Millennials in the Workplace
Nasdaq recently convened a panel of change leaders who discussed how to address the generational gap and harness the skills and talents that millennials bring to the table.
Millennials make up 50% of the current U.S. working population, and within the next eight years they will make up 75%. Maximizing the engagement of the millennial workforce is a priority for many companies across all industries today. As part of our Nasdaq Amplify program we recently discussed this topic with Linda Rogers, Human Capital and Change Management Practice Leader at RGP (Nasdaq: RECN); Dawn Lyon, VP of Corporate Affairs at Glassdoor; and Jason Corsello, VP of Corporate Development & Strategy at Cornerstone OnDemand, a global leader in cloud-based talent management and learning solutions (Nasdaq: CSOD). As part of the webinar discussion, the speakers shared insights around how companies can attract and retain the growing millennial population in the workplace.
Here are the top takeaways:
- Provide millennials with adequate support, real-time feedback and coaching
- Offer purpose-driven and personalized work
- Make sure work goals are established and are well defined
- Provide career advancement opportunities for millennial employee retention
- Maintain transparency and two-way communication (Glassdoor ratings, reviews, employer feedback)
- Design competitive salary structures
- Offer mobility and a flexible work environment
Employee-Centeric Focus
The increasing millennial workforce population is causing a shift in the workplace environment from employer-centric to employee-centric model according to Corsello. In order to adapt to this change, companies must learn how to manage the millennial employee.
Millennials want to work where they want, how they want, and on projects that they are interested in. Focusing on the environment of the workplace and providing constant two-way communication will help managers to give millennials the motivation they need to succeed.
Transparency Key to Millennials
Transparency in the workplace has become particularly important for millennials. According to Glassdoor, about 80% of millennials aged 18-34 read ratings and reviews before making a job decision. About 90% of Glassdoor users also want the opinions and perspective of the employer. In order to attract the millennial population, companies need to start engaging with users on websites like Glassdoor, and need to start focusing on transparency.
Millennials thrive on real-time constructive feedback on their purpose-driven, personalized and clearly defined work. They prioritize career advancement opportunities and look for a mobile and flexible work environment. If a company can offer a workplace environment with these important characteristics, they will be ready to attract and retain millennials.
For more insights around this topic, you can access the full webinar replay here.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
