How To Attract Millennials

How to attract Millennials?

Millennials, also known as generation Y are those who were born between the years 1980 and 2000, making them 17-37. Millennials are the digital generation, that don’t know what life was like before phones and computers. Therefore, hiring a Millennial compared to a Post war baby boomer or somebody from generation X will have clear differences.

75,000,000 Millennials are preparing themselves to join the weird and wonderful world of work and by 2020 Millennials will make up 40% of the work force. As Millennials are the future generation of Managers, Lawyers and Accountants learning how to attract them to your company and keeping them happy is essential.

Give them opportunities for progression

61% of Millennials in the UK believe that career progression in a role is what makes an employer more attractive. Millennials are always asking themselves ‘So what’s next for me?’ ‘Where will I be in the next few years’. Millennials want to know where they are going and if they are heading in the right direction for where they want to be in life. A massive 71% of Millennials believe that their employers should make them fully aware of the potentially progression within their career. Millennials also want to be guided for further training and development opportunities in order to reach their goals.

So, what if it looks like there is no career progression within a current role? Well, Millennials will shamelessly job hob, it’s the norm now. On average, every 2 years Millennials are looking to grow within their career, gain a higher salary and potentially move location. I guess for Millennials 2 years is enough time to feel like you’ve gained enough experience to move on and are ready for the next steps in life.

Being able to use their best skills – nobody wants their talent to go to waste.

Research has shown that Millennials who have decided to stay with the same company for longer than 2 years have stayed because they have had the opportunity to use their best skills, they have had a chance to show off what they can really do. Of course, everyone loves doing what they enjoy and being praised for it at the same time. It shows your hard work over the years hasn’t gone to waste. As Steve Jobs said, ‘without passion any rational person would give up’

Having a mentor

Mentoring programmes can be a great way to attract Millennials. The mentor will be a role model for the Millennial and a chance for them to learn with someone who they will respect due to their higher status. Statistics show that 49% Millennials planning to leave their employer within 2 years were unhappy with the Mentor that they had. Compared to those planning on staying for 5 years in which 81% said they were happy with the mentor they had.

And what about reverse mentoring? What can a baby boomer or someone from Generation X possibly learn from a Millennial? Well… Social Media is the big thing at the minute and as they say, ‘If it isn’t on Instagram did it even happen’ Millennials can be a great way to bridge the gap and solve skill shortages; the Millennial generation are the generation who have never lived without computers after all. In article by the Birmingham post, 2 millennials highlighted the fact that there are digital jobs that exist now that would not have existed 20 years ago. So between now and 2050 who knows which jobs may exist?