Why Gen Z is Unprepared for the Jobs of the Future – Article by Dan Schawbel - New
York Times Bestselling Author & Managing Partner of Workplace Intelligence
(https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-gen-z-unprepared-jobs-future-dan-schawbel/) The
same technology that is creating a generation with poor social skills is driving the demand
for those skills through the automation of technical skills. Gen Z is the first generation that
was truly born digital. They had access to more information, people and resources through
their devices earlier in life than we ever did. I'm a Millennial who grew up with Apple floppy
drives, Sony Walkman's, cassette tapes and minidisc players and without laptops, cell
phones, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Alexa. I remember being on a train several years ago,
witnessing an older man listening to his cassette player while a teenager looked at it like it
was an ancient fossil stolen from a museum. All future generations will be born with even
more digital devices and capabilities than their predecessors. As of now, Gen Z is using
technology the most with an estimated ten hours a day spent online and nearly a hundred
percent smartphone adoption. Throughout my research, personal experience and
conversations, it's clear that technology is a double edge sword. In one way, technology
has enabled Gen Z to communicate with their peers without any limitations, which has
made them feel connected and engaged. On the other hand, that same technology has
isolated them, cutting off the human contact that's necessary for them to feel empathy,
belonging, loved and social. As evidence, the number of driver's licenses issued to Gen Z,
compared to Millennials at the same age, has greatly declined with fewer cars purchased
as a result. They are more likely to use technology in isolation, having products and
services come to them instead of traveling. This isolation has led Gen Z to feel lonely and
experience mental health issues much more than older generations ever did at their age. A
study by Cigna of 20,000 people found that Gen Z scored highest for loneliness even over
senior citizens (48% vs. 39%). And, of course, being isolated from human contact can
severely impact your social skills even if it's just for a few days. When asked, just over a
third of Gen Z's admit that technology has weakened their ability to maintain strong
interpersonal relationships and develop people skills. This is exactly what my research
confirms and what older managers are frustrated by right now. Gen Z's and older
generations come into conflict because of the misunderstands cause from communicating
through technology instead of in-person. In a study we did with Randstad, we found that
over half of workers use technology to handle work conflicts over phone or in-person
conversations. Gen Z's lack of social skills is apparent in the school system and into the
workplace. Neither high school or college teaches them, or supports the development of,
their soft skills. Through a Gen Z global survey with Kronos, we discovered that about 40
percent credit their high school or college with preparing them for the working world. In the
study, they admitted that the school system doesn't teach them how to negotiate, public
speak, network and resolve conflicts Technology overuse has weakened their soft skills
while simultaneously automating technical skills, increasing the demand for workers with
strong soft skills. These soft skills will be in short supply in the future, as technology
reliance continues to erode the soft skills that will be in short supply. A report by McKinsey
analysed the jobs that are most susceptible to automation and discovered that jobs that
harnessed a worker soft skills are the least likely to be automated. Further, management
roles will eventually be void of technical skills as worker bypass managers to use artificial
intelligence in solving their problems. There are a number of ways that we can prevent
future labour shortages, skills gap and this potential economic crisis. Individuals should get
more face time by going to events, meeting with friends, picking up the phone or walking to
an office instead of texting and emailing. They should also take courses to improve their
soft skills, especially if their companies aren't investing in their learning. Individuals benefit
because they become more relevant as the economy changes and soft skills are even
more in demand. Companies should consider more soft skill training programs, encourage
more video conferencing and plan social events like retreats, workstations team building
activities and dinners. During these retreats, device usage should either be minimal or
prohibited to force human-to-human interaction. Companies benefit by allowing talent to
grow and filling their skills gaps. Schools should carve out part of their curriculum to teach
soft skills. Companies should work with schools to dictate their needs and schools should
adjust their offerings as a result. Schools benefit by increasing their placement rates. If we
know that we're going to have a soft skills shortage in the future, let's start preparing for
that today. We all have a stake in this! 1. Are you agree with the above article? Discuss
your view and opinion. 2. How can they develop their entrepreneurial skills (500 words for
both questions). *
1. Yes, I agree with the article above that Gen Z are too much exposed to the internet.
This is because, it has not only made our lives easier, it has also affected our thinking
skills and social behaviour. Spending too much time on the internet is bound to create
a few issues for Gen Z’s. As kids and young adults are getting hooked to the internet,
the generation becomes susceptible to the following problems. Limiting outdoor
activities and spending more time on internet has been linked to depression and low
self-esteem. It is possible that Gen Z’s will be shyer and more socially awkward as
compared to millennials and baby boomers. As self-esteem decreases, Gen Z are
likely to face confidence issues. The online world is often raw and unfiltered. Gen Z
often have easy access to inappropriate material. The development of internet has
exponentially increased the rate of cyber-bullying all over the world and it might lead
to crimes.
