“Millennials” have been a frequent topic of discussion for many managers over the last few years. It’s hard to believe that some millennials have been in the workforce for over ten years.
If you’ve hired inexperienced employees recently, chances are you have a few twenty-somethings currently on your team. There’s a lot of bad press about this age group, so I’d like to talk about how you can successfully hire and manage these team members.
As a consultant, I often hear about how challenging it is to integrate young people into the work force. Armed with the right attitude and fresh knowledge, it doesn’t have to be difficult at all. Here are five tips to get moving in the right direction:
1. Don’t make assumptions or believe stereotypes. A big shift has taken place in the world of work. The Millennial generation—those born roughly between 1980 and 1998—is now the largest demographic in the workforce. This trend will continue, with immigration adding more numbers to this group. The Millennial population in the United States is projected to peak in 2036 at 81.1 million.
Take a minute for that to sink in.
In addition to overtaking the Baby Boomers in population size, twenty-somethings are more racially and ethnically diverse than the other adult generations. Once you factor in the diversity of life experiences, along with personality variations that occur across all populations, it becomes clear that managing them as individuals is the best approach.
2. Know who you are and how you are wired to manage. Just as individuals bring their motivations and experiences to work, so do managers when interacting with and leading their team. The better awareness you have of your own management style, the more effective you will be working with your team members.
Instead of thinking, “I’m from Generation X/a Baby Boomer and am different from the younger generation,” think “I have my own set of motivations, strengths, and inhibitors, just like this person who is new to the workforce. How can we best work together and complement each other’s styles?”
3. Learn as much as possible about your applicants. A whole industry has been created around helping job seekers shape resumes and cover letters to conform to keyword searches, and they are seldom written by the applicants themselves, so you’re often looking at a product rather than at a document that gives insight into the person’s potential. The good news is that tools exist to balance things out in your favor.
Behavioral interview guides give you a preview of how applicants will look on the job, and pre-employment personality assessments uncover intrinsic motivators such as detail focus, customer service orientation, and self-direction.
Knowing this information not only helps you make informed hiring decisions, it enables you to develop targeted and productive coaching and development plans.
4. Evaluate your job descriptions and be detailed about entry-level responsibilities. When was the last time you updated the language in your job postings?
Business is in a constant state of flux thanks to rapidly-changing technologies and consumer demands. It follows that jobs themselves evolve and requirements change. Younger applicants may not have the experience you’re looking for, but they might be just who you need in terms of skill sets. However, no one will know if the job requirements haven’t been updated in 12 years.
Also, thinking back to intrinsic motivation, be sure to spell out exactly what is expected, task-wise. You’ll attract more appropriate applicants with accurate breakdowns of job duties than with arbitrary demands of experience.
5. Share your company’s culture and work environment. We hear a lot of chatter about “what young people want,” which can be viewed as a false narrative. No group of people so vast and diverse can possibly be put in one box. People of all generations are different from each other, twenty-somethings included. There’s no need to wonder, “How can I reorganize things so this company looks more appealing to the new generation of workers?” and go chasing after an elusive, all-purpose explanation of what such people want.
A better approach is to take a serious look at your company culture and your work environment and highlight it when you promote the company. Is it a supportive setting that emphasizes teamwork? Or a competitive one where self-reliance and independent thinking is valued?
Instead of sifting through thousands of applicants trying to figure out which ones are viable candidates, take an honest look at your culture and share your insights. This is the most effective way of hiring people who will fit your environment. Embrace the fact that your work force will be made up of twenty-somethings, and adjust accordingly.
