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– Today’s Employees, Tomorrow’s Managers

The proportion of millennials in corporate workforces is steadily increasing. As they move up the ranks, companies will have to transition from managing them to employing millennials as managers. 

As with every generation, this bunch comes with their unique perspectives and preferences. It’s therefore important to recognize the aspects that are essential to leverage their strengths and mesh them seamlessly into organisation cultures.

 Stop Worrying and Learn to Love the Mob

Contrary to the reputation that preceded them, millennials are pretty clued on to what’s needed to succeed in the corporate world. An Aon study of hourly millennials found that 83% of respondents cited trustworthiness as their primary concern. This has big implications - to be productive and loyal, employees need to trust leadership teams.

Here are a few tips to strengthen your employees’ trust in the organization’s leaders:

• Promote honest exchanges between senior leaders and millennials
  Train leaders to imbibe and demonstrate the organization’s culture, give honest feedback and “walk the talk”.


• Open some doors 
  Identify opportunities and forums for millennial employees to interact with senior leadership.


• Try reverse mentorships
  Pair senior executives with millennials to test new ideas and stay updated on application of technology to work.


• Understand the employment contract has changed 
  Millennials frequently change jobs. Organizations need to try and retain only key talent and build a strong alumni network for those looking to return.


• Understand that millennials have a different definition of working hours 
  Millennials are the first ‘always-on’ generation. So while their personal lives may intrude into their professional lives, they are more easily accessible – even at odd hours.

Learn to Love the Rules

Millennials need to be groomed to take on critical managerial roles. For this, the following need to be kept in mind:

• Information overload 
  Tomorrow’s managers will need to deal with a massive amount of information relayed through multiple communication channels. This will make the following skills imperative:
  -  Ability to distinguish between the urgent and important
  -  Ability to access multiple data points to evaluate subordinates
  -  Ability to adjust seamlessly to interaction styles of their teams


• Change is constant
  Millennials will need to ingrain agility and adaptability into their work styles. This will be essential to successfully manage teams and processes, in environments of constant change driven by technology.


• HR’s Changing Approach to Millennials
  To build HR as a business partner of strategic value, the use of measurement and analytics will be increasingly important.

Conclusion

As millennials get older, understanding their worldview and the challenges they face will help organizations develop training and development to prepare them for managing the next generation.

To know more on this topic, read the full whitepaper here. Feel free to contact the IDs listed below in case of any questions or clarifications:
 

Tarandeep Singh
Partner & APME Head of Assessments
Aon Hewitt India Consulting
tarandeep.singh@aonhewitt.com

Ajith Nair
Director
Aon Hewitt India Consulting
ajith.nair@aonhewitt.com