2. One of the ways to develop their entrepreneurial skills is start a business. There is
nothing like real-world experience. Whether to run a business on the side or fulltime, they get the opportunity to grow the skills such as business planning,
negotiation, sales and marketing. They will earn more through making mistakes than
they could through reading any business book. Second, they can manage their own
finance. This helps in understanding basic finance is essential in running own
company. They don’t have to be an accountant, but they should at least be able to
understand the basics around cash flow, assets, and profit and loss. They can start by
learning how to do their own taxes and manage their own budget and investments.
The ability to lead a team and stay organized is important when they become an
entrepreneur. They can start by looking for volunteer and leadership opportunities
around them. Volunteer to lead a Meetup group, start a fundraising project for their
favourite non-profit organization or get involved with their local community board.
The best entrepreneurs have learned how to communicate their passion and dreams
in an engaging way, both online and offline. To improve online communication
skills, they can stay active on your social media accounts, blog, set up an online
Facebook group or create a newsletter on their favourite hobby or topics. The more
often they put themselves out there, the faster their communication skills will grow.
Being an entrepreneur is about solving problems with the resources that they have.
The more they help others solve problems with their own businesses, the more their
own skills will grow. For example, they can create an accountability group for
entrepreneurs where each help each other out. In this way, they learn and grow
together. Keep their own learning and personal development active. There are so
many courses online, both free and paid, that teach a variety of entrepreneurial
skills. With such easy access to knowledge and resources, there really is no excuse
that they can’t build skills to succeed as an entrepreneur.
LYNAS MALAYSIA SDN BHD DUMP WASTE CRISIS. Lynas Malaysia is one of the largest and most
modern rare earth separation plants in the world. Lynas Malaysia is designed to treat the Mt Weld
concentrate and produce separated Rare Earths Oxide (REO) products for sale to customers in
locations including Japan, Europe, China and North America.The plant is located in the Gebeng
Industrial Estate near Kuantan, Malaysia, close to the Kuantan deep-water port. The plant is built on
a 100-hectare site that is adjacent to established manufacturers of key chemical reagents within the
industrial estate and has access to a skilled labour force and excellent infrastructure including water
and electricity, chemical and gas supplies.The plant was designed to comply with modern safety and
environmental practices to support our aim of providing a sustainable supply chain of rare earth.
Lynas is committed to engaging with and being a respected part of the local community in Kuantan.
The company employ more than 600 people from the local community.In 2008 Kuantan MP Fuziah
Salleh raised her concern over the government’s approval to build the Lynas Advanced Material
Plant in Gebeng. She urged for a detailed environmental impact analysis to be conducted. Start on
2011 a campaign against Lynas, called “Save Malaysia, Stop Lynas” was launched, led by activist
Wong Tack. Fuziah accused Lynas of adopting a different standard in Australia than in Malaysia.
Lynas Corp Ltd said it has been reviewed by the International Atomic Energy Agency and has
implemented all the recommendations made by the agency. Japanese investors provided a US$225
million (RM942.75 million) loan to double Lynas’ plant capacity after supplies from China came to a
halt following a row over disputed islands between the second-and third-largest economies.On Sept
5 2012, Lynas was awarded a temporary operating licence by AELB for a period of two years and on
Dec 9 2012, the Court of Appeal dismissed an application by the “Save Malaysia, Stop Lynas” group
against the issuance of a temporary operating licence to Lynas. On 201, the refining facility entered
production and on 2014 Lynas was issued a two-year full operating stage licence by the AELB.In
September 2018, the newly elected Pakatan Harapan government announced that it will review the
rare-earth processing plant. Fuziah was named as the chairwoman for Lynas evaluation committee.
