Managing Millennials: Handle with Care

The past few departments I've run have been puzzling.  Not because the people I've inherited or hired have been untalented or unmotivated.  It's because, as a baby boomer, I was unprepared to make the adjustments to make that department a success.  In a way, it probably scared me.   I often felt they were entitled, disloyal and only cared about themselves, social media and their friends.  Not about the company.

There is no doubt that any standard management mantra designed by a Baby Boomer is likely to fail in today's companies.  In short, we are now outnumbered by employees who, dare we say it, might just have their priorities straight.

Are you having trouble managing Millennials (born between 1980 and 1993) in your workplace?  If you're a boomer, it might be time to shift your thinking.  Blogger Dan Schawbel notes that there are currently 76 million Boomers in the workplace, but there are 80 million Millennials...and their amount grows every day.
So, time to adapt or die, because they sure as hell aren't going to adapt to us.

Writer Cam Marston says it best:  "Perhaps it's easiest to understand who they are not.  You."

Work Ethic
Millennials are self-centered but task-oriented.  They often like to work in teams and enjoy collaboration.   Where a Boomer is driven by loyalty, individual achievement and improving company performance, a Millennial loves problem-solving and is up for challenge and change.  If they get bored, they leave.  If the job ceases to be fun, they leave.  Writer Susan Healthfield advises not to "bore them or trivialize their contribution."

Input/Output
As a parent, have you gone out of your way to provide a loving and nurturing environment for your own kids?  Do they often seem entitled and out of touch with the realities of the business world?  Congratulations!  The way your kids are is the way most of your Millennial employees are.  They are used to having their thoughts and feeling not only heard, but embraced by an older person (parent or boss).  It's often a slippery slope to have to keep saying "Good job!  Good Job!" even when the work is not.


New Technology
Let's face it--any Millennial knows more about new technology than practically any Boomer.  They were raised using social networks, smart phones and computers and they love being connected to their friends.  Use this to your advantage to get your message out.  Challenge them to create new ways of reaching viewers or customers. Stop sweating what you need to know.  Use their electronic literacy to your advantage.

Balance
I've always worked for hard chargers.  This has been great, and has honed my personal approach to business--namely to always outwork your employees and beat your competitors mercilessly.  Make sure your boss saw not only the great work your department was doing, but you as an effective leader.  Don't expect the same out of your Millennials.  Working a sixty-hour week in the office?  They're probably not going to be into it.  Having a balanced life and being involved in a lot of activities is important to your younger employees.  Writer Susan Heathfield puts a button on this by saying "ignore this at your peril."

Unfortunately, while I preach the creative services or promotion department to be the department of fun and morale for the company, my personal boundaries draws the line at things like ping pong and pool tables.  In a deadline-oriented business like television and radio, there's usually time for brainstorming and constructive collaboration, but if you're playing ping pong at 3 pm, don't expect me to walk by and say "who's winning?  Can I have next game?"

As any parent can attest, the mind of the 20 to 30 year-old seems to be more complex than in the past.  Heavily influenced by social media, electronics and the desire for someone to say "good job" for just doing what is expected can sometimes fluster an older manager, who wants all noses to the grindstone 24/7.

This blog can't give you all the insight you need, but here are a few which can.  Check them out...if you dare.

 http://quickbase.intuit.com/blog/2012/07/20/5-ways-to-better-manage-millennial-employees/
 http://humanresources.about.com/od/managementtips/a/millennial_myth.htm
 http://humanresources.about.com/od/managementtips/a/millenials_2.htm

The final words that I have are enthusiasm and competency.  If your 20-something employee has all that, maybe you should cut them some slack and adapt.  The last creative department I ran in South Carolina was a different story.  The producers did not know how to format or write scripts and they lacked anything more than rudimentary editing skills.  Any constructive criticism was met with "whatever" (what does that even mean as a response?) and hurt feelings when I didn't say "good job."

Be prepared for this.  If your producer knows that the video goes on the left and the audio on the right, you're on the right road.  Just think twice before letting them play video games on company time...or not.

Whatever.

--RB











   

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