THE I-GENERATION.

How Managers Can Integrate This New Employee Base's Unique Skills and Work Behavior Into Their organization

They have been called the I-Generation, Generation Y, Millennials, Speeders and Generation Next. Regardless of the label, the population of the new employee base (born since 1979) is upon us and truly needs to be managed differently than their predecessors. Although generational data is essentially stereotyping, there are some key characteristics of the newest generation that every manager and supervisor should keep in mind when recruiting and managing new players on their team.

First, the facts. The I-Generation is the largest generation since the baby boomers. Numbering 79 million in total, 30 million are teenagers and more than 14 million are currently 18 to 21 years old. This may be the most informed and knowledgeable generation of our time. They also are technologically savvy and could be the key to many organizations' success at making the Internet profitable.

In addition, the I-Generation has a demographic makeup that is different from previous generations. One in three is not Caucasian, one in four has lived in a single-parent household and three in four have had working mothers. Plus, they are the most mobile and explorative generation that has ever existed.

What makes them so different from the previous generation, which was referred to as "Generation X"? The typical Generation Xer grew up as a "latchkey kid" with double shift-working recession-plagued parents, went to college suspicious of large corporations and was told to "Just Say No." In contrast, the I-Generation attended all-day kindergarten, had large weekly allowances, was offered school internships and was told to "Just Do It."

In short, the I-Generation may be the most optimistic and industrious generation since the early baby boomers of the post-World War II era. Their optimism and global perspective can be attributed to their growing up in a more prosperous economy and never knowing the world without the Internet. Another factor is their parents, who finally got it right by focusing on the safety and welfare of their children. (Remember the "Baby on Board" signs?)

A GENERATION OF SELF -- YET STRONG TEAM PLAYERS

To fully understand this generation and how its members can contribute to an organization, you must first understand their perspective in terms of lifestyle. I-Generation members have been brought up in the fastest and most complex era of communication. They have been encouraged to be active leaders and doers. They have been trained right from the start to be involved. They have learned to do it all -- including sports, homework, projects, family activities and social life.