A recent study refutes the belief that money makes the world go round for the younger generation.
Gen Y workers value job fulfilment over financial gains, according to a worldwide survey from the iOpener Institute for People and Performance.
According to their report, levels of satisfaction were more likely to inspire employer loyalty and peer recommendation compared to pay rates among staff born after the early 1980s.
In the study which surveyed 18,000 professionals, it was found that a belief in a firm’s economic or social purpose, and pride in the organisation and its work, was strongly correlated with the likelihood of retaining a Gen Y employee.
On the other hand, the study found virtually no correlation between increased levels of pay and a respondent’s likelihood of remaining in the job.
Jessica Pryce-Jones, founder director of the iOpener Institute, said that leaders needed to pay attention to employee engagement if they were to groom and keep young talent in their company.
“Recruiting talent is expensive, so measures which retain younger staff saves hard cash, and avoids expensive business disruption. Positive word-of-mouth recommendations across a Generation Y employee’s social network play a powerful role in attracting talent, and therefore provides employers with a financial advantage,” she was quoted as saying.
