Why should I care about helicopter parents?

12.4.09

Of course we’ve all heard the stories of HR managers, hiring managers or bosses receiving phone calls or “drop ins” by parents advocating (or complaining) on their adult child’s behalf. 

You should hear college professors talk about this. Corporate America has had its share of dealing with the hovering helicopter parent. Despite the irritation of dealing with an adult’s parents questioning you, why else should this concern you? 

If a parent is willing to advocate on behalf of their adult child in the workplace, you can be assured that they consistently advocated on their child’s behalf in school, in after school activities, and in their social relationships. 

Helicopter parents are known for blaming everyone else for their child’s mess ups and quickly removing blame from their child. Take for example the young student who fails a test (because he/she didn’t study or prepare).

A helicopter parent will often call the school on the child’s behalf and reprimand the teacher for not instructing their child well enough. What does this teach a child?

1) Mom and dad are going to save me from everything 

2) Nothing is my fault 

3) I can get away with it

When nothing is your fault and you are consistently saved from your mistakes, you don’t benefit from learning from your mistakes or develop imperative self management skills such as, accountability and responsibility taking.

As we know, self management is a key factor in effective leadership and success in the workplace. So, fast forward several years when the helicopter adult kid is on his/her own and working in a job and messes up, how is he/she supposed to all of a sudden be okay taking blame, responsibility and accountability for their actions. 

That’s why we are hearing constant complaints from HR and management about Generation Y employees having difficulty accepting constructive criticism and feedback and trouble accepting responsibility for their actions. 

In addition, when a parent calls to advocate on their adult child’s behalf, it is kind of difficult to continue taking that employee seriously as he/she tries to recreate the parent-child relationship in work, ultimately destroying their credibility and personal reputation. 

Check back on our next blog to learn some simple strategies to combat the effects of your Generation Y employee being too coddled and protected and helping them develop appropriate workplace self management skills.