At the recent Network '08 conference in Atlanta, Eric Chester spoke about how to deal with the “whys” – Chester’s term for the young workforce you’re likely to hire. He titled his seminar, “The Aliens Have Landed – Meet Generation Why: Understanding, Managing And Motivating Your New Workforce.”

We spoke with Chester, who runs consulting firm Generation Why, to find out more about what he discussed.

Q: What ages are we taking about when we discuss Generation Why?

Chester: Generation Why is less about demographic birth years and more about the questioning mindset of today's emerging workforce. The term encompasses those coming into their first jobs at around 16 to those coming out of college into their first career positions at around 24.

Q: How does this generation differ from such a well-known past generation such as Generation X?

Chester: Too many differences to mention, but suffice it to say, they are like X to the 10th power. They have been influenced by a world that is radically different than the one you and I grew up in and they see life, work, career, family, and the future in a radically different way. Their definition of success and all that comes with it in a different way and they have a different view of work/life balance.

Q: What are the good/bad character traits of Generation Why?

Chester: It's hard to paint an entire generation with one broad brush stroke, but there are certain character traits that seem to be present in a majority of young workers. While you can't readily classify these traits as good or bad, you can say that people with these traits aren't going to respond to the same management strategies as those from previous generations.

Generation Why has the tendency to be impatient to the point they are easily bored, they have a tendency to disengage in the workplace and shut down or go into auto-pilot mode, they are blunt and expressive and speak their mind often without thinking, and they are skeptical and don't buy-in to the standard company line and promises made my company leaders.

However, they are the consummate multi-takers and can produce at a very high level, they are techno-savvy and adapt easily to change, and they are great when put into diverse teams and given projects and assignments.

Q: So just how do you motivate the Generation Why worker?

Chester: Before trying to figure out how to motivate Gen Why, first understand the importance of removing those things that de-motivate them. For example, if they have a tendency to get bored doing repetitive tasks, aim to rotate common tasks among employees so no one gets stuck doing the exact same thing every day. If they are impatient and don't like to wait for months before a performance review, aim to provide feedback that comes in shorter intervals.

If they tend to be skeptical of long range promises, shy away from those and inform them of those things that will take place in the near future.