John Schaefer teaches there is an employer/employee disconnect in the workplace today. He reckons that 65% of employees will be looking elsewhere for employment when the recession is over. (Other sources cite slightly different figures, but the trend is the same. The Herman Group, for instance, say that 54% of current employees overall—75% of younger employees will be looking)

John Schaefer is America’s Employee Recognition Expert.  His new book is titled Get More Productivity for Less Money…Your Employees will Love You for It!

Among the common gripes John hears is that there is too much reliance on technology to incent workers. Too often a form e-mail gets mailed out to company employees and a computer-generated certificate is given to the worker as incentive.

The good companies “humanize” the employees. One good way to do that is for managers to be visible. Management by walking around (MBWA, for short) should be practiced by all supervisors and managers. If recognition is due, then give it in front of the worker’s peers. This helps to build trust.

For the first time in in US History, we have four generations working in the workplace at the same time—Traditionals, Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y—the millennials. It’s up to managers to learn how to motivate each generation of worker. An intersting point John made is this. Generation X employees are less loyal than Generation Y employees. Gen Y employees grew up in a culture where “everyone got a trophy for participating,” so they want outcomes where everybody wins. Gen X employees guild small, tight teams. If a Gen X employee leaves a company, s/he is likely to take his/her entire team, too.

John has a 20-minute training program that he teaches. Listen to his entire interview below: