The year 2010 looms large for human resources executives as they anticipate the baby boomer exodus from the workforce That´s the year the departures begin in earnest, a demographic wave that will substantially shrink the available talent pool, especially for experienced management-level workers.

Right behind the boomers is Generation X, the cohort of Americans born between the early 1960s and 1980. The group has long been portrayed as lacking in corporate loyalty and disdainful of hierarchy, driven by a need for freedom and self-expression and geared toward a free-agent mindset.

But as Xers reach their mid-30s and 40s, these workers are emerging as the recruitment pool for employers seeking mid-career senior and executive managers. Although a much smaller group than the boomers, the Gen X workforce has become one that HR executives and hiring managers covet, especially at companies that worry about their management bench strength, says Bruce Tulgan, author of Managing Generation X: How to Bring Out the Best in Young Talent and founder of RainmakerThinking Inc., a consultancy in New Haven, Conn.

"Gen Xers are the first generation to reach mature adulthood in the new economy," says Tulgan. So, with mortgages, young families and some job experience under their belts, Gen Xers are once again a force that employers would do well to understand. And for their part, forward-thinking companies have already begun to adjust their policies and benefits to attract and retain the generation that will eventually lead their companies.

Fully Invested in Family Life, Gen Xers Demand Balance.
Gen Xers have always expected some control over how they spend their time, preferring to integrate work into their life rather than making it the focal point. But as families and children enter the picture, work/life balance is no longer a hope, it´s a necessity, says Lisa Mainiero, co-author with Sherry Sullivan of The Opt-Out Revolt: Why People Are Leaving Companies to Create Kaleidoscope Careers "It´s a real negative if they need to be in the office day in, day out," she says. "They want to be able to bring their laptops home so they can meet the kids at the bus."

This is as true for Gen X women as for men of this generation, Tulgan says. "With Gen Xers, if you´re not involved with your kids, people think something is wrong with you," he says.

Benefits such as on-site child care and lactation rooms may have leveled off in the early 2000s, says Joyce Gioia, president of The Herman Group, a consultancy in Greensboro, N.C. But in the last year or two, there´s been a resurgence of these benefits as competition for talent has increased, she adds.

Attracting and retaining Gen Xers goes beyond tossing a few family-friendly and flexible work benefits into the ring. While many companies say they offer flexible schedules, Mainiero says, flex often extends only to special circumstances and certain types of work. "Organizations that want to recruit the most talented workers need to focus on performance outcomes rather than time clocks and effectively use technology to help resolve work/life conflict," she says.

Other policies that might appeal to Gen Xers include time banks of paid parental leave, reduced-hour careers and options for working parents who need to suspend their careers, Mainiero says. "Companies need to enable work to be done in a variety of ways and locations so the worker can interact with his or her family."

The California State Automobile Association has given extensive thought to meeting not just the needs of Gen Xers but all four generations represented in its workplace. CSAA supports telecommuting, flexible schedules, drop-in work spaces, rooms for collaborative work and private work areas. "We´re accommodating this generation´s tendency to be more independent, entrepreneurial types," says Jodi Dunn,human resources manager at CSAA.

Xers Want to Work on Their Own Time and Take Time Off.
Even as they mature, Gen Xers still value freedom and the ability to pursue their own interests. This is why some companies, like Motek, a Beverly Hills, Calif.-based software firm, are not only extending their vacation benefits but also encouraging employees to make full use of them.

At Motek, employees are offered $100 travel bonuses and five weeks of paid vacation per year. And for workers who take off three consecutive weeks, the company contributes a set of luggage and a $5,000 stipend for hotel and airfare. The idea is for workers to really experience what it means to get their minds away from work, according to Gioia.

Sabbaticals are another big Gen X desire, Mainiero says. Some companies might define this as giving people a paid month or two to explore their own interests, while others might offer a longer unpaid educational leave. "Gen Xers are interested in exploring life options that are congruent with their values," Mainiero says.

Another idea is to integrate community service with work, which appeals to Gen Xers´ desire to imbue their work with meaning. At CSAA, employees like Lindsay Combs, 28, a business project manager, include volunteer work as a goal on their quarterly performance reviews. "I love volunteering and the fact that I don´t have to use my personal time to do it," she says.

Gen Xers are less conventional in their thinking about their careers, their time and even their rewards. As Tulgan puts it, "Gen Xers might say, ´I don´t care about getting the weekend off; I don´t want to work on Thursdays.´ Or, ´I don´t need more money, I want my dog at work,´ or, ´I don´t care about a pizza party; I just want more money.´ "

Gen Xers have diverse notions of career trajectories. Rather than following a linear career path that ends with retirement, this generation is more likely to blend periods of nonwork with years of work.

"People will work for 10 years, take a sabbatical, go back to school, fix up their house, have a baby, get a degree, travel - something they´ve wanted to do but put off for various reasons," Gioia says.

Job Security Means Up-to-Date Skills and Continuing Cross-Training.
Xers want security just like any other generation, but not in the form that their predecessors expected. "The difference is, they´re not seeking security by trying to return to the postwar job security myth or a traditional path that´s become obsolete," Tulgan says. Acutely aware that radical change is endemic in the corporate world, Gen X workers don´t want to put all their eggs in one employer´s basket.

Instead, even Gen Xers who have traditional jobs see themselves as free agents. "When it became clear that the new economy was not about playing foosball while your friends brainstormed in the corporate hot tub, and more about companies engaging in ruthless human capital management practices, they realized they better be very aggressive when it comes to managing their careers and making sure they get their needs met," Tulgan says.

So instead of cleaving to one employer´s promises of a linear career path, Tulgan says, Gen Xers are intent on keeping their options open by relentlessly pursuing a repertoire of marketable and transferable skills that they can sell in the labor market if they need to. For instance, in Combs´ four years at CSAA, she´s moved from executive administrator in human resources to project coordinator in marketing, taken a course in project management, and gotten some exposure in business analysis and strategic planning. "Every time I want to do something, the door is open," she says.

Xers Look for Rewards in the Short Term.
One approach to increasing retention among nomadic Gen Xers is to offer short-term, performance-based rewards rather than long-term promises that these workers don´t believe will be kept. "They want to cash out every step of the way," Tulgan says.

"People will do what they´re rewarded for," Mainiero says. "If you have a traditional reward system with a tiny raise and a bonus and throw in some seniority, that doesn´t cut it. You need to pay not for face time but for performance based on project delivery," she says.

Salaries are also becoming more of an incentive, as Gen Xers are now paying mortgages and see their children´s college tuitions in their futures. While their youthful dreams of striking it rich may be fading, Gen Xers do want to ensure their compensation is competitive, Tulgan says.

About the Author

Mary Brandel is a freelance writer based in Newton, Mass. She regularly contributes to Workforce Insights on Veritude.com.

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