In response, Lynas Corp CEO Amanda Lacaze said the committee could not confirm whether Lynas
would get a fair review. In December 2018, Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate
Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin said the management of Lynas should honour its commitment to
remove its water leach purification residue from Malaysia.In March 2019, Entrepreneur
Development Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Redzuan Md Yusof said the government will allow Lynas to
remain in the country to woo foreign direct investment. Wong Tack, in response, said he rejected
Lynas’ rare earth refinery in Gebeng based on environmental injustice and violations of Malaysia’s
law. In May 2019, Prime Minister (PM) Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the government will allow
Lynas Corp to keep operating its rare-earth processing plant in Gebeng. In August 2019, the PM also
said Lynas could keep the rare-earth processing waste from its Gebeng plant in Kuantan if it builds
and maintains a facility to dispose of its waste.There are mix felling and respond from Malaysia
citizen on the latest government decision on extending the Lynas licence. Bentong MP Wong Tack
says tp press that he doubts the veracity of a news report that said the government was likely to
drop its requirement for Lynas Corp to remove its rare earth processing waste from Malaysia.He said
he doubted the government make a bad decision as to think that a meagre USD$50mil was sufficient
to deal with Lynas' massive amount of toxic radioactive wastes which were for eternity. Until May
2018, the accumulated water leach purification (WLP) radioactive waste piled up in Lynas' backyard
stood at 580,362 tonnes. This amount is an increase of 128,798 tonnes in comparison to the figure
announced by the Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry on Dec 4,
2018.US$50mil is probably just enough to cover the cost of building the PDF structure, which may
last only 300 years. The cost to rebuild the PDF after it has collapsed, the cost to lease a huge piece
of our precious land for billions of years, the opportunity cost, the long-term management, as well as
maintenance cost and, most importantly, the health risk and harm to the environment have yet to
be factored in.Also right after Lynas gets permission to dispose of radioactive waste in Malaysia
there is the protest in Kuantan, several hundred people rallied against the Australian firm and
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's decision to extend its licence to operate. Mr Lim, an
activist that joint the rally comment that the issue had the potential to "tarnish the good name of
Australia" in the minds of millions of Malaysians. I don't understand why Lynas, an Australian
company, does this to Malaysia," he said.But the Prime Minister, 94-year-old Dr Mahathir, dismissed
criticism of Lynas' operations in Malaysia. "It's not Chernobyl. This isn't going to be dangerous, We
just have to accept this fate” he said. Lynas CEO Amanda Lacaze said she was optimistic the
"politicisation" of Lynas would finish, pointing out the company spends more than $200 million in
the local economy each year. Meanwhile, Australia's High Commissioner in Malaysia, Andrew
Goledzinowski, has accused opponents of the Lynas facility of putting forward "misleading
statements"."The universal model is that when you bring in raw materials and when you process
them in your own country, you deal with them in your own country," Mr Goledzinowski said. "We
import petroleum from Malaysia. One of the residues of petroleum is a thing called 'sludge and
scale'. It is 10 times more radioactive than anything that Lynas produces. And we bring that from
Malaysia. We don't send it back."The fate of Lynas in Malaysia is being keenly watched around the
world amid concerns rare earth materials could become a bargaining chip in the ongoing US-China
trade war. China currently holds a near-monopoly on the production of rare earth minerals, with
Lynas producing about 13 per cent of global supply. Case study questions: 1. From your opinion, did
our Malaysia government do the right thing to continue Lynas license with special condition for the
company to manage their waste. Try to relate the decision with the ethic theory that you have
learned. 2. In your view, is Lynas company morally responsible for the local safety and environment?
Explains (Unlimited Words). *
1. In my opinion, Lynas shouldn’t have continue due to the reason based on the ethical theory
Utilitarianism. The actions and policies should be evaluated on the basis of the benefits and
costs that will impose on society. Supporters of the factory have argued that the
technological spin-offs may be great. This is a debatable claim as the factory only extract
rare earth metals from ore imported from Western Australia. Important questions include
who will enjoy the benefits and who will pay the costs, the distribution of costs and benefits
across social groups and across the two countries (Malaysia and Australia), benefits arising
now versus benefits arising later and so on. Malaysians are getting the raw end of the deal,
especially in terms of having to bear health and environmental costs that will arise from the
toxic wastes that will be generated due to the fact that the plant is foreign-owned and that it
has been granted a 12-year tax holiday. Furthermore, waste produced by the factory defects
birth of new born babies.
