Ministry of Children and Youth Services, Toronto, Ontario

 

"When millennials resisted organizational change."

 

 

THE CHALLENGE:

 

A team of stellar research and evaluation millennials resisted a new business model which completely changed their job function.  

 

WHAT WE DID:

 

As leadership, 

• We clarified the new direction and rationale for change, promoting individual opportunities for growth through temp assignments, training and development of new Team Lead positions.

• We created a collaborative work environment, changing the physical layouts and off-site work options to offer open 'pod' work space, with plug & play power stations in line with millennial work+life integration values.  

• We encouraged monthly "pod parties" with hoola hoop team initiation, culinary competitions, and personality board games to integrate social values and improve engagement - millennials like to work hard and play hard.

 

RESULTS: 

 

• Staff won team and individual awards, including Ministry awards for project performance, and a national "Future Leader" Award, from the Government Technology Exhibition Conference, for excellence and innovation in IT project management and organizational engagement (2011). 

• As Manager, I won a staff-nominated Divisional Award for "Diversity - Creating a More Inclusive, Mentally Healthy Workplace" (2011). 

• The team secured $250k 'new' funding for a joint Ministry wide information management assessment project, boasting an unprecedented collaborative, senior executive co-leadership model.  

• As part of implementation of recommendations a new unit was created with a manager and six staff positions ‎to deliver on project findings.

• Due to the department’s success, management received weekly requests for 'informational' interviews from external candidates attracted to the new department.