foster or someone with his views of Millennials, how might you combat his preconceptions?