It's easy to find examples online of people making fun of millenial and Gen Z communications issues - not knowing how to leave voicemails, wanting comms to be immediate, expecting an exact response...

I'm becoming increasingly annoyed with people with active careers, so I'd say a safe range would be 28-50. People who don't understand how to use collaboration tools.

Scenario 1: You need an account created, a password reset.

Option 1: Send a text message outside of my business hours (which are listed in Teams) consisting of "Hi, Kurt". When I respond, tell me you can't get into "The System". I'll then have to ask "for which system", at which point you've gone on to do something else and respond 10 minutes later. I then realize that you've ignored the prompts telling you that your password is expiring and please change it. You tried to change the password to the same password, then gave up.

Option 2: The same, except you cc: a couple of VPs in an email in parallel.

Option 3: In your first text message, say, "Hi, Kurt, I realize you're not in the office yet, I'd appreciate you resetting my password on system XYZ. My email is user@domain.com, or I can be reached at 415 555 1212. Thanks!

Scenario 2: You somehow get the cell number of the head of IT. You send them a text message despite them being logged into Teams and showing as available. You don't identify yourself and try to cram a problem report and service request into 140 characters. You're, of course, just about to go into the movies with your kids, so your phone's on silent for the next 90 minutes.

Scenario 3: Your company has a well-publicized path to request IT services, and a "bulletin board" where people share IT tips during the current migration. You ignore the multiple requests to perform time-sensitive tasks and instead wait until you're locked out of a business app, then post to the all-company bulletin board asking for help.

Scenario 4: You realize that your company is building an IT department and the current team is overloaded. You have responded in good faith consistently, but dela responding while you're getting your teeth cleaned. Email your VP after no response in 15 minutes. (BTW, my desktop support tech has already said he'd like to not call work with this user, who unfortunately has worked there for a significant amount of time and feels entitled to act this way.

Scenario 5: The "this could have been an email" meeting. No agenda listed, no planned outcomes. Let's get on a call while you figure out what you need to ask or. Someone joins late. When the meeting invariably runs long, keep talking. By the end of the day, each meeting has run a few minutes long, putting joining the next meeting on time in jeopardy.

I'm going to start asking "what is the desired outcome of this meeting?" and announce "You have x number of minutes of my time, let's get started and see what happens.
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Re: How To Communicate
By: poindexter FORTRAN to All on Sun Nov 02 2025 14:25:00

It's easy to find examples online of people making fun of millenial and Gen communications issues - not knowing how to leave voicemails, wanting comms t be immediate, expecting an exact response...

I'm becoming increasingly annoyed with people with active careers, so I'd sa safe range would be 28-50. People who don't understand how to use collaborat tools.

I recently read something from a member of Gen Y or Z that claimed that part of their collective issue is that the literacy rate for their Generations is lower than the previous ones. I didn't look it up to confirm this for myself.

I spent a brief while doing security... granting initial access and some password resets, etc... and that can be a very thankless position. Luckily I was only interim until we found someone else and got them trained... they had done it before and actually enjoyed it!... so it wasn't as bad as being stuck with it. ;)

As for the people who want to call meetings for things that can be an e-mail, I tended to find there were as many who were younger than your "active career" ages who would do that. They liked to come into work about 9am (after many of us had been here an hour or two already), spend most of their day doing ???, and then schedule meetings for 4pm, which was after most of us would be gone.

This was before COVID and the adoption of Teams, so those were expected to be in person meetings. The persons in question were usually "analysts" who somehow thought their position put them "over" development staff. I told my teams that if someone called a meeting well after their normal business hours and wasn't someone in their chain of command (i.e. my boss or above!), they were not obligated to attend.

That fixed it pretty quick. ;)
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poindexter FORTRAN wrote to All <=-

It's easy to find examples online of people making fun of millenial and Gen Z communications issues - not knowing how to leave voicemails,
wanting comms to be immediate, expecting an exact response...

I miss alt.sysadmin.recovery. There's nothing like a strong drink and a
peer group.


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I recently read something from a member of Gen Y or Z that claimed that part of their collective issue is that the literacy rate for their Generations is lower than the previous ones. I didn't look it up to confirm this for myself.

That would be sad if confirmed. I just blame the ignorance though and wrong life quality expectations.

