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Melanie Beaudoin, co-chair of the Public Works and Government Services Canada Youth Network. (Etienne Ranger, OBJ)

Conference discusses Web 2.0 technologies to attract younger workers

There they were, five women who appeared to prefer drinking water from wine glasses on the table rather than the offered water bottles.

They sat stiffly on stage behind a long table, dressed well, speaking carefully and watching the moderator to gauge where he wanted the conversation to flow.

Some of these women, the face of young public servants today, said they're even willing to stay for life – if the public service piques their interest long enough, that is.

The event in which they spoke was the annual Government Technology Exhibition and Conference (GTEC) Oct. 28-30 at the Westin Ottawa.

"Several members of my family were public servants," said Melanie Beaudoin, 29, co-chair of the Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) Youth Network. She spoke in French to the group of mainly middle-aged delegates.

"It was the career of choice for them . . . and I knew there are good opportunities for employment in the government."

The undercurrent of this year's conference was the need to 'shift gears' to attract younger workers, and also to appeal to a younger audience when it comes to showcasing public affairs.

Allan Gregg, a speaker at the conference and pollster by training who hosts a self-titled current affairs show on TVO, said this was brought home to him during a 2004 interview with Canadian journalist Naomi Klein, who was then 34 years old.

"She told me in her entire adult life she couldn't think of one initiative of government that made her proud," he said in a GTEC keynote presentation on Oct. 29.

He rattled off a list of milestones from his earlier years – medicare, the current Canadian flag, the repatriation of the Constitution – and said he knew people just entering the workforce today are too young to remember these items.

"I realized anyone under the age of 35 had no touchstones, no frame of reference, to see government as a form of societal adornment."

That's what Penny Collenette, an unsuccessful Liberal candidate for Ottawa Centre in this past federal election, said she saw as she canvassed Carleton University.

"One thing that is a little worrisome – when I talk to students to particular – they don't see the public service as a number-one career choice," she said in an interview. "In other times, public service was seen as a place where people had aspirations for, and saw it as not only a stepping stone but also a career, a lifetime career."

"I think there's a lot of idealism in community today," she added. "But to me, from what I hear, it translates into 'I'll go to Africa and do some work there.' It's not 'I'll apply for a job in my own public service.'"

At the conference, speakers brought up a number of federal and provincial government services that are shifting to the Internet.

On Oct. 28, for example, came the announcement that the government will release its own version of popular user-edited encyclopedia Wikipedia – dubbed GCPedia – for employees to post and edit articles about their workplace.

The next day, John Bethel of the British Columbia Ministry of Labour and Citizens' Services said its decision to place employee health insurance services online has cut costs and reduced wait times.

The ministry is also looking into paying for software on a subscription basis rather than a flat rate, he added.

Sharing the panel with him was Gini Bethell, vice-president of client relations with Telus Corp., who spoke about the wireless services her company offers to government.

Such industry-government partnerships are essential to keep Gen-Xers interested, who take technology for granted, Ms. Bethell said in an interview following the panel.

"If you don't use (technology), the danger is that you run the risk of not appealing to them," she added.

Ms. Beaudoin said the Youth Network is conscientious of this risk and is planning to put a blog on its website to bring young people into a conversation with their potential employers.

"We're hoping to develop (more) stuff for the website," she said in English during an interview, "and I think networks like that can work really well."