Workplace design and culture change over time, and such a change is ever so important in the coming age of millennials, otherwise known as Generation Y. Aged between 20 to 35, this generation is increasingly taking up mid-level managerial posts in today’s companies and crafting their own leadership style.
Millennials are a generation that is vocal, and they insist on initiating change in their own right. This has, therefore, resulted in the breaking down of the conventional workplace environment and culture that have shaped the businesses we’re familiar with.
The rise of millennials in the private and public sectors is enough to push employers to make adjustments in order to have the budding generation of leaders engaged and productive. We’ve provided five trends that have emerged in successfully keeping the millennial employee engaged at work.
Open Communication Culture
Millennials are a group that appreciates two-way feedback, hence providing a workplace where employers are also open to listening to their employees is a great way to connect with this generation. It’s a misinterpretation that millennials are only after praise, because they’re not. They’re more interested in getting positive and negative feedback.
To a millennial, it’s better that they’re aware of what they’re doing wrong or right. They don’t tolerate being silenced or wrongfully treated by superiors when a Generation Y employee performs poorly at work. Nurturing an open communication culture paves the way for you to earn a millennial’s respect, which this generation strongly values.
By fostering a workspace for open communication, an employer is building a fundamental foundation that millennials have strong opinions on. Millennials are all about inclusive leadership, and promoting a one-sided communication track is a sure-fire way to cause poor employee retention and workplace disengagement.
Communal Space
Coffee culture is a highly popular trend amongst millennials, which illustrates the importance of forging a connection to a Generation Y employee. Millennials are eager to build rapport with their fellow colleagues and they see plenty of benefits in unwinding. Rigidity is contrary to the millennial culture, thus the conventional workspace where employees seldom converse with one another is particularly demotivating for this up-and-coming generation.
The provision of a communal space boosts employee interaction, improves focus as well as refreshes one’s mind, which in turn bolsters productivity and performance. Results from previous studies contradict the general perception of workplace distraction being detrimental to productivity levels. In the long run, supporting workplace interaction can lead to employee happiness that has statistically led to 31% higher productivity.
Empowering Millennials
Members of Generation Y are eager to make an impact on the business, hence it’s crucial that an employer can adapt to this preference while providing millennials the opportunity to achieve this particular goal. At the heart of it, millennials want to feel empowered so that they can create the change they want. However, it’s not just about giving them the authority to initiate change; it’s about equipping them with the skill set to do so, too.
As an employer, you will be required to know about your team’s professional and personal skills, and then develop those strengths. Giving millennials a sense of self-belief can encourage them to be productive and drive their loyalty to the company.
Harnessing Their Love of Technology
Technology and millennials are like two peas in a pod, and this generation takes the aspect of technological advancement and online connection for granted. After all, this is a generation that was introduced to the internet and computers as children. They have grown accustomed to not only using technology, but utilising it to solve problems in addition to introducing new ideas.
A benefit of harnessing Generation Y’s technological inclination is through the creation of an app that can monitor their list of projects without triggering any hassle or intrusion in their daily work. This can be through project tracking apps such as Asana, although you can certainly get much more creative with your app creation.
By creating an app tailored to your company’s needs, you can avoid micromanaging millennials, which they absolutely loathe. Instead, project tracking apps give millennial workers the autonomy to carry out their duties independently. Employers may be pleasantly surprised at how productivity levels can be strengthened if trust is instilled within each individual team member.
Flexibility
Encouraging monotony and rigidity at your office can greatly backfire amongst a millennial workforce, hence it comes to no surprise that a growing number of employers are creating a modern workplace environment. From offering flexible working hours to allowing remote work, flexibility rather boosts productivity amongst Generation Y workers.
Studies have indicated that offering workers flexibility results when it comes to the team working longer hours, being happier, and accomplishing much more. For a generation that strongly values balance and mindfulness, a flexible workspace can keep millennials focused, happy, and busy – all of which are advantageous to a business.
