You’ve just hired a Millennial and you may be preparing yourself for the worst. Based on the information most readily at hand, Millennials in the workplace are lazy, entitled, addicted to their phones, needy and self-absorbed. Don’t worry; it's not as bad as you think! In fact, you may have just hired one of your most valuable employees.
It’s nothing new for the older generation to malign the younger one. Young people in the 1950-1970s that listened to rock and roll were called juvenile delinquents that wouldn’t amount to anything. Generation X was actually defined as the first generation that would be less successful than their parents. Those stereotypes turned out to be largely untrue, and the same seems to hold true for Millennials.
The first real exploration into the nature of Millennials was undertaken in Neil Howe and William Strauss’ book, Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation. Their conclusions were that Millennials, born roughly between 1980 and 2000, are “more... educated and ethnically diverse” than the generations that came before them, and have a focus on “teamwork, achievement, modesty, and good conduct.” The authors felt the rebelliousness of this generation seemed to express itself not in “worse” behavior than their parents, but “better.” While most Millennials grew up with computers and technology, they were teens and young adults when social media began, and this seemed to be when their image changed.
Currently, Millennials are an obsession of the internet. Over twenty articles per day are written about them, and it’s no secret that bad news garners more attention and clicks, than good news. After Howe and Strauss’ initial optimism about this generation, there was a bombardment of negative Millennial profiles. In her book, The Millennial Myth, Crystal Kadakia believes that:
“Living in this information bloated world, it’s no wonder we [society] began to parrot the drama we heard. In contrast, while every generation has dealt with complaints, gen X and Boomers didn’t have…high volume, fast-paced vocal sources of discontent to contend with as they were coming of age.”
According to a 2015 Pew Research study, most Millennials reject the negative labels associated with their generation. Kadakia argues that Millennials are no worse than past generations, but, unavoidably given the digital culture in which they were raised, they are different.
The healthcare industry needs to adapt, because Millennials in the workplace may be the solution to a growing problem in healthcare - the looming RN shortage caused by retiring baby boomers. Millennials make up 35% of the workforce, tend to choose jobs based on purpose and fulfillment and less on compensation, focus on helping people rather than institutions, and are choosing careers in nursing at nearly double the rate that baby boomers did.
Attracting Millennial candidates requires an excellent digital presence. The organization’s website must be on point, and human resources must be social media present, active, and savvy. It is currently a candidate’s market, so you must take the opportunity at first interview to learn about the candidate AND sell your organization. Look for candidates with a good attitude and goals that that fit with your mission and values - the rest can be taught.
A Deloitte survey found that only one of every four Millennials would quit their current job for a better opportunity. However, keeping a Millennial hire onboard may require some different strategies than those needed for gen Xers or Boomers. Millennials are interested in professional development and personal growth, and put a higher value on work/life balance than salary. Putting time and effort into a pre-boarding process that creates open lines of communication and a clear path for development will reap long-term rewards with this population. A career ladder with measurable goals will help new hires feel a sense of accomplishment early on, and give them a clear path toward leadership roles. These hires will be interested in ongoing coaching, and engaging in team-building activities inside and outside of work hours. This helps keep them invested in the people and organization.
April Murray is the Director of Interim Executives at LeaderStat. She identifies and manages c-level and executive leadership for acute care, post-acute care and senior living organizations.