Millennials in the Workplace: How to Lead and Motivate Generation Y

“The Children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority, they show disrespect for adults, and love to talk rather than work or exercise. They no longer rise when adults enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter in front of company, gobble down their food at the table, and intimidate their teachers.”  – SOCRATES (469 -399 B.C.)

So perhaps generational friction in the workplace is not a new phenomena.  However, proactively managing Millennials in the workplace will reduce workplace conflict, improve productivity, and generally make your life as a leader more easy.

First, we should define the various generations currently at work:

• Traditionalists:  1925 – 1945
• Baby Boomers:  1946 – 1965
• Generation X:  1966 – 1980
• Millennials:  1980 – 1999

Who Cares About Millennials in the Workplace?

There are a variety of reasons a good leader will want to proactively manage Millennials in the workplace:

• Clashes between generations can directly affect turnover. If team members do not feel like they fit in, or that their values are not reflected in the workplace, they are more likely to leave.  Millennials in the workplace often have specific skills that can be difficult to replace.
• Different generations have been influenced by different life events and thus have different perspectives that can impact motivation and performance.  For example, Millennials in the workplace often have:
  • Unique ways of viewing quality.
  • Distinct and preferred ways of managing and being managed.
  • Different priorities that effect how and when they show up for work.

What has Shaped and Influenced Millennials in the Workplace?

Every generation or cohort has been affected by its life experience.  It is important to understand cultural influences when managing Millennials in the workplace:

• The Trophy Generation. Millennials in the workplace often expect their work lives to be similar to their upbringing.  They have constantly been acknowledged and reinforced their entire lives.  They expect the same at work.
• Millennials in the workplace can baffle other generations because they were raised with an entitlement and “rights” perspective.
• Millennials don’t really remember a time without the internet
• They have not known a world without microwaves, cell phones, CD’s, laptops and iPods.
• Millennials were raised on reality television.  They believe anyone can be a star.
• Many Millennials in the workplace were in high school during the Columbine tragedy.
• They know never ending war, and don’t remember a time without terrorism.
• Scandals – OJ Simpson, Monica Lewinsky

Expectations of Millennials in the Workplace

• Lot’s of positive feedback.  Millennials in the workplace expect the same reinforcement they were brought up on.  Feedback is not optional to them.
• Millennials in the workplace expect to win and are optimistic.
• Millennials in the workplace expect a work/life balance.  They will work hard, but also expect to play hard as well, and will quickly leave an employer that insists on constantly interrupting their work/life balance.
• Millennials in the workplace expect to be listened to and collaborated with.
• Hierarchy doesn’t matter to Millennials in the workplace.  The pursuit of titles and status has far lower value than it does for other generations.
• They expect to be able to work with the latest technology.

How to Lead and Motivate Millennials in the Workplace

Not every workplace can achieve all of the suggestion below, but serious consideration should be given to how to best manage and motivate Millennials in the workplace:

• Make the workplace fun.  Provide an informal, digital, multi-tasking, team oriented workplace.
• Make the workplace flexible.  Focus on the work outputs; not when, or even how it gets done.
• Give them guidance and some structure. Millennials in the workplace are used to listening to others for advice and input.  They are used to following schedules and having routines laid out.
• Leverage their comfort with collaboration and multi-tasking.  Give them a wide range of projects to work.  Use project teams.
• Positive feedback is especially important to this generation. Give them on the spot recognition and public praise.
• Give answers to all of their questions.  They expect to be well informed and they expect to be able to question you.
• Let them know that what they do matters. They expect to make a difference “You and your coworkers can help turn this company around” can be an effective way to motivate Millennials in the workplace.

Three things that Frustrate Millennials about other Generations:

1. Traditionalists’ hierarchy means nothing.  Often older managers cannot understand why the promise of a title and promotion fails to motivate Millennials in the workplace.  They are far more interested in being listened to, and collaboration than they are with a title.
2. The Boomers’ resistance to technology.  Millennials in the workplace have little patience with those that cannot perform the simplest of technical functions.  Email, text messaging and social media are not optional to the Millennials; they are critical business tools.
3. Generation X needs to lighten up.  Millennials in the workplace don’t have much patience for the doom and gloom that characterizes many Gen Xers.  They were not privy to corporate downsizing, and other challenges the Xers endured, and even if they were, they would suggest the Xers “get over it”.

Watch the ‘3-Minute Crash Course’ about Millennials in the Workplace (CLICK THE ARROW TO START THE VIDEO):

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