Should Your Boss Be Your Friend?

Millennial workers see the boss as a friend. They do not want a hierarchical relationship with that boss, and less than a third of them feel the role their manager currently plays fits their image of an ideal manager. Those are just three of the findings from The Millennial Compass, an MSLGROUP study that I had the pleasure of discussing at a recent SXSW panel in Austin, Texas, with Pete Cashmore, founder of Mashable, and Joanna Coles, editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine. Such findings of course are quite an issue for companies that still have a relatively traditional organization where hierarchical relationships are the dominant model. What exactly do those types of companies need to change, to ensure they attract and retain talented young people

The evolving definition of ‘good management’

Firstly, and it may seem obvious, managers need to learn to relate to multi-generational team members. This doesn’t mean yielding to whatever employees want; but it does mean understanding their views of the work world and finding common ground that benefits many successful companies today.Secondly, and contrary to what some may believe, a command and control management style isn’t necessary in teams if expectations are clear, feedback is frequent and rewards are consistent.Older managers effectively need to be helped to act more like a coach or mentor, than a boss who gives orders.

But let’s remember - it’s not only Gen X and Baby Boomer managers that need to learn to adapt:to optimize Millennials’ contributions to organisations, younger managers – Gen Y employees’ contemporaries - may also have to assume more of a coach or mentor-like role to establish authority and balance the “friend” dynamic that results from their proximity in age.

Goodbye Corporate Ladder?

Much has been made to date of Millennial’s so-called sense of entitlement, and the MSLGROUP study could be said to support this belief: In some countries, we found that Millennials expect to be in a management role within just two years of graduation. While this doesn’t surprise me, it is indeed a break from the past where the corporate ladder was something we all knew we’d have to climb over time. The implication for corporations is clear though: if you value the important skills many Millennial workers bring to an operation (technology know-how is an obvious one for example, as well as entrepreneurship spirit), and want to keep those employees engaged with your business, then you will need to create opportunities to build their leadership experience right from the start, while simultaneously clearly communicating the steps and requirements for advancement.

The Death of the Annual Performance Review

Make no mistake though – if you think you can address these important points through the traditional annual performance review or appraisal, you’re very wrong.As the rhythm of business has speeded up dramatically thanks to real-time communications - and Millennials’ horizons, and expectations, have expanded dramatically compared to previous generations – so has the notion of a single, once- a- year performance review grown outdated.Gen Y workers are a feedback-hungry group that expects regular opportunities to provide and receive feedback.Our study in fact shows that no matter where in the world a Millennial worker is employed, the willingness of their manager to deliver steady feedback on their employees’ performance is one of the key traits they consider makes an ‘ideal manager’.

The bottom line is that companies and Millennials will do well to listen to each other’s expectations and find the common ground on which to build mutual success in the future.This is of course not necessarily as easy as it sounds: certainly for businesses there are often entrenched mindsets and processes that may impede such moves.No surprise then that many organizations are turning to dedicated teams that specialize in helping companies develop a powerful employer value proposition that will drive recruitment, engagement and indeed retention among Millennial workers.Whether your business yet has a dedicated strategy to engage Gen Y employees, or not, of one fact we can all be sure. At age 30 or younger today, and set to make up the majority of the global workforce by 2025, there can be little doubt that Millennials today are the future of business the world over.


Photo: Robert Kneschke / shutterstock

Joseph Ddamulira

Mental Health Nurse

10 年

I wonder if this would lead to the notion that leaders are born not made. A few people I have viewed as good mangers were good leaders. It is how one delegates responsibilities, not the responsibilities one delegates. It's knowing that one is managing people not machines, even machines break down. There might be an issue with being 'friends' but I do not see anything wrong with being a 'friendly' manager!!

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Timothy McKeever

Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographer

10 年

There is a difference between a manager and a leader. There have been very good leaders across all generations. I think that one of the oversimplifications, or catch-all verbiage is the word "manager". Anyone can manage something. Many manage people for better or worse. What is lacking today are good "leaders", by whatever title they may possess. It is more critical today because of the ingrained expectations of young college graduates, who have very little life experience. There are exceptions to any rule, but leadership is something that very few managers understand. One organization has done exhaustive studies on the subject. The United States Armed Forces. at the end of the war in Vietnam, it was evident that if left to the "careerists" in command positions, the US military would cease to function. Today, many of the qualities attained by the officer and senior non-commissioned cadre are highly sought in the civilian world. But you do not necessarily need to have come from the military to possess those traits of leadership. On one of the blackboards in the Army College at West Point, a professor wrote " Management is understanding the physics of things. Leadership is understanding the chemistry of people. Maybe that is our problem." This is an age old part of the equation of success that is now on those of us left from those previous generations, and must now be passed to a new generation. Management, while necessary, is by definition short-sighted. Leadership, which is essential, takes the long view, providing the vision to adapt to what is over the horizon. A true leader will always have a strong and willing force at their disposal. All you need to do is look at the turn over across the spectrum of business to see who employs management or leadership.

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Maher Saad

Procurement Manager @ Veolia Water Technologies | Sustainable Procurement | Project Management

10 年

Always be attractive to your bosses ( appearance, Knowledge, interacting....) Be friendly NOT a friend

Githiomi Mungai

Partner at Githiomi Mungai Advocate

10 年

I don't see it as a bad a thing. So long as you are able to separate the thin line between friendship and work and never let friendship affect your work, then by all means I support it.

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