Attracting and retaining millennial talent

Generation Y or those who born after the 1981 and before 1996 is known as millennials or ‘me’ generation. Currently in the age group of 23 – 38, they comprise about 40% of the world’s population. This generation is unique as they grow up in tandem with technological development and witnessed rapid changes in economy, politics and culture.

Millennials are those lucky kids who had the chance to experience both yesteryears’ and today’s instruments in their lifetime. They are the ambassadors of both old age as well as new age.

As millennials are in their working-age now, the economy is highly dependent on their strength and commitment. Millennials are unique in their outlook and thought process. While baby boomers – the generation before millennials – save their income for retirement life, healthcare or others, millennials save to spend on houses, cars and leisure activities and enjoyment.

As believers of working with a purpose, millennials are good at teamwork, motivated to have an impact on their organisation, reactive and responsive. They are great ambassadors of positive influences. In short, we can call them a generation shaped by technology.

Understanding millennials in workplace

In return to their committed works, the millennials expect certain benefits from the organisation they serve, which includes good values and better work culture, less impact on the ecosystem, integrity and transparency, work-life balance, quality of work and enabling working conditions.

Apart from these, they personally want to enjoy a sense of purpose, ability to make a difference, respect and recognition, fun working place, keeping relationships, and learning opportunities to grow themselves.

They love to work in an organisation which has great flexibility with no fixed location or fixed working hours. Millennials choose their career based on flexible benefits with the aim of career development. Though their aim is to own a house, they prefer to stay in rented house as the real estate is expensive. Also, they are ready to relocate to multiple cities as they change jobs. Millennials are environmentally conscious cohort and it reflects in their purchase decisions.

Generation Y is a travel-loving group that gets easily influenced by social media posts about destinations and travel experience. The interesting fact is that 66 per cent of the millennials change their brand if they are given a 30% discount. 60% of them stay on the same brand if treated well or receives a decent customer experience.

Attracting and maintaining millennials in workplace

Millennials would attract to an organisation if the workplace possesses the following criteria:

1. Inclined to believe that businesses should have a positive impact on society
2. Believes to have skills and knowledge to perform in the workplaces of industry 4.0
3. Take pride in governance and transparency
4. Build businesses on ethics and value system
5. Create a practice work-life balance
6. Create opportunities to learn and grow

Millennials consider these conditions are holy and they can hardly adjust with otherwise situations. Therefore, majority of multinational corporates are gradually adopting new workstylesliketaking up Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities to give millennials a sense of purpose, helping them to excel in the career and focusing on family-first initiatives. Millennials like personalisation and digitisation of organisational properties and services to reduce their time and efforts.

According to the Sodexo Quality of Life Study, the Indian millennials prefer flexible working, career development programme and travel policies as the top 3 non-financial benefits from the workplace.

Competitive benefits have a great role to attract and motivate millennials, who also like instant gratification and performance-based promotions and rewards.They also love challenging works so that they can learn and grow. Companies can frequently give them such works. A facility for open and consistent feedback and emphasises on employee experience would attract and retain the millennials.The workplace should be structured in a way which helps them to achieve their dreams.

These are some of the practising principles and some are yet to be implemented. Understanding the needs and nature of the employees and transforming the workplace accordingly is necessary for any organisation.

Reference

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/01/17/where-millennials-end-and-generation-z-begins/

Peoples Matters & Sodexo webcast on Dec 17