As Millennials Enter the Workplace

By Terri Klass and Judy Lindenberger, courtesy of NAFE's latest News & Notes newsletter

The Millennial generation was born between the years of 1977–1997 and are the youngest generation to enter the business world. Today’s workplace also includes Generation X (born between 1965–1976), Baby Boomers (1946–1964) and Traditionalists, born between 1900 and 1945.

Millennials grew up with school shootings, terrorist attacks, AIDS, gargantuan oil spills and the internet. These things all influenced their view of the world. As children, they experienced everyone getting awards for sports and went to school when gold stars were handed out freely. As a result, Millennials want frequent feedback. They grew up with Baby Boomer parents, many who are self-professed workaholics, and therefore desire more work/life balance than their parents had.

Millennials bring many gifts to the workplace. They are resourceful and able to multi-task. They can Google, email and write a report at the same time; they can comfortably find information through the internet. They work well in team environments. They also want to make an immediate impact in their jobs and to move up quickly.

As Millennials move into management and leadership positions, we predict that there will be an emphasis on them asking others for their opinions – as opposed to “it’s my way or the highway.” They will respect different points of view and opinions.

Here are five tips to help you manage Millennials:

1.       Create an on-boarding experience for Millennials that helps them learn your company culture. Be crystal clear about company policies such as social media.

2.       Define performance expectations and explain why something needs to be done.

3.       Provide them with feedback – early and often.

4.       Judge them by what they accomplish rather than the number of hours they put in.

5.       Invest in personal development and training, like coaching and mentoring programs.