THE debate surrounding this year’s GCSE and A-level results, and the attendant shortage of university places, risks missing a fundamental truth about a new generation of workers in Yorkshire.

Whether they are preparing for a place at university or the workplace, these young people are the first “digital natives”, and will have much more advanced expectations of the role technology can play in work and education.

For this generation, videoconferencing and instant messaging are not novelties but necessities. And whereas in previous years young people might have socialised around the water cooler or in the common room, now they might well prefer Twitter or Facebook.

Getting best value out of these people will therefore involve adapting the productivity and management tools that employers use, accommodating greater demand for flexible working with increased use of teleconferencing and presence indicators.

At a technological level it will require organisations to invest in the infrastructure and bandwidth that will allow the first generation of “digital natives” to perform at optimum level. And at an organisational level, it will mean striking a balance between accommodating new technology and educating young people on what is an acceptable way of using new communications technology .

As with all generational shifts, integrating “digital natives” into age-old frameworks will not be without its challenges, but with the right policies and adequate infrastructure in place everything is achievable. One thing we must accept, however, is that we are on the threshold of a seismic shift in the way we work and learn.

Tim Mercer, Head of Business markets for ntl:Telewest Business in Yorkshire