by Colleen Flood*
Flickr Image: wili_hybrid
The workforce is changing and millennials are a big part of the change. The millennial generation consists of 80 million 14-31 year olds. I learned this attending another fantastic workshop, “I’ll Take the Corner Office: Strategies for Success in the Workplace for Millennials in PR,” at the 2009 International PRSA Conference.
Ellen LaNicca Albanese (a boomer) and Kim Blake (a millennial), both of CRT/tanaka, explained that millennials are often defined as children of boomers, high maintenance, and all about being above average and always winners (everyone on the soccer team gets a trophy!) They stated, and I agree this is frequently the case and gave points on how to understand and manage these digital natives who can’t imagine a world without cable TV, Internet or cellular phones. Here are few other takeaways from the discussion:
- Millenials were raised in a child-centric environment with their parents often hovering over them. In the work place they are focused on success like they had in their childhood. Give them frequent feedback and break up assigned projects with lots of short deadlines to give them a feeling of accomplishment.
- Millennnials are digital natives – set ground rules for technology, but remember everyone has an iPhone or Blackberry, so if they don’t have access to Facebook or Twitter in the office they’ll have on their own – embrace it, don’t try to police it.
- Encourage teamwork – since many millennials went to daycare they work well in teams and are accustomed to uniting groups. Engage them in volunteerism for your organization.
- Don’t forget to keep the communication lines open in person. The highest percentage of ALL generations prefer face-to-face communications rather than over the phone or technology. Also, leverage their expertise in technology.
I work with millennials in my position at BurrellesLuce both inside the office and with clients. One experience I had recently confirmed that millennials are not selfish, spoiled brats. My colleague in the cube next to me spearheaded a recycling campaign due to the lack of recycling in the town our office is in. She actually has a repository for any recyclables and asks for volunteers to bring them home so as they don’t go in the regular trash. She got others involved and is making a difference.
As a mom of two school aged children I ponder what the managers of my kids will think as a result of their upbringing. What are your thoughts?
*Bio: Colleen Flood has been a sales consultant with BurrellesLuce for over 12 years and is eager to become a more integrated part of the social-public relations community. She primarily handle agency relations in the New York and New Jersey metro-area. She is not only passionate about work, but also about family, friends, and the Jersey Shore. Twitter: @cgflood LinkedIn: Colleen Flood Facebook: BurrellesLuce
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by BurrellesLuce: “Managing the Workplace with Digital Natives.” BurrellesLuce blogger @cgflood tips from #PRSA09 http://budurl.com/mrrb…
I’d have to say, I love the tips here. But I want to point out something that goes against the normal “bratty” stereotype. This generation of kids & young adults have gone through a lot themselves – perhaps not Vietnam, but we grew up with Sept. 11. We are also the generation of the divorced parents. We’ve lived double lives, fitting two weeks into one, just to please both of our parents who live different lifestyles. We’re from mixed homes (not broken) and I think, a lot of the time, some millennials have had to be the adults in the family, grow up faster, and take care of their parents, instead of the other way around.
Perhaps the reason we can so be entitled is because our parents weren’t there to support us as much as everyone thinks – and we learned responsibility (and thus, feel the need to hear we’re doing alright) from our situations. If you don’t have the support at home, you make up for it with activities and part-time jobs and education.
We’re a product of our environment, that’s for sure, but I’m not always certain it’s the environment everyone thinks it is.
While it’s nice to think that everyone on the soccer team got a trophy, I feel this is a little ideological. I’m sure in some cases, it’s right on, but I don’t know if it’s the norm?
Aubrey, thank you for your response. I agree with you and it may not always be the norm. Perhaps the millenial generation could be two-tiered with those closer to the generation x-ers who came from parents of divorce. They also had to fend for themselves and grow up faster as you mentioned like those older millenials.
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