If You’re Losing Gen Y Agents, the Problem May Be You
by Marilee Crocker /Are there things about your agency’s younger employees that drive you absolutely nuts? Like the amount of time they spend on Facebook, for instance? Or the fact that they just can’t seem to get in sync with a 9-to-5 workday?
Those may be the very traits that can work to your agency’s advantage. But agency owners and managers may need to rethink how they do business to make it happen.
That was the message that James Shearer, 32, had for older agency owners and managers at a symposium on the “Future Travel Agent Workforce” in Fort Lauderdale last week. The half-day symposium was hosted by ASTA’s Young Professionals Society (YPS).
Shearer, director of progress for Travel Masters, an Ensemble agency in Vancouver, British Columbia, spoke about what it will take to keep young travel agents from leaving the profession. His presentation was titled “Can We Avoid a Crisis?”
Why they don’t stay
The real talent gap in the travel agency workforce isn’t a lack of young new entrants, Shearer suggested. The talent gap is in the management style of the agency owners and managers who are doing a poor job of retaining younger people.
“Young people are joining our industry. The problem is they’re not staying. When people ask me why, I have three answers – culture and culture and culture,” he said.
Culture refers to the work environment, which he said is extremely important to young people.
“They want to work with people they can relate to. They want to be recognized. They want to grow,” he said, adding rhetorically, “Did I mention pay?”
Gen Y is different
It’s no secret that Gen Y members work differently than their older colleagues. It’s how agency owners and managers address those differences that is critical to the comfort and effectiveness of the team, Shearer emphasized.
Shearer exhorted listeners to turn their thinking around when it comes to younger employees, especially regarding the things they find annoying.
For instance, owners and managers should think twice before admonishing younger employees about the time they spend on Facebook and other social media, he said.
Facebook addiction
He cited the example of a travel industry employee, a “Facebook addict” who posted daily updates and photos on Facebook about an upcoming trip to Machu Picchu.
In doing so, the young employee created an exciting armchair travel experience that was seen by a lot of people. “You can’t buy that sort of brand marketing,” Shearer said, adding, “What if her boss had told her not to use Facebook?”
Agency owners and managers need to view younger employees’ habits in a fresh light, he suggested. “What sort of annoyances do you have with the younger generation that you can turn into a positive?” he asked.
“Are you going to rethink your approach to business to take advantage of the benefits these young people bring?”
Gen Y assets
Among the attributes that Gen Y employees bring to work is their flexibility, their interest in trying new things and their talent for solving problems, Shearer said.
You put those together and you have a “recipe for innovation” and for a company that “generates solutions,” he said.