NRBP Hosts Lunch Panel: It’s Not Your Father’s Workplace!

Yesterday, Newark Regional Business Partnership (NRBP) hosted a lunch panel at Seton Hall Law School entitled, “It’s Not Your Father’s Workplace!”  The all-women panel consisted of Beth Anderson, Executive Vice President and Publisher at audible.com, Meg Fry, Staff Reporter at NJBIZ, Ellen Lambert, Chief Diversity Officer at PSE&G, and Rebecca Moll Freed, Partner at Genova Burns, LLC.  The discussion was moderated by Mark Alexander, Professor at Seton Hall University School of Law, and the event was sponsored by Genova Burns, Seton Hall University, Verizon, and NJ Shares.

The discussion revolved around the workplace today and the environment shared by the Mature/Silent Generation (born before 1945), Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980) and Millenials (born between 1981 and 2000).  Perspectives among the panelists were varied and overall quite balanced.  Although the general belief is that Millenials prefer to move from job to job every few years, Beth Anderson made the point that audible.com is “a metrics based company.  And the metrics do not support the idea that Millenials want to stay in positions for less time.  Maybe the question is, ‘What can companies do to retain good talent?'”

There was discussion on the idea of nurturing talent, and not just the skills and talents that benefit the job description, but the skills and talents that each employee has that they genuinely enjoy and thrive from.  Megan Fry, whose background includes studying Improv in Chicago at the renowned Second City said, “If you tap into what makes people tick, you’ll not only boost productivity and output, you’ll also boost company morale.”

Ellen Lambert spoke to the value of Employee Resource Groups.  “Everyone wants the same things from work.  We all want quality of life and most people want to be able to bring their personal selves to work,” she said.  This thinking, along with the need to remain competitive within the industry, is what is leading companies like audible.com and PSE&G to offer perks and benefits such as subsidized meals, massage service, and manicure service for employees.

“The future of the workplace environment is about creating flexibility; recognizing that there are cases when one individual may need even more flexibility than another, but if that flexibility is given, you can nurture stronger loyalty,” Rebecca Moll Freed said.

NRBP will host is next event, a networking luncheon aptly named “Let’s Do Lunch” at The Metropolitan Room at The Newark Club on April 15th. To inquire about membership with NRBP, click here.