They grew up taking the internet for granted, sharing holiday pics on Instagram and storing all their music on cell phones. They are millennials and by 2020 they will comprise 35% of the global workforce.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
So we should all be thinking about engaging millennials<\/a> — starting with attracting them away from competitors, ensuring they are effective at their jobs, and retaining them in the long run.\u00a0 Millennials value a transparent, collaborative culture.\u00a0 Silicon Valley companies with their open workspaces, flexible hours and their regular CEO-employee Q&A sessions are the gold standard.\u00a0 While this may not be a viable option for every company, here are some guidelines that will<\/em> help you to be millennial-friendly.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #1 Assimilate Them<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n You can stop calling them \u2018millennials\u2019 for start. At least not to their faces. And especially avoid conversations that go, \u201cYou millennials don\u2019t understand what hard work is…\u201d\u00a0 Millennials want to be part of a greater whole, and you need to make them feel welcome and help them fit in.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #2 Recognize Them<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n This is a group that likes to have their achievements noticed, and they can\u2019t wait.\u00a0 Your annual Rewards & Recognition offsite<\/a> is very valuable, but it\u2019s still too infrequent.\u00a0 Millennials can\u2019t wait that long.\u00a0 They would appreciate a pat on the back NOW! <\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #3 Frequent Feedback<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n As a generation that has grown up with enlightened parents asking their opinions, they are keen on feedback.\u00a0 That project isn\u2019t going to get done unless the millennial has had a chance to bounce off some initial thoughts.\u00a0 So be pro-active in this area.\u00a0 Maximize feedback opportunities<\/a>, which could be as simple as a \u201cHow\u2019s it going?\u201d.\u00a0 Feedback encompasses larger issues as well \u2013 a yearly performance evaluation, for instance, will need to be supplemented with more frequent and informal feedback sessions.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #4 Be Flexible<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Millennials aren\u2019t really comfortable in a highly structured workplace.\u00a0 Reporting at 9 and departing at 5 doesn\u2019t make a lot of sense to them.\u00a0 Getting the job done, even if it means working till 2 am, is the priority — and they feel entitled to come in late the next day.\u00a0 In fact, a research study* found that 37% of the polled millennials would take a 10% pay cut to have flexible working hours.\u00a0 Being dutiful and result-oriented, millennials can be trusted to telecommute effectively.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #5 Challenge Them<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n They literally thrive on it. In fact, the millennial fears being \u2018stuck\u2019 in a single job for a length of time. Move them around or add to their responsibilities.\u00a0 Multitasking is second nature to them.\u00a0 And \u2018new\u2019 is beautiful.\u00a0 To fully engage millennials you need to transfer them — team shifts and lateral moves that will allow them to explore new roles. This helps them mature into valuable and well-rounded employees.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #6 Teamwork Triumphs<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n This is a tribe that thrives in a collaborative culture<\/a>. An IBM study** showed that more than half their millennial employees claimed to work better in groups than alone. They also believe that they made better business decisions when there were team inputs. So build diverse teams, this will only benefit your organization, there is no down side.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #7 Mentor Them<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Unlike earlier generations who preferred a more independent work style, millennials generally do not resent close supervision. They welcome the feedback.\u00a0 And this dialogue is most productive when they feel mentored.\u00a0 The same study* that highlighted the importance\u00a0 of flexible working hours also found millennials willing to take pay cuts to join companies that were perceived to offer better mentoring.\u00a0 And \u2018mentoring\u2019 must include training, as they are all keen on professional development and career growth \u2013 don\u2019t forget that.\u00a0 So frequent training is welcome, especially if it is gamified training, for this generation grew up playing with digital devices.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #8 Sense of Mission<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Millennials feel that what they do should be worthwhile \u2013 they want to contribute to the greater good.\u00a0 They would ideally like to be in a company that shares their own values and priorities.\u00a0 If your organization\u2019s vision and mission statements support their values, great.\u00a0 If not, it could be worthwhile writing an informal departmental or project mission statement that could coincide with the millennial vision.\u00a0 They could also be encouraged to take up causes like the environment<\/a>, community projects<\/a> or NGO volunteer work<\/a>, and your company could help them connect with such causes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #9 Leverage Techno-Skills<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n This is the generation that is at ease with technology \u2013 in fact they will have expectations of your company environment.\u00a0 Your wifi had better be up to speed.\u00a0 This can work to your advantage \u2013 put them to work on the tech issues.\u00a0 Make them plan and implement a better company intranet, let them suggest tech solutions for office problems, get them involved in your social media outreach.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n #10 Work-Life Balance<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Finally, this is the generation that does not live to only work. The global public opinion and data company YouGov recently polled 1,000 millennial respondents about employment issues. One third said work-life balance was the most important factor when selecting a job, second only to salary.\u00a0 So your organization needs to provide a solution to this very real concern, money is no longer the sole motivator.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n And that\u2019s 10 steps you can put into practice to engage your millennials.\u00a0 You have the general drift, and you can probably think up some more.\u00a0 For engaging them is now an imperative, after all they are your company\u2019s future.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" They grew up taking the internet for granted, sharing holiday pics on Instagram and storing all their music on cell phones. They are millennials and by 2020 they will comprise 35% of the global workforce. So we should all be thinking about engaging millennials — starting with attracting them away from competitors, ensuring they are<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":70,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3167,3168],"tags":[2020,26,716],"class_list":{"0":"post-51","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-event-research-and-insights","8":"category-tips-and-guide","9":"tag-corporate","10":"tag-culture","11":"tag-india"},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13710,"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51\/revisions\/13710"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engage4more.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}