While most senior members of organizations have started to see the trend creeping forward, many organizations don’t have a plan in place to allow their millennial workers to truly thrive. For a generation that is getting ready to not only outnumber the other generations but to in fact guide them as they progress into countless leadership positions across all sectors, there are some simple ideas to get the most from them. Millennials may not love every organization or sector, but when they can have structure mixed with efficiency, they are far more likely to be a productive role player and even a leader of any organization.
Communication is Key
Depending upon which estimates, surveys, and general studies you look into, millennials are now the largest generation currently in the workforce. According to an Elance-Odesk study, they are now not only the largest represented group but they are also going to be for the foreseeable future. In other words, you may not be a millennial and you may not fully understand their ways, but the times of looking at their methods simply as bad habits are over. With each passing day more and more millennials increase their skills, gain more experience, and find new ways to increase efficiency in the workplace. Being able to communicate with them quickly and efficiently is key, and whether you work for a millennial, have them as coworkers, or even want to tap into the millennial productivity of your subordinates, you truly can learn a lot from them in a short period of time.
Using Technology For Instant Results
If there is one thing that most millennials love, it is the whole idea of being connected in no time. Whether multitasking completely, or just being able to jump from task to task without wasting any time, this generation is about minimizing downtime in all aspects of their life; especially the workplace. In fact, a study by Forbes showed among many other interesting facts about millennials that 74% of them want or need a flexible work schedules. To the untrained eye this may just seem that they want different hours than the normal grind. However, the thing to note is that they are looking for flexibility and efficiency rather than just the rigid schedules from days of past corporations. That whole point is one of the reasons that being able to video conference is not only on the rise, but is also taking over as the preferred method of communicating with employees. One of the best company to be able to offer a quick and easy solution for tapping into the creativity of millennials to date is Blue jeans. The best video conference BlueJeans system happens to be one where employees not only jump right into video conferences in no time, but can also do so from anywhere. Not only does this allow millennials to feel like they are being more efficient, but just by “speaking their language” and trying to get a business up to the technological norms society now faces, they are far more likely to feel there is a place for them in the future of that particularly progressive organization.
They Aren’t All Robots
One important thing to remember with Millennials is that they aren’t all exactly the same. In fact, just because they are a millennial doesn’t mean you even know they are, well, a “millennial.” A recent study by the Carat has shown that millennials not only aren’t all the same, many of them are actually more in line with the attitudes and mindsets of baby boomers and those of generation Y as well. The point isn’t simply about treating them all the same, but rather realizing they bring a lot of skills to the table. In order to tap into those skills and truly drive a business forward, however, the organization needs to take steps of good faith with their millennial workers in order for the change and productivity to come about.
Whether the millennials in your organization are easily fitting into the norms or they are already leading it, everyone can learn a significant amount from them. Video conferencing isn’t just a way to tap into their trust, it truly is a way that can save significant amounts of time. Even minutes spent walking to a meeting room, waiting for everyone to arrive, and the time it takes to brew a fresh pot or go over pleasantries could be time saved. All of this doesn’t even touch on the fact that real video conferencing can happen in less time than it takes for some to set up an away message and lock their computers before they even leave their desks. Millennials are leading the charge of efficiency, and one of their best means of saving previously wasted time is with video conferencing in the future.