What do you bring to the table? - Unit 4

C1 Advanced · Multiple Matching · Complete Advanced, Cambridge University Press

You are going to read an article in which a young professional reflects on the ways in which young people are valued in today’s workplace. For questions 1–10, choose from the sections (A-D). The sections may be chosen more than once.

For any business to prosper, both now and into the future, a true understanding of the cultural shifts that have taken place in the workplace over the last few decades is vital. During that time, the companies that have found success in the face of one financial or health crisis after another have often done so by opening their doors to youth. They have understood that if a business doesn’t go out of its way to fully engage with the talent of the future, that talent will end up looking elsewhere. Despite this, far too many managers still think that young people just need to toughen up and accept antiquated, dying industry practice as ‘the way it is’; oblivious to the major drawback of this type of mindset: it prevents them from attracting the most promising candidates. Most jobs are likely to look very different in a few short years, so doesn’t it make sense to fill them with people who can continually develop and upgrade themselves?

One word, for me, sums up young people in today’s workforce: Dynamic. Perhaps because we are conscious of the difficulties faced by the generation immediately before us, we are coming to the workplace better prepared. Resilient, rather than optimistic, with the hope that our managers will empower us in our daily duties, embrace our digital dependence, and allow us to demonstrate how the business can be improved by our contributions. In many companies, there is still a reliance on the increasingly stale tactic of trying to keep staff happy with office perks that are designed to take their minds off the daily grind of work. While we wouldn’t necessarily steer clear of the bean-bag chairs, foosball tables and pizza Fridays that seemingly keep people happy for so long, they hold far less appeal for young employees these days. We don’t want distraction. We want to focus on our tasks entirely and wholeheartedly, accepting long hours as part of what we have to do to be successful.

Meanwhile, our instinct to bond with new technology is frequently overlooked. I have one friend whose boss insists that she take a notebook and pen to every meeting, even though she has a perfectly good note-taking app designed to integrate all aspects of her work. It astonishes me that such devotion to an outdated routine is still alive. Why go out of your way to dispute the consensus in business around the world, that advanced digital know-how is increasingly imperative and brings only benefits to a company? Any effective manager should jump at the chance to take advantage of our substantial digital intelligence, not to mention our keenness to share our expertise. Instead, younger staff seem to be evaluated on our ability to use a spreadsheet program designed in the 1980s. It’s time to move things forward. People of my age much prefer to get our work done through instant messaging rather than sending emails. Yet so many businesses are still entirely dependent on this latter medium, which anyone with any sense knows is bound to become obsolete soon. Over time – and some people would do well to accept this – everything changes.

In one area in particular, businesses are investing in innovation to attract today’s bright-eyed job-hunters. Paper-based job applications have been on their way out for a while, and forward-thinking employers are now partnering with software companies to create company-specific, mobile-based games that all potential candidates must play. Such a game might collect data on how well candidates solve problems, for example, or use algorithms to predict whether they would be a good fit within the company. Some companies even use games to determine whether the user was state or privately educated, or if their parents went to university, instead of having to ask these questions directly at interview. Millions of young people today are desperate for society to become more inclusive, and would undoubtedly welcome any initiative centred on improving the employment prospects of less privileged applicants. That said, it might sit uncomfortably with those who are keen to be picked purely for their talent and qualifications, however much they recognise the need for increased diversity in the workplace.

What do you bring to the table?

After almost a decade spent working for companies across the UK and Europe, Shantel Williams reflects on the ways in which young people are valued – or not – in today’s workplace.

explain how a management strategy has become increasingly redundant?

recommend an evaluation of long-term developments?

describe a modern means of assessing a person’s suitability for a post?

illustrate a refusal to adapt to a widely held view?

emphasise the work ethic of a particular group of people?

detail a contemporary application of a traditional process?

predict the end of a form of communication?

mention conflicted feelings that job seekers may have about a certain practice?

criticise a belief that unintentionally imposes limits on recruitment?

specify ways in which younger staff could be supported by those in charge?

Available as a free printable PDF worksheet with an optional answer key.

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