OK, so you need to call a young employee and ask him to come in on his day off on short notice. What do you do? Phone call? Text message? Prayer?

I’ll start with this disclaimer: Do not bother with the text unless your young employees have been begging for more hours. A text message is the easiest method of communication to ignore. You don’t have to look someone in the eyes. You don’t have to type any more than about three keystrokes on your cell phone to turn down this particular request. It is not going to work unless this person really wants to come in.

I recognize that the phone call from the work phone is a dangerous bet as well. Almost every cell phone today has caller ID, so your young employee will know before he picks up that you are calling. Odds are good he’ll know why you’re calling. Some might not even answer to avoid having to tell you “no. I had one boss who would call me on his cell phone with the caller ID blocked. As it turns out, though, he’s pretty much the only person who ever called me with caller ID blocked, so it was essentially the same thing.

Overall, I think the phone call is the way to go in this situation for two reasons. A text is easy to turn down, and you’re not looking to get rejected. (This lesson is quickly learned the first time you ask someone on a date via text message.) When you send a text to request something above and beyond the norm, you are meekly hiding away, hoping that the beneficent mercy of your young employees will pull you through if you’re mousy enough about it. Moreover, the phone call shows that you have the guts to at least call someone and ask for a favor. If you call, you’re letting them know it’s a big deal - it merited the 30 seconds for a full, actual phone call!

So, let your fingers do the walking, and I think you’re more likely to get folks to come in.

One question I know employers frequently ask is “What’s the best way to communicate with young employees?”

As I previously mentioned, there is not a one-size-fits-all answer to any question this broad. So, instead of trying to give you an answer to a question that can’t be answered, over the next few posts I’m going to take a few different common situations and look at a few of the ways bosses have communicated with me that have worked well, and a couple that were not well advised.

If you find yourself asking specific questions about communication with your young employees, feel free to “communicate” them to me via e-mail. My address is tj@generationwhy.com and it’s the best way to get in touch with me.

I’ll be starting tomorrow with that dreaded situation:  calling a young employee to ask him to come in on his day off.

I tend to speak in sweeping generalities in my posts. It’s a handy device to keep the blog from sounding like nothing more than the self-absorbed wish-list written by a young man who has yet to come to grips with the fact that the universe, work in particular, doesn’t revolve around him. (Which is not to say that this isn’t the case.)

One problem with such generalities, however, is that they often squeak over important details. The broader the stroke, the more minute details are glazed over. At times, I will make claims like “If you do X, all of your Gen Whys will be happy.” And while I will stand behind the claims I make, I won’t claim that they are true 100% of the time for every single person from the age of 16-24. That would be absurd.

It’s important, then, for employers to keep in mind that not every Gen Why is the same. Not every one of us prefers text messaging to phone calls or e-mail to face-to-face contact. I can tell you what my friends like. I can give you a particularly good picture of what I like. But I can’t begin to tell you what your employees like. You need to get to know them to figure that out.

It shouldn’t be that hard. Odds are good that if you’ve been successful in the business world to this point, you have already gone through this process countless times with clients and supervisors. You just need to extend that same process to your young employees. Get to know them. It will help you.

Some of your Gen Whys will like comic books. Some will like football. Some will like both, some neither. It’s helpful to know what an employee likes when you’re attempting to find a small bonus to motivate him.

Some of your Gen Whys will enjoy talking and interacting to no end. Others will eschew all forms of verbal communication for the written. Whether you’re attempting to get vital information to or from an employee, knowing how he prefers to communicate will aid in that.

At the risk of throwing out another generalization, we’re just like every other generation in this way: We’re all a little bit different. So, next time you ask yourself “How should I deal with a new young person?” you might want to consult with the very best source for information on that employee’s preferences: The new person you just hired.

Ask a quick question or two. For instance: Is e-mail the best way to get in touch with you? Do you prefer phone calls or text messages? Do you prefer baseball or comic books? Your young employee will have all the answers you need.

But don’t worry - I’ll still be here offering advice, too. There are a lot of cool ways (and inevitably some lame ways) that employers are connecting with young people’s interests, and I’m going to work to bring those to you so you can use them, too.

Tomorrow, I am departing for a camping trip, so I thought that I would take some time to address a work issue that is near and dear to my heart: time off.

As a young man, I can tell you that I greatly value time off. In fact, I start to get cranky, act out, and generally drop off in the productivity department if I don’t get a few days out of the workplace once in a while. I’ve been very fortunate over the last few years to have a number of managers who understood this and were willing to work with me on my schedule so that I could take a few needed sanity days.

Right now, I’ve got it even better. I work for my father’s small business at my day job, and work with a close friend writing my schedule at my night job. This translates into getting time off when I need it off. Sometimes, that’s for a meeting. Sometimes it’s to be at one job or the other for a big project. Sometimes it’s to go to a baseball game and then play some mini-golf. I can’t imagine a more flexible arrangement as far as getting days off goes.