-h1

... -=Lordz of BooM are back=-

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I recently read something from a member of Gen Y or Z that claimed that part of their collective issue is that the literacy rate for their Generations is lower than the previous ones. I didn't look it up to confirm this for myself.

That would be sad if confirmed. I just blame the ignorance though and wrong life quality expectations.

I tried searching on it and got mixed results. Best as I can tell, Gen Z
are far enough less likely to read to their children (vs. previous
generations) that it is causing some experts alarm.

Also, the states with the lowest child and adult literacy rates are New
Mexico and California, respectively.


* SLMR 2.1a * If worst comes to worst, you *CAN* turn most things off.
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Re: Re: How To Communicate
By: hollowone to Dumas Walker on Wed Nov 19 2025 02:38:00

...the literacy rate for their Generations is lower than the previous
ones.

That would be sad if confirmed.

But hardly surprising

I just blame the ignorance though...

Ignorance of who or what? Your statement's incomplete.

and wrong life quality expectations.

Again, incomplete. Statement needs expansion.
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Re: Re: How To Communicate
By: Dumas Walker to HOLLOWONE on Wed Nov 19 2025 11:13 am

I recently read something from a member of Gen Y or Z that claimed that part of their collective issue is that the literacy rate for their Generations is lower than the previous ones. I didn't look it up to confirm this for myself.

That would be sad if confirmed. I just blame the ignorance though and wrong life quality expectations.

I tried searching on it and got mixed results. Best as I can tell, Gen Z are far enough less likely to read to their children (vs. previous generations) that it is causing some experts alarm.

I would discard the idea.

We get the same sort of behavior in Spain despite the fact everybody has access to education and seemingly every Fulano and Mengano has studies of some sort.

The main issue is people does not care and we have reinforced the notion that stuff is not important. It is as easy as that.

The fact so many professional comunication channels are clogged by shit does not help either. More than half the emails my users get through professional channels is junk that does not move the firm forward. For every practical email ("Jack, Helen is showing up this Friday to pick her ECGs. Make sure you leave her copies in the office") there are 10 that are corporate filler, such as Union newsletters or self-congratulatory bulletins ("We are on our way to become leaders in social sustainability!"). Most stuff goes into the trash bin unread. It is hard to convince people that IT comms matter when it pushes trash.


--
gopher://gopher.richardfalken.com/1/richardfalken
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The main issue is people does not care and we have reinforced the notion that stuff is not important. It is as easy as that.

I cannot disagree with that.


* SLMR 2.1a * Don't blame me, I voted Libertarian.
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I tried searching on it and got mixed results. Best as I can tell, Gen Z are far enough less likely to read to their children (vs. previous generations) that it is causing some experts alarm.

Also, the states with the lowest child and adult literacy rates are New Mexico and California, respectively.

Well.. GenZ now are what.. 20-30? I hope not so many have children considering extended time required to grow up these days.. otherwise lack of will to read to your own offspring is least of the problem for their kids :>

but as those in 20s today read less.. then I'm not surprised, considering all the audio/video driven dopamine they get from the internet.. but yeah. stats required anyway... I just hope they still at least read graphics novel as we did!

-h1

... -=Lordz of BooM are back=-

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I just blame the ignorance though...

Ignorance of who or what? Your statement's incomplete.

Many people miscommunicate not because they lack of skill or general ability, but because they don't care.

-h1

... -=Lordz of BooM are back=-

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A49 2024/05/29 (Linux/64)
* Origin: 2o fOr beeRS bbs>>>20ForBeers.com:1337 (1337:3/129)

Well.. GenZ now are what.. 20-30? I hope not so many have children considering extended time required to grow up these days.. otherwise lack of will to read to your own offspring is least of the problem for their kids :>

but as those in 20s today read less.. then I'm not surprised, considering all the audio/video driven dopamine they get from the internet.. but yeah. stats required anyway... I just hope they still at least read graphics novel as we did!

-h1

... -=Lordz of BooM are back=-

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A49 2024/05/29 (Linux/64)
* Origin: 2o fOr beeRS bbs>>>20ForBeers.com:1337 (1337:3/129)

Graphic Novels?
Like Pogo?
Ed
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Graphic Novels?
Like Pogo?

like comics.

-h1

... Xerox Alto was the thing. Anything after we use is just a mere copy.

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