Generation Y no more computer literate than their generation X counterparts

Top Quote It has long been a commonly held view that the post war baby boomers (generation X) are less computer literate than those that followed them generation Y. End Quote
  • (1888PressRelease) December 27, 2012 - It has long been a commonly held view that the post war baby boomers (generation X) are less computer literate than those that followed them generation Y, however this long held view, ingrained in the British, is being questioned in the property industry as leading experts debunk this myth.

    In research, sponsored by Qube Global Software in conjunction with Property Week, and building on previous study's into this area undertaken by Dell in a joint project with Intel in 2012, IDC's mobile benchmark study and Gartner's study into the impact of mobile devices on network and data centre infrastructure coupled with the views of three expertise from within the property sector; Ken O'Mahony, EMC's director of real estate and facilities for Europe, the Middle East and Asia (EMEA), Shaun Jenkinson, occupier services director at DTZ and John Cuppello, CEO at Qube global software, it was found that technology use in the property industry transcends generations and is not the sole undertaking of tech savvygraduates. The full white paper can be downloaded for free: Worker of the future

    Generation X who would have started their careers before the mass uptake of the internet, have long been seen as slow on the uptake when it comes to new technology especially when compared to their younger counterparts, however this theory does not hold true in the property industry,with experts and laymen alike stating the egalitarian nature of technology. It should be noted at this juncture though that the majority of respondents to Property Week felt that generation Y would be faster to see the advantages of new technologies. However this was tempered with a word of warning, that while they may understand how to use new technologies they are not going to understand how to implement them in business situations.

    This notion that technology transcends ages is furthered by the research undertaken by Dell who found that being from Generation Y 'does not necessarily translate into higher demand for the consumerisation of IT. Going onto point out that many baby boomers 'have a healthy appetite for new technology.' These sentiments are shared by Shaun Jenkinson, director at DTZ who knows of 'clients in their fifties who are totally immersed in the digital world and are much more productive because of it….similarly, not every 21-year-old-fresh out of college is as IT literate as is commonly believed or expected.'However one should take this with a pinch of salt, as Jenkinson himself points out these individuals are the minority rather than the majority. Yet technology should still be seen as the great equiliser within the work force a position supported by Ken O'Mahony, EMC's director of real estate and facilities for Europe,who sees the uptake in IT as 'universal'. The latter goes on to state that such widespread uptake in technology within the Property Industry can be directly attributed to 'the easy availability of consumer technology that connects people.'

    In short any notion of a computer literacy gap between the old and young within the property industry should be thrown out as those from an older generation show themselves to be just as adept at mastering the latest technology as their younger counterparts. This fact should be seen as a major boon for the property industry as a whole, due to the entire workforce , rather than just a small sub sect of it, becoming more efficient through the use of new and improved technology.

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