2. In my opinion, Lynas company has not been morally responsible for the local safety and
environment before and must be morally responsible for the local safety and environment.
This is because Lynas has the potential to wreck our health and life due to its radioactive
waste, which is contaminated also with toxic heavy metals and chemicals. Lynas claimed that
it would recycle and reuse the waste, but it is still in the R&D stage. Dilution and spreading
out radioactive waste will expose more people and more places to its hazards while it trials
and experiments on our people, our cash crops, our land and water, to recycle and reuse its
radioactive waste. Victims of Asian Rare Earth (ARE) hazards have suffered in silence and
many have died young; some were not even born although conceived. There were
numerous cases of cancer and severe birth defects; most of them have died since. Lynas has
claimed that its WLP is not as toxic, but it has already generated over 40 times more
radioactive waste as compared with ARE in Bukit Merah. Thorium in the WLP waste has a
long half-life of 14 billion years. It is a certified carcinogen. Its long-live low-level radioactivity
is a source of ionizing radiation which is a cancer hazard. Hence Lynas should take the
responsibility to ship out the waste Otherwise Malaysians will end up living and dealing with
Lynas radioactive toxic waste.
Hi, you may watch a video title below; Best Advice to Small Business Owners above and reflect to
chapter BMC and your group assignment 2 that you already go through. 1. What is the Business
Model Canvas @ BMC? 2. In your opinion, why a new entrepreneur needs it? (500 words for both
questions). *
1. The Business Model Canvas (BMC) is a template and a strategic management tool
that quickly and easily focused on the vision and purpose of your business. It defines
and communicates a business idea or concept. It is a one-page document which
works through the fundamental elements of a business or product, structuring an
idea in a coherent way. The right side of the BMC focuses on the customer
(external), while, the left side of the canvas focuses on the business (internal). Both
external and internal factors meet around the value proposition, which is the
exchange of value between your business and your customer/clients. There are nine
building blocks in the business model canvas and they are customer value
proposition, customer segments, channels, customer relationships, revenue streams,
key resources, key partners, key activities, and cost structure. When filling out a
business model canvas, we will brainstorm and conduct research on each of these
elements. The data we collect can be placed in each relevant section of the canvas.
The business model canvas is a living document, therefore after completing it we
need to revisit and ensure that it is relevant, updated and accurate.
2. First and foremost, it helps us to focus on our business. The BMC focusses the
business on the strategic elements that matter most and will have the greatest impact
on driving growth. It is a visual nature aids comprehension by being able to see the
overall picture of the business and thereby spot areas of strength and weakness
depending on the inputs. Next, it helps the entrepreneurs to structure the
discussions. Some entrepreneurs take Business Model Canvas sheets to meetings
and use the building blocks to guide brainstorming. Grouping comments and ideas
under the nine headings quickly gives ideas shape. Moreover, it is great for
developing a portfolio of ideas. Under traditional business-plan thinking, we had to
spend weeks or months writing one business plan for one idea. Using the Business
Model Canvas, the entrepreneurs can spend minutes or hours sketching business
models for multiple ideas. Entrepreneurs still have to do more research, and might
end up writing a long business plan to secure capital or promote the ideas, but it is a
quick way to weed out bad ideas. Next the customer value proposition is at the heart
of the Business Model Canvas. It forces us to think deeply about what our venture
delivers to the customer, which problems it helps solve, and which customer needs
are satisfied. Great ventures start with the customer and work backwards. Weak
ventures start with the product, hope there is market for it, and put customers at the
end of the product development process. It is also fast. This Business Model Canvas
can be used to write a one-page business model to see if the ideas are better, and
take a lean entrepreneurship approach where the entrepreneurs can discover
customers and the best business model in real time in the market. Lastly, it makes
sense and it is logic. In its simplest form, the Canvas has front and back stages. The
front stage shows what drives value and how the entrepreneurs reach and make
money from customers. The back stage shows what is required to make the front
stage possible. Having used the Canvas many times, many find it quickly clarifies
thinking on the business model and that one building block naturally leads to the
next.