“Digital natives are much less self-conscious when it comes to forming new contacts.“
Mizuko Ito, Anthropologist
Playing by the rules – Part 2
Young versus old
Studying the world of play reveals an important difference between young and old for the anthropologist: “Ask an adult to read a story featuring 500 named characters – just like in children’s trading cards and role-play games – and they will quit after a few chapters.” But giving up is not something future employees will be familiar with. Unlike many earlier generations, they recognize that they have reached a certain point but beyond that, there is probably a whole lot more to discover. And it isn’t a case of people having differing attention spans. According to Ito, “Digital natives have great intrinsic motivation to better their own achievements – even if it is with the help of others. As a result, youngsters are much less self conscious when it comes to forming new contacts and networking in order to gain access to additional knowledge.”
The medium is everything
Whether it’s cards, Gameboy or PlayStation – ever since their playful encounters with the likes of Pokemon and friends, young people have been used to searching for solutions, exchanging experiences, revealing tips – even to their opponents. Providing information to a competitor isn’t a hindrance, it’s the whole point. Because it is only possible to up the standard of the game and ensure we are getting the best out of it by working with the competition.
And these experiences have not just helped young people build close relationships with monsters and ghosts with super powers. IBM technology researcher Moshe Rappoport confirms Ito’s findings: “The Web generation boasts particularly fast reaction times, can process information better than others, is willing to take more risks and has greater stamina.” The fact that computer games also teach kids about strategic thinking, communicating and leadership means online gamers are becoming more interesting to recruiters. “But the next generation will also place high demands.” And Ito warns against forcing digital natives into existing company structures. For people who have grown up with the Internet, nine-to-fives are an outdated relic from the digital-immigrant era. “Young surfers and their online companions, advisors and contacts work across different time zones and have no hierarchies. What’s more, they demand a hands-on approach, transparency and the freedom to make their own decisions,” she continues. Just as the Yu-Gi-Oh cards provided young people with scope to develop their own strategies, their future employers will have to give them a certain degree of creativity and independence, too.
But on the flipside, thanks to peer-to-peer communities, the young job candidates have a great deal to offer in terms of flexibility and efficiency.
So much so that last May, German publication ‘manager magazin’ advised companies to take Ito’s field of research seriously because digital natives will change society.
And these experiences have not just helped young people build close relationships with monsters and ghosts with super powers. IBM technology researcher Moshe Rappoport confirms Ito’s findings: “The Web generation boasts particularly fast reaction times, can process information better than others, is willing to take more risks and has greater stamina.” The fact that computer games also teach kids about strategic thinking, communicating and leadership means online gamers are becoming more interesting to recruiters. “But the next generation will also place high demands.” And Ito warns against forcing digital natives into existing company structures. For people who have grown up with the Internet, nine-to-fives are an outdated relic from the digital-immigrant era. “Young surfers and their online companions, advisors and contacts work across different time zones and have no hierarchies. What’s more, they demand a hands-on approach, transparency and the freedom to make their own decisions,” she continues. Just as the Yu-Gi-Oh cards provided young people with scope to develop their own strategies, their future employers will have to give them a certain degree of creativity and independence, too.
But on the flipside, thanks to peer-to-peer communities, the young job candidates have a great deal to offer in terms of flexibility and efficiency.
So much so that last May, German publication ‘manager magazin’ advised companies to take Ito’s field of research seriously because digital natives will change society.
Encouragingly, Ito adds: “Companies must understand the digital native phenomenon and see it as a cultural evolution – not as cultural revolution that destroys everything before it. It’s all part of playing by the rules.”
