How the Internet Changed Employees

My father would tell me by the time I was twenty cars would fly, or at least hover. Well, twenty has come and gone and my crossover SUV most definitely touches the ground. For years I asked myself, “What was my dad thinking?”

He grew up in Detroit, was a military man and watched us travel to the moon. (Not to mention a little too much Star Trek.) In his mind’s eye the next great technical advancements would be in travel and he was right… kinda.

My dad passed when I was still in my teens, so he never got to see the technological leap that would come and he could have never predicted the impact.

Travel did change the world, not in automobiles, but in information.

The birth of the internet changed not only how we shop or research, but the very people who use it. Since the launch of the World Wide Web in 1993 it has become the epicenter for information shared around the world.

So what?

This changed more of our lives than we probably realize. The generations of employees that are entering the work place today are wired differently. They have a thousand pieces of information at their finger tips and the world is open to them. With so many options, they hold the cards.

If they are talented or gifted, you need them more than they need you. So what is a manager who has always lead from a top down model to do?

Adapt.
These new employees will devote themselves fully to your company if you buy into a few thoughts:

They are social beings, don’t cage them

Start with trust, don’t make them earn it

If they are performing and accomplishing work, if possible, give them flexibility     (work from home etc…)

Remember, you need them more than they need you

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