As I was thinking about what I wanted to say about time off, I realized that there was no better way to tell you what I want than to tell you what I’ve got. Simply put, if you work with an employee on her schedule as if you were her father or friend, you’re going to have one happy Gen Why on your hands. This doesn’t mean that you have to bend over backwards to accommodate that employee’s every whim. It definitely doesn’t mean you should be calling at six in the morning to make sure she’s up. It means that you should just keep a few guidelines in mind:

1. Missing a day of work isn’t the end of the world. There’s always tomorrow, and there’ll always be work to do then, too.

2. I’m working so I can afford the stuff I do outside of work. What good is it being able to afford baseball tickets if I can’t go to the game?

3. Some days, I just plain don’t want to be here, and my work will reflect that. You’ll be able to tell that I’m having one of these days by observing a glazed look in my eyes, a slouched posture that seems best suited for watching the clock, and an increasingly sharp edge in my voice. Let me go home.

If you can do that, if you can schedule for your employees like you would schedule for your own children or your own friends, you’ll have a group of happy campers on your hands. No pun intended.

As far as I’m concerned, there are three main elements of the credit application incentive plan that make it so successful.

1. It’s a form of recognition.

I love being told that I’m doing a good job. It gives me the warm and fuzzies. It makes me feel like I’m good at my job, which makes me more likely to hang around and give it my all. The candy bars and energy drinks are really just different tangible forms of a pat on the back.

2. Management is fully behind it.

An atmosphere in which success is rewarded starts from the top down. Your Gen Whys won’t be patting each other on the back and celebrating the successes of your business if you aren’t. By taking the time to design these contests, the managers are showing that they care about credit applications. More importantly, when they deliver the coupons, it’s a celebration. There is no question that they care about this. There is no question that they want it done. There is no question that there are rewards for doing it.

Anything short of this would be a half-measure. You’d just as well do nothing if you’re going to do that. Managers who only give 50% engender employees who give even less. If those setting the norms say that 50% is acceptable, those following will give only that meager bit, at most.

3. It’s fun.

An eloquent thank you letter with flowery language and calligraphy doesn’t mean a thing to me. Maybe if I’m thinking about the future I’ll be able to save a copy of the letter to show future employers who wonder if my performance ever merited something printed with fancy lettering. But aside from that, it doesn’t change my life much. Bringing me something fun, whether it’s the name of the teams or the candy bar prizes, makes an immediate, noticeable improvement in my life. For your incentive plan to truly be an incentive, it has to include something I want. And fun at work is near the top of the list.

On Friday, I promised to present a cheap incentive plan. Get ready to take some notes.

I currently work for a major national retailer. One of the measures of success in our store is the number of customers who apply for the company’s credit card. These are not a particularly easy thing to get young employees to care about. We don’t see money from them. We don’t see merchandise move off the shelves. All we see is someone filling out a form.

Credit cards, however, are extremely bottom-line friendly for our company. So, it pays to get young employees caring about them. Knowing this, the managers at my store have found a number of extremely effective ways to get the store’s Gen Whys to care about credit applications.

Almost every week, they create different competitions for the cashiers at the store. Those who are able to get credit applications earn small coupons that can be traded for candy or energy drinks. Those with the most coupons win the competition and some sort of other accolade along with it. One time, the losers had to cook a pancake breakfast for the winners at a staff meeting. The next time, tickets to ball games were the prizes for winning teams.

Teams usually get goofy names (’Running Bull’ and ‘Rock Stars’ being just two examples), and the entire thing takes on a spirited atmosphere. The managers have even taken to trying to get the non-sales associates involved in rooting for credit applications by tying rewards for them to the successes of a member of the sales staff. This goes a long way in creating an atmosphere in which getting credit applications is celebrated.

Overall, the plan is cheap. The costs are printing a few coupons, buying a few candy bars and energy drinks, and taking the time and energy to come up with ways to keep it fun. Best of all, the young employees get into it. When I first started there, I would hear the cashiers paging for their coupons. Based upon the level of excitement they displayed, I figured that the coupons could be turned in for a raise, or paid days off. Imagine my surprise when I found out they were trading them for a Mars bar.

See! It’s cheap. It’s easy. It’s effective. Do it.

I’ve known many managers who simply don’t want to institute any sort of extra incentive plans for their Gen Whys. Their attitude is basically this: “I’m paying these kids to work already. That should be enough incentive for them to give me their best efforts.”

I will readily concede that the pay he gets for working should be enough for any employee to give his all. But that’s simply not the case with many young people. So, managers who are reluctant to implement these plans need to change their strategies. I know it’s painful and it feels like it shouldn’t be the case. But managers cannot afford to allow their views of the way the world ought to function to overshadow their understanding of the way the world actually is.

