People In Your Organization Want A Voice

20-somethings who are entering the workforce today have been shaped by their experiences on the web. Although there is a sort of competition around who can collect the most friends on My Space or Face Book, there is no hierarchy in the online universes. These young adults have grown up in an online environment where each voice is as important as every other. They expect to be heard and they expect to be taken seriously. Anybody who wants to recruit, hire, teach, market and sell to, or reach in any way - including those who are called to share a faith with them - needs to be aware of this reality and be prepared to enter into a relationship that is based on mutual respect. Participative decision making processes must be standard procedure for any business, school, or religious organization that hopes to include this new generation. But it might be helpful to note that it's not just emerging generations demanding mutual respect and an equal voice in decision-making processes these days. According to Jim Fitzgerald of the Associated Press, at least some members of the oldest generations are making exactly the same demands.

MAHOPAC, N.Y---It was just another morning at the senior center: Women were sewing, men were playing pool -- and seven demonstrators, average age 76, were picketing outside, demanding doughnuts.

They wore sandwich boards proclaiming, "Give Us Our Just Desserts" and "They're Carbs, Not Contraband."

At issue is a decision to refuse free doughnuts, pies and breads that were being donated to senior centers around Putnam County, north of New York City. Officials were concerned that the county was setting a bad nutritional precedent by providing mounds of doughnuts and other sweets to seniors.

The pickets said they were objecting not to a lack of sweets but that they weren't consulted about the ban.

"Lack of respect is what it's all about," said Joe Hajkowski, 75, a former labor union official who organized the demonstration. He said officials had implied that seniors were gorging themselves on jelly doughnuts and were too senile to make the choice for themselves.

C. Michael Sibilia said, "I'm 86, not 8."

An organization can't afford, of course, to include every member in every little decision. You'd never get anything done. But neither can you afford NOT to include people in the process of deciding the BIG PICTURE for your organization. Use participative processes involving as many people as possible to articulate your purpose and principles; and do the same thing every year to agree on strategic directions. If you've never done this before, get an outside facilitator to help you do it. People will be more willing to trust that the process is really fair, that your agenda isn't driving things, and that their voices are really being heard. If people sense that they have helped shape the big issues, they'll be less likely to freak out on you over the little ones.

Of course, it'll help if you serve donuts.

Read the whole story here.