High-Tech & Technology -
DUN’S
100
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2016/17
10
by Y generation executives, who prefer to em-
ploy resources without commitment, to pay-per-
use, this is the language which appeals to the
new generation. When Xers provide consulting
services for a short period of time, they don’t
threaten the company’s culture”.
Time will tell whether this process is positive or
negative. “It is certainly possible that the whole
world is going through a revolution, and in sev-
eral decades we would be talking about it in his-
torical terms. It may be difficult for the previous
generation to accept this, but it’s possible that
for the generations that are currently integrat-
ing into the job market this would be something
natural and a required change. This improvement
might lead to better news for the public, but, as
mentioned, it’s still early to say”, says Solomon
and reminds us that “we should keep in mind
that this is a worldwide trend which relies more
and more on globalization – today start-ups
are established on the basis of workforce from
Ukraine which is hired to accomplish something
quickly, on a per-demand basis. This perception
says that you don’t have to pay the employee a
lot and provide him/her with benefits such as
pension in order to get the required product.
This is something very dynamic, the entire orga-
nizational commitment becomes interest-based.
However, it is worth noting the initial studies
concerning the Z generation, which would con-
stitute the main driver in the job market within
a few years. Research in the U.S shows that
members of this generation, unlike the frantic
Y generation, see great importance in stability
and express their desire to remain in a single
workplace for several years and progress in the
managerial ranking.”
Ethosia estimates that the next couple of years
would continue to demonstrate extreme trends
in the entry of Y generation members and the
exit of Xers. The number would keep increasing,
not in a calm linear fashion, but a significant,
unorganized and not necessarily rational in its
magnitude, of Xers leaving on the one hand, and
on the other hand the entry of more and more Y
generation employees.
Prepare for the Z Generation
“Recently, the job market started to hire also
members of Generation Z”, Ethosia reminds us,
“this is the first generation that was actually born
into the age of internet and smartphones; they
played with advanced phones ever since they
were babies, and have no memories of life with-
out Facebook and Twitter. They are connected
and communicating in every single moment, and
prefer to acquire new knowledge from YouTube
videos, rather than from reading books.
These habits might become disadvantageous
when they will arrive into new workplaces and
be required to learn written information, such
as technical specifications or articles. There-
fore, it is worthy to assist them in acquiring this
initial knowledge, or figure out ways to adjust
it to them, for example, through videos and
presentations.
These young people, who are used to frequent
technological changes, are more independent
and innovative then their predecessors. As
people who grew up in a world which is still
rehabilitating from an economic crisis of an
enormous magnitude, they are less naive than
their parents – and they know that high-quality
education won’t necessarily provide them with
a jumping point into a profitable career. Quite a
few of them consider becoming independent,
instead of being dependent on large organiza-
tions for a living – as shown by a survey among
high-school students in the U.S, where 75% of
responders reported that they wish to open their
own business. It is possible that fewer mem-
bers of this generation would choose challenging
studies such as computer sciences – but it’s still
too soon to know.”
2016 wasn’t a revolutionary year from a gender
inequality perspective, in the world as well as in
Israel. In spite of Justin Trudo’s, PM of Canada,
insistence when he was asked how he estab-
lished a gender equal government – “we are
already in 2016”, in the western world as well
as Israel, equality still isn’t abundant. And what
is the situation in high-tech industry? Do more
women turn to high-tech positions?
“There is absolutely room for optimism” states
Solomon “if we srarted 2016 with women ac-
counting for only 43% of the industry, with most
of themworking in non-core high-tech positions,
such as administration, HR, economics and op-
erations, we see an increase of 2% in the number
of women employees in engineering, research
and development, which is currently 19%. While
this is indeed a fractional increase, a deeper
look into the academy, viewing the increase in
the number of women students in the fields of
science and engineering, can provide us with
optimism and a basis for predicting that this
trend would continue in the next few years.
Photo by Yonatan Blum
In Every Generation: 2016 was the Y Generation’s Greatest Year
(Continues)