Bridging the IT Generation Gap - ' The Access Conundrum ' (
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At a small business Ben runs on the side, newer
tools like Twitter, Facebook and blogs are a given in
terms of marketing. "It's a lot better than going to
another conference and hoping somebody stops by
my table," he says.
And young workers often move seamlessly
between platforms, starting a conversation on a
social network, for example, and continuing it via
text. One consequence of this always-on, mobility based
mindset: Workers expect to have access to their
own information at work, and to work information at
home; and they expect to use the devices and services
they like, which can cause tension with security- and
standards-minded IT departments. "They are used
to change, and they don't like waiting for tools; they
want things instantly," says Schneider, who is thinking
about starting a blog to communicate more effectively
with his team. "We need to be more flexible as
an institution to deal with that reality."
Cornelio, like many CIOs, has been cautious about
allowing messaging and social networking services,
and he has misgivings about the culture of partial
attention in which they thrive. "We need to make sure
these things aren't detracting from the understanding
of complicated financial information," he says.
But he sees the writing on the wall. "If we're going to allow people to train online or
through interactive Web sessions, we
will have to find ways to accommodate
these new ways of working."
Surprisingly, says Erickson, it is the
Gen Xers who feel most threatened
by the new technologies the younger
cohort uses so readily. Boomers get
credit for making an effort, but the
group in the middle is expected to
take easily to things that are new
to them. "The pressure isn't on the
boomers to be technical whizzes, but
it is there on the next generation," she
says." Orren, 35, feels the pain of the
squeeze play. "We're the straddlers,"
he says. The millennials are digital
natives; they were born into this stuff
and we're expected to get this as well
as they do. Meanwhile, the boomers
aren't expected to get it."
Page 7: Culture Shocks
