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“My Millennial employee is lazy, my gen-y intern is rude…blah blah blah,” I’ve heard it all! And since I doubt that every Millennial is lazy and rude, this behavior may be a result of poor management. So, if you are managing a Millennial, whether as an intern or employee, and you aren’t getting the results you are hoping for, ask yourself these questions:
1. Does my Millennial employee have enough work to do? – This is the most important thing you can ask yourself! Millennials get bored easily, actually we get bored reallyyy easy! And if a Millennial don’t have enough work to do her/she is going to find some way to stay entertained. So do us all a favor, and give us work to do.
2. Have I let my Millennial employee be a part of the decision making process for our projects?- Now I know what you are thinking, “Why does my Millennial deserve to be a part of the decision making process when they are just my assistant/coordinator, etc?” But the truth is that Millennials are smart, so ask for our feedback and you are likely to see things you may have missed before by involving us in the decision making process.
3. Have I asked my Millennial employee for advice or feedback on his/her work? – Millennials want to feel valued, so if you never ask us about or give us feedback on the work we are doing, why are we doing it? Ask your Millennial about their work and they will fill you in on everything, and maybe even help you with your own work.
Open communication is the key to managing Millennials, so next time you think your employee is being rude or lazy make sure you’ve asked yourself these questions.
What do you think Millennial managers could do better?
Maybe the real problem is trying to manage a Millennial at all. There’s as much diversity within generations as there is between them. Wouldn't it make more sense if you tried to manage a person instead?
Your list is accurate, but not for Millennials. For everyone. And it's only the tip of the iceberg.
Gen Y is the most praised generation and they thrive on displays of appreciation from their employers. Even the simple things that are expected of them, e.g. showing up every day for work on time, should be praised to maintain their commitment to the organization!
You're kidding, right? Should employers also wipe their asses for them? Hold their hands when they cross the street? Gimme a break!
My company had to cut it's employee ass-wiping program after a tragic accident involving 1-ply TP.
Seriously though, if my manager praised me for every little thing, I would feel like that devalued the praise I got for actually doing things worth recognizing.
@Phalange - Best comment ever! Literally laughed out loud in my cube!
1. People have been wiping the ass of Millennials since the day they were born. It's now a Pavlovian response they are conditioned to. I don't agree with it, it's just a generational thing.
The part about "not enough work" is very true. I work more efficiently when I have 30 things to do for some reason than with 2.
Open communication works both ways, and I agree with commenter Chris that the best managers manage the person (although generational context is one aspect of every person, much like socio-economic context, race, gender, etc).
That said, the biggest misstep I've seen managers make with Millenials is complaining in private rather than being explicit about what they want. People often avoid conflict and don't want to give negative feedback so they refrain from telling Millenials and others what they think. If managers were clearer with their expectations, many of the issues can be nipped at the bud.
For Millenials, I would look at their role in your suggestions above to see if they can help broker a compromise:
1) Do they do the work given to 100% accuracy before asking for more? Oftentimes, this is a pet peeve of managers;
2) Do they realize that many decisions are made over the course of business in a single day and having a team of decision-makers for each one could lead to a traffic jam? Do they have a clear idea that they can communicate to their manager as to what decisions the Millenials could add value to?;
3) Do Millenials ask their managers how the manager likes to communicate? Do they insist on email and IM when the manager is more a live communicator (or vice versa)?
It's great for Millenials to want to be included and to want their preferences to be accommodated. Are they willing to do the same for their manager?
@Caroline - awesome response! Do you think some of the issues you raised are more indicative of Millennials, or just people who are new to the workforce? I imagine many Boomers faced similar issues when they entered the workforce for the first time.
Great point, Chris. A lot of the complaints leveled against Millennials are related to youth more than this particular generation. However, there are some unique characteristics of Millennials that are grating to managers -- Millennials are bolder about questioning authority, they are not shy about networking levels above them, and they expect to be included in strategic decisions even earlier than "back in my day" (I'm a mid-Gen X, but I sound like a Traditionalist when I say that!). That said, when I coach managers to think about the youth factor, it does cause them to give their Millennials some slack; it depends on how far along the relationship (and the problems) are.
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Thank you so much for all of your comments. I was in China for the last two weeks so I am sorry to respond so late!
@Chris - I think you make a great point that a lot of these recommendations are just the tip of the iceberg. Obviously there are a lot of things that managers must do to properly manage any employee, not just a millennial employee.
@Melinda - I don't agree with your comment at all! Millennials appreciate praise when their work is completed perfectly and is a value to the business, but no Millennial wants to be praised just for showing up on time! Millennials are committed and we don't need to be unnecessarily praised to stay that way.
@Caroline - You are 100 percent correct that Millennials owe a responsibility to their employers too. Any employer-employee relationship is a two-way street and I'll admit that as a Millennial sometimes I even forget to ask myself the types of questions you posted. Thanks for taking the time to comment!
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