Recognising the Needs of the Millennial Workforce

A European investment bank was recently asked by a prospective applicant if they would consider increasing the base salary by 60% from what they were currently earning.

This was after the potential employer had already offered an attractive 24% rise on their existing base. This individual only had 18 months of experience since graduating from university. Here is how the millennial generation is changing the workforce.

Baby Boomers, Generation X and Generation Y

Currently one third of the workforce is made up of Generation Y, those born in the early 1980s to the start of the new millennium. This generation has unique needs and wants. There are also many ways in which this growing workforce is different, with a number of surveys suggesting that the motivations and expectations of this social group are the opposite to previous generations. Baby Boomers and Generation Xers will recognise that Millennials can be eager for progress and advancement, and therefore, require feedback, training, variety and change. The traditional values of joining a business, getting your head down proving yourself and waiting to be recognised for your efforts, is nearly extinct. The new workforce require quick and regular reward and stimulation in the workplace. Millennials have also been born into the technological age. They have grown up with the Internet, smartphones, tablets and social media being the norm. With the ability to access information immediately and learn about anything and everything, this group tend to join organisations being more technologically aware than their more senior colleagues.

Recognising the needs of the millennial workforce, the banking industry is beginning to fast-track promotions where appropriate, not allowing graduates and junior staff to work excessive hours and are offering more flexible working patterns. Continual research is being conducted with this group to ensure businesses accommodate as best they can, in order to maximise the impact of this generation.

The negative notion of ‘job hopping’ is now less influential for the millennial workforce. Now, someone with one year, followed by another year, and then a further year from three different places, is becoming more and more the norm. This isn’t to suggest this is right, but employers are having to accept that Millennials are beginning to skip from one opportunity to another until they find what they consider the “right home”. Whilst this doesn’t necessarily challenge the development of specialist skills of that individual, it does however, question the management style of their reporting line and how accommodating and accepting of this they are prepared to be. Now, someone with one year, followed by another year, and then a further year from three different places, is becoming more and more the norm.

 Further to this, is the ability of the millennial to be flexible in where they work. With the inflation in living costs that has been created in London / UK, and following the introduction of fees at university, many come out of further education in debt. Therefore, most graduates will move back home, simply because they cannot afford to pay rent, for example. With minimal commitments and no dependants, this enables Gen Ys to consider working abroad. With this, millennials become more culturally astute and are able to embrace change far easier by adapting to new surroundings.

As a globally positioned talent management and staffing organisation, Morgan McKinley represent millennials in the marketplace but also hire millennials as recruitment consultants entering the industry for the first time. They are often smart, well informed, and unwilling to consider one-size-fits-all recruitment strategies. Their approach to recruitment is somewhat different to the demographic preceding them and we are adapting our style to accommodate this changing dynamic. 

This generation of workers seem to prefer companies that understand them as individuals, build relationships, and offers a hiring and employee experience that looks at their needs and aspirations. The need to have clear and shorter-time frames for promotion, more flexibility in working from home, and the use of technology, in particular social media, to support their communication style, are all examples of how Gen Y think and work differently. Similarly, they want a boss who is a leader, not a manager. Someone who leads from the front, someone who coaches and mentors and thinks “we”, as opposed to “I”.

It is suggested that by 2030, 75% of the working population will be from the Millennial generation, needless to say that the Millennial population is becoming the most influential part of the current work force. They are a fast moving group, and therefore, need to be led in this fashion. Having grown up in a digital environment, they are natural problem solvers and therefore, need to be stimulated as such. If their leader is able to recognise this and invest in personal growth to satisfy their needs, they are more likely to build a stronger and longer lasting relationship. It is suggested that by 2030, 75% of the working population will be from the Millennial generation

In any given company, the only way the millennial community will remain motivated and driven on the path to succeed, is if they are offered regular reviews to discuss performance. This forum must provide feedback and then (re) set targets/goals. Millennials prefer to voice their thoughts and opinions which is also critical in their development. Similarly, they also like to have responsibilities to work towards. Once many of the above are achieved, it is imperative that praise is given for achieving their goals. It is then important to revise these targets depending on the individual’s desires.

Gen Y / millennials are not that different from past generations - they are asking for the same things that everybody else wants, but they just go about it differently. Millennials, like any professional, want to be challenged, offered security and variety in their careers; they want to work for a company of which they can be proud; and have every intention of being loyal to an employer brand as they do a consumer brand. 

The values of a business are a key driver, along with other aspects such as corporate social responsibility. Millennials want to feel they believe in what the business stands for, and what more it can do to offer something back to society.

If companies are to deliver on their long-term strategies, they need to be more clever and savvy when attracting and retaining this social group by listening to them and most importantly be willing to adapt to this changing workforce.