A younger generation is entering the workforce and setting a new standard of “professional-corporate norms.”
Generation Y is “shifting” into the corporate world in droves and bringing along a radically-new mindset about employee benefits and overall office culture. These fresh-out-of-college, goal-oriented “twenty-somethings” are outfitted with an inherent technological understanding, a desire to make an immediate impact and a need for flexibility in their work-life balance. But this is proving to be a tricky shift for conventional managers akin to the traditional ideals of this new generation’s predecessors.
The résumé “red flags” of previous generations (for example, having multiple employers within a few year span or taking time off to travel) are no longer an issue for these corporate newbies, and that’s why more than half of them head back home after graduating college for a support cushion of time to choose the job they truly desire.
“Millennials” want to make sure they don’t repeat the perceived “mistakes” of their parents by working long hours for a less-than-meaningful purpose at the expense of family, friends and personal pursuits. They overwhelmingly want to work for a cause, and are more apt to choose a job based on a company’s volunteer opportunities or community outreach efforts than ever before.
While the Millennials are coming in with new expectations, they also bring along the attributes that many employers not only desire, but ultimately need. Confidence, goals, positive attitudes and a higher rate of advanced education are the building blocks of incredible opportunities for both employer and employee, and that’s why this generation is becoming so sought after.
The obstacle most corporations will now face is how to shape their organizations to not only attract these new job hunters, but to retain them as well.
As one of the 70-plus million Millennials entering the workforce, I never really thought about the over-arching “new” job-oriented desires of my generation until recently. I thought it was just me who passed up the higher-compensating positions for a close-knit working environment, a certain location (New York City), and of course, Summer Fridays.
But what do you think? What are some of the perks of your job, or some of the perks you wish would be implemented? Or as an employer of Gen Y’ers, what types of programs/benefits do you have in place to attract and retain this new generation of workers?
Posted by Wally Koval
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