Who is responsible for getting Gen Y-ers “Day 1 Productive”?

New graduates are often technically capable but at a social and cultural disadvantage in the workplace – they don’t understand how the company works, why it works as it does, and what has happened in the past that created current day norms.

As for who’s responsible to get them ready, responsibility starts with them but is shared with their employer, as every company has its own unique culture. Companies can help new graduates become productive faster by implementing training programs, like Grade Learning’s College2Corporate program (C2C), that identify and address what has not been taught in business schools.

Graduates lack an understanding of the social and cultural history of the companies they are joining and the dynamics of why things are the way that they are. This is not the same as onboarding or “new hire” orientation programs. As the world evolves, businesses need to realize that just as they need their mature employees to “get with the times” they also need to find a way to provide new graduates with the chance to feel grounded in their new environments.  As Canada’s workforce ages, companies need new graduates to rapidly be ready to step into leadership roles that, in the past, would have taken a decade to qualify for. With accelerated career paths comes a need for accelerated gaining of experience and context – they need to mature at an unnatural rate. This can only happen if companies provide training/mentorship/internship programs that are tailored to rapid exposure to social/cultural norms.

Are you a Gen Y-er who has experienced this first hand? We’d love to hear from you.