The desire among people to enjoy what they do in their professional lives cuts across generations, but what distinguishes that satisfaction and how companies can best invigorate employees’ attitudes varies markedly from one cohort to the next.
That was the future-focused message for business leaders attending the Chino Valley Chamber of Commerce monthly business luncheon April 8, when corporate trainer Karolyn Ericson posed and tackled the question: “Is Your Business Ready for 2020?”
With expertise gained from 26 years of corporate training with national companies and currently running her own consultancy, InHouse Trainer Services, Ericson is well versed on emerging trends and what is needed to master them.
“Have you hugged your Millennial today?” she asked, after describing 2020 in the context of its largest labor segment. Although many Baby Boomers anticipate working in one way or another into their later years, it is Millennials who will propel the employment market in 2020.
“Boomers will end their ruling reign of nearly 50 years in the majority of the workforce,” she explained. “They are a feel-younger and more active senior than before. For them, retirement is not a destination, but more of a process. A lot now are looking for ways to reinvent themselves to stay in the workforce.”
With an estimated 10,000 Boomers retiring each day through 2029, there should be plenty of opportunities ahead, as Millennials grow to 50 percent of the working population. She acknowledged that other generations “also are very important, but their demographics do not light up the sky like Boomers and Millennials.”
Data from a Pew Research study identifies what these two generations say makes them “unique/distinct.” The top five answers from Millennials (born 1984-1999) were technology, music/pop culture, liberal, smarter and clothes. In contrast, Boomers (born 1946-1964) named work ethic, respectful, values/morals, (just the fact that they are) Boomers and smarter.
Generation Next
Millennials are “the generation next,” Ericson described. “They are confident, connected and open to change. They are history’s first-ever connected generation. They are on their way to becoming the most educated generation, but they are also the least employed when compared to other generations at their age.”
Additionally, Millennials mainly reside in cities (only 14 percent rural), tend to be job hoppers, and represent the most liberal of all generations. From a connectivity standpoint, 90 percent of them are online, 75 percent connect via social media and 59 percent obtain their news online.
The rise in digital marketing, tied to Millennials’ technology bent – and that of Boomers – emphasizes the need for companies to help “the digital customer find them.” Prime tactics are email marketing, social media diversification, links and key words, blogs, pay per click ads, audience tracking and segmentation, mobile advertising, video marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), GPS and content discovery apps. Those avenues, along with “smarter, targeted, more simple messages,” are imperative for the 2020 business environment.
While historic data is important in predicting future performance, leading indicators and trends are key to “knowing what is coming and being able to make changes quickly… and being the expert in your industry or organization.”
With Millennials, there is a shift toward value driven structure and innovative culture, Ericson said, which means that organizations are moving away from functional problem solving and into examining the core values by which employees make business decisions and people are hired, fired and managed.
Customers First
“Customers always are No. 1,” Ericson stated, “but if we can help brace up or support our employees, they can better serve the customer. It’s about having employees who come to the business and enjoy what they do. They are motivated and committed to the success of your company or organization.”
Citing debt/financial and family issues as the top stressors for all employees, Ericson recommends improving life and employment skills with training in emotional intelligence, accountability, positive psychology, managing emotions, coping with stress and choosing appropriate responses when interacting with customers and family.
Forty-nine percent of Millennials say they would welcome financial training if their employer offered it, she noted, adding that marriage and parenting workshops also are perceived as valuable. These educational opportunities make sense for virtually any employee, but particularly the Millennials, since 75 percent currently live paycheck to paycheck, many reside at home with parents and 19 percent juggle marriage and families.
“Employees’ personal breakthroughs will drive organizational breakthroughs,” Ericson said. “They will cope better with stress. There’s an understanding that companies cannot improve beyond their employees’ abilities to emotionally handle stress and conflict.”
Competitive advantage will come from “out-behaving” competitors with the same products, services and similarly good employees, by delivering programs to improve workers’ life skills and on-the-job success. The game changer is “having employees who come to the business and enjoy what they do. They look forward to coming. They are motivated and committed to the success of your company or organization.”
Sadly, only 13 percent of today’s employees report that level of engagement with their employing companies, she noted. More than 70 percent of Millennials state that they do not like their jobs and more than 60 percent indicated they planned to leave within two years.
Instead of incurring the high cost of employee turnover, companies could be targeting the 27 percent higher profits earned by companies with above-average levels of employee engagement and satisfaction, a business engine that Ericson labels a “gold mine.”
Millennials particularly value the opinions of their peers, perhaps even more so than their bosses and other business leaders, she said. Millennials will get excited about rewards for innovation, especially if they are voted on by colleagues.
Employee recognition reigns as one of the top ways to enhance engagement among workers. Proven benefits include higher profits, lower turnover, more teamwork, a more collaborative workforce and “employees who tend not to leave unless they can move up in another company.”
The 2020 bottom line is that organizations must set expectations for results, Ericson advised, while remaining flexible on scheduling, fully embracing digital marketing and transforming employee appreciation programs through peer recognition. For those businesses starting now, healthier workplaces, a culture of innovation, improved relationships and a collaborative approach should help inject “a little fun at work” for everyone, while keeping owners smiling all the way to the bank. QCBN
By Sue Marceau
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