We were at meetings of the Global Design Alliance recently where Rex Miller made a stunning statement: "For the first time in history the young generation knows more about the way things work than those in charge."
Initially shocking, but also likely true.
Millenials are growing up fluent in a new structure. This isn't about knowing how to use an iPhone. It is about understanding how the new structure works. If you don't believe the structure has changed, consider this example: coordination has replaced planning.
Remember when you went to the theme park and your group split into those who loved roller coasters and those who were terrified of them? There was always a plan to reconnect. Meet by the (entrance, roller coaster, food court, etc.) at 3:00. But what happens now? Now, we don't make a reconnect plan because we have cell phones. We can find each other anytime simply by calling. Places and times to meet can be determined on-the-fly based on changing circumstances. For example, if you plan to have dinner with friends, then arrive at the restaurant to find there is a two hour wait, you can check Yelp! to find a desirable alternative nearby then call your friends while still in their car and avoid the wait.
The reason Millenials understand more about the way the world works is that they are growing up in this condition. They are coming of age in a world where coordination replaces planning.
Here's another major change: size/cash aren't necessary to be successful.
Have you considered what it means that small, one-person shops like on Etsy, Amazon or E-Bay can function in the same way that the mass-retailers do? With virtually no start up cash, you can launch a business with simply an idea. You don't have to wait for someone to approve it and finance it. Writers once had to wait for a publisher to get their message into the public. Now a blogger can pull as many readers as a New York Times columnist. This empowerment to be able to access audiences, resources and knowlege without the benefit of size and cash changes the game for what it requires to be successful. What does it mean for people growing up in a world where they can think up an invention, have it rapid-prototyped in China, and sell via a digital storefront carrying virtually no inventory? What types of skills are needed to be successful in this model?
The examples above are evidence of fundamental changes in "the way things work."
If the Millennial are growing up without any past ideas of "the way things used to be" what does that mean for 2018 when they become the dominant makeup of the workforce?
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