Retail companies recognize that, while people ought not steal, many people will steal. So, they adjust to this unpleasant reality by hiring loss prevention and buying security devices. They adapt their business practices to the world in which it must function. They’d be dumb not to. Employers must do the same thing when it comes to motivating young employees.

Once you’re ready to start providing that extra little push for your young employees, there still exists the question of how to do this efficiently. When I say ”incentive plans,” my mind jumps to stock options, company cars, and six-figure bonuses. I think that this type of association leads to a lot of reluctance and hesitation for employers who are told that they need to add a little extra incentive to get the most out of their Gen Whys.

But I know for a fact that extra incentives to get your Gen Whys to perform better can be easy and cheap. I swear it. I’ll prove it in my next post.

Here are five things you could teach me during a down period, instead of asking me to detail the soda fountain a third time:

1. Train me in a new area

All I do is make sandwiches. Throw me on a cash register for a while. Cross-training is good for your business. It’s also a great cure for boredom.

2. Show me how to interpret customer feedback

Most large companies use phone-in or e-mail surveys. Show me these. Teach me what they mean. If you don’t have this kind of a system, walk the floor with me. Teach me how to talk to customers and anticipate problems. I’ll be engaged while we’re talking and I’ll be better informed in the future.

3. Teach me about the nuts and bolts of running this business

Teach me about costs. Teach me how to control them. The more I understand about “the business we’ve chosen,” the more effective I’ll be. (Note, however, that if I seem bored by this, don’t waste your time. Some people will get into it. Others won’t. You can have them detail the fountain.)

4. Ordering

Go a step past what you did when you taught me about costs and get me involved in ordering supplies, food, or whatever. Even if you never intend to have me complete a single order, learning the amount of intelligent guessing that goes into a good order is a humbling experience. I probably won’t complain quite so loudly next time we’re out of some supply or another. And, if I’m reliable, you’ve just taken a task off of your plate.

5. Let me go home

Doesn’t really keep me busy, but I’m more likely to be busy in the future if I’m not burned out by mind-numbing boredom.

A note

I know this list is a little restaurant-centric, but it can be applied to almost any industry. Just substitute restaurant tasks (detailing the fountain) for retail tasks (re-folding clothes) or office tasks (collating).

Eveery job I’ve ever held has included down times that get incredibly boring. Whether it’s between rushes at a restaurant, filling out the same paper again and again and again at the office, or sitting in an empty retail store, I’ve been bored. Once I was so bored I tried to use a ball point pin, a push pin, two sticky notes, and a cork board to start a game of darts. (It didn’t work.)

I know that these down times are a necessary part of reality. They’re a part of school. They’re a part of summer break. TV shows have them. Movies have them. Work is bound to, too. But just because something is inevitable doesn’t mean one should do as much as possible to avoid it. Especially if you’re interested in retaining promising Gen Whys.

There are a number of reasons behind this:

First and foremost: Boredom sucks. When work is boring, it sucks. When work sucks, your Gen Whys start writing their resumes.

Second: Idle hands are the devil’s playthings. Most of the strange, upsetting, stupid and unproductive things I’ve done at work have been the result of boredom.

Third: Inevitably, someone who is bored will get yelled at for not working. Whether he’s talking with co-workers or simply staring at the ceiling, someone who is bored is just asking a manager to come ream him for not working. “Get back to work!” can seem insulting when the place is clean and there are no customers.

So, make sure your Gen Whys have work to do. Real work. Meaningful, challenging work. Please don’t ask me to organize and reorganize the toothpick display. Please, please, please don’t ask me to clean things that are already clean. Much better to just let me chat with a co-worker for a few minutes if you know you’ll need me later. If you won’t need me later, let me go home.

Or better yet, develop me a bit. Train me to work in a new area of your business so that next time I’m bored I can help out there and make your day a bit easier. If you notice that I am a creative and energetic enough individual to build a castle using catering boxes (walls), cups (towers), hotel pans (moat), and frill picks with stickers on them (flags), odds are good that those energies can be directed toward something more productive.

When dealing with Gen Why, managers should remember that we are a generation for whom sarcasm and cynicism are the norm. We didn’t grow up on Leave it to Beaver. We grew up on The Simpsons. Our sense of humor and our sense of what makes for a normal (or an irritating) interaction is far removed from the good old days that sprouted these expressions. Yet, managers keep using phrases that even seemed to irritate the Beav, thinking that we’ll spring to our feet with a “Yessir! Good point, sir!” each time they share one of these little pearls of wisdom.

So, here is the latest installment in my war against empty phrases masquerading as management techniques.

This week’s winning expression:

Boss says:

“Planogram.”

I think:

Profanities.

The lesson:

This word is one of the stupidest things that has ever happened to the business world. For all the talk I’ve heard about business being a straight-shooter’s world, I’m shocked that this word managed to make it into vocabularies, much less a wide usage. I don’t use pet names for my co-workers, and I don’t think that the tools I use at work should be any different.