How To | Attract and Motivate Millennials

Millennials are crucial to the modern workforce. So how can you attract the right millennials for your team, and keep them engaged for long-term retention? 

They’re quickly overtaking our traditional working environment, and that means that if you want to fill the gaps in your team, source the right skills, and grow your employee base, you’re going to need to learn how to connect with this generations. 

Millennials are the people born between the early 1980s, and the early 2000s. Some of the characteristics that they contribute to the workforce include self-confidence, digital know-how, and the desire for immediate gratification.  

While millennials make up the most culturally diverse and educated generation we’ve seen so far, they can also pose challenges for recruitment agencies and growing businesses alike.  
 
These professionals can have a reputation for being job hoppers who distrust the traditional hierarchy, and need constant affirmation to thrive. With that in mind, how can you attract the right millennials for your team, and keep them engaged for long-term retention? 
 

Attracting Millennial Workers 

 
Millennials might be the largest group in the job market right now, but that doesn’t mean that hiring them is easy. Finding and retaining this fresh new talent is easier said than done. According to one study, the average millennial candidate gets about 12.5% more job offers than any candidate from older generations. That means that you’re going to need to compete for the right applicant.  

So, how can you work together with your specialist recruitment team to find and keep your millennial workers? 

 

Get social  

 
If you want to grab the attention of millennials, then you need to visit them where they live – social media. Millennials consume a huge amount of information online, and research suggests that all the top social media platforms are inhabited by millennials. Try posting your job offerings online and connecting with new candidates through social media when you’re looking for ways to “sell” your company.  
 

Invest in your company reputation 

 
We’re living in a world where everyone has an online voice. Companies need to make sure that they’re portraying themselves as a positive place for millennial workers. A good way to do this is to establish a social media presence, start an online blog, and make sure that your website is up-to-date. The more technologically-savvy you are, the more you’ll impress millennials.  
 

Be Millennial-Friendly  

Before millennials entered the job market, the easiest way to keep your employees happy was to give them a pay-rise. However, millennial workers aren’t looking for cash. While they like money just as much as the next person, they prefer a powerful corporate culture, strong opportunities for growth, and a focus on flexibility.  
 

Motivating your Millennial Workforce  

So, once you’ve attracted your millennial employee to your open position, how do you keep them? Businesses need to engage their employees, not just for the sake of a more productive workforce, but also to reduce the impact of constant staff turnover. Unfortunately, millennials have gained a reputation for being inherently difficult to motivate, and one of the least engaged groups in the workforce.  

The truth is, however, that engaging your millennial team doesn’t have to be an impossible task. If you take time to learn what is important to them, what they value about their role, company and career opportunities, then you can use this information to manage them in a way that allows them to contribute, be engaged and motivated. Here are five things to remember about the Millennial  candidate.  


1. Millennials have strong values

 
The most important thing to understand about millennials is that they’re not motivated exclusively by money. 50% state that they would be willing to take a pay cut to keep a job that meets with their ambitions and values. Motivating millennials means helping them to understand your company backstory, aligning your values with theirs, and giving them a sense of meaning in their role.  


2. Millennials are ambitious 

 
Millennials approach the job market looking for opportunity and advancement. About 65% of millennials feel that personal development is the most important element of choosing a career. Today’s employees are obsessed with career advancement. If you can give your team members  opportunities to learn, grow, and succeed, then they’ll feel more satisfied.  


3. Millennials want guidance, and independence

 
It might sound like a bit of a paradox, but the average millennial wants the perfect combination of independence and support. Team leaders  need to learn how to walk the line between allowing millennials to do their own thing, and making sure that they get enough guidance from team mentors and executives.  


4. Millennials need flexibility


More than any other generation that came before them, millennials will change careers, relocate, and forgo promotions to achieve a more flexible work life. This is the generation that defined work/life balance, which means they’re constantly searching for ways to work from home and adapt the way they serve their employers. If you can add flexibility to your corporate culture, you’ll gain the attention of millennials.  


5. Millennials love acknowledgement

 
All employees appreciate acknowledgement when they do something right at work. However, millennials may be the keenest for feedback. 42% of millennials say that they’d like to receive feedback once a week. Adjusting to millennial team members might mean finding new ways to recognise their efforts.   

Finding, recruiting, and retaining the perfect team is a difficult process, particularly in this millennial-rich environment. Fortunately, with the right advice, and a great specialist recruitment company, you should be on the right track to the ideal team.  

For more insight on recruitment and employee engagement, visit our blog section or contact us today for a friendly, informal chat about how A&D Recruitment could support your business.

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