It’s time to accept a new paradigm rather than try to force the workforce into the traditional “top-down” management style, which has largely run its course. As one of the leaders profiled in this book, Nick Sarillo, says, “I love that millennials expect more from me. It forces me to think about my actions and be accountable. It forces me to think about work from their perspective.”
Millennials: Challenges and Opportunities
There’s no doubt that millennials, the eighty-three million Americans born between the early 1980s and early 2000s (according to commentators, there are no formerly recognized dates for this demographic) have already reshaped parts of the workforce. And this goes well beyond Silicon Valley, where many of them rule the roost. To put their potential future influence in perspective, it helps to compare their cohort size to the baby boomers, who number “only” seventy-five million and have, until now, been the largest and most influential generation in history. (US Census Bureau)
Some people, including a few in this book, argue that “people are individuals” and you can’t generalize about generations. They are correct; we are all individuals. However, I also subscribe to the beliefs of researchers Chip Espinoza and Mick Ukleja. In their book Managing the Millennials: Discover the Core Competencies for Managing Today’s Workforce, they cite generational theory, the idea that each generation is impacted by what is going on in the world around them. They argue that millennials are different from previous generations, in large part because of technology and social forces unique at this point in American history.
As millennials begin to rise into management roles and become managers of even younger millennials (as well as Generation Z, the cohort following them), the challenge of helping them understand and value customer service becomes even greater. The reason for this is easy to pinpoint: they, unlike every previous generation in human history, have grown up with the internet. Once upon a time, consumers didn’t have the option of sitting in pajamas at a kitchen table, placing an order on a computer and receiving it within one to two days. For those who grew up with the internet, the efficiency and ease of website navigation and product delivery is a very important metric of customer service. They have much less experience with physically walking into a store or place of business and talking to a salesperson before purchasing a product or service. That means they may not be personally familiar with the value and importance that consumers place on positive interpersonal interactions within the service economy. Because it’s not something they’ve been exposed to or experienced, many millennials just don’t realize that people are willing to pay more for a product if they receive outstanding customer service face-to-face.
“Technology isn’t a tool to just do more work or achieve work–life blending—it’s an integral part of the members of this group and working with it has become second nature,” Espinoza and Ukleja write: “Millennials are the most-educated and technologically savvy generation ever and arguably a highly sheltered and structured generation. One in three is not Caucasian. One in four comes from a single-parent home. Three in four have working mothers; and in two-parent homes, children get more time with parents than they did twenty-five years ago.”2
Compared to every previous generation, their ease with technology makes millennials more dependent on and adept at wielding it; this is one of their many key distinguishing features. It also greatly affects how they view authority and the way they accomplish tasks, which is probably why there is a section about how to work with, manage, and understand millennials in every library and bookstore. You may have heard (and even agree with) some of the common stereotypes; “entitled,” “disloyal,” “unfocused,” and “self-absorbed” were just a few of the words that used to roll around in my head even though two of my three children, who I adore, are millennials.
After reading a number of books—such as Managing the Millennials; Millennials & Management; and The Millennial Myth—I realized that I, as a member of Generation X, had fallen into an echo chamber and succumbed to embracing the negative stereotypes without any real cause. If someone I knew complained about a millennial employee, my brain flitted to all the negative stereotypes I had read on the Web or heard about in conversations. It’s exactly what Crystal Kadakia (a millennial herself) writes about in her book, The Millennial Myth: Transforming Misunderstanding into Workplace Breakthroughs:
Two different worlds collided: the world of the distinguished expert and the world of the digital influencer. As social media’s two-way information flow grew at an enormous rate post-2000, the distinctly negative perception won out, because, frankly, that is what made headlines. . . . In contrast, while every generation has dealt with complaints, gen X and boomers didn’t have such a variety of high-volume, fast-paced sources of vocal discontent to contend with when they were coming of age.3
Of course, it never occurred to me that technology was amplifying the negative views, and I hadn’t even considered what generations previous to mine would have thought of me and my peers had the internet been available.
What’s important for our purpose is to understand that the companies that offer outstanding service have aligned their management structure, vision, and other “best practices” with the values of the millennial generation. All the organizations in this book have strong visions and values, whether they were established at the very beginning, like they were at Zingerman’s, or developed organically, like they have at Zappos. It’s no coincidence that those businesses, as well as all the others covered in this book, appeal to members of the current generation—people who value meaning at work in the same way the baby boomers valued professional identity.
Espinoza and Ukleja argue that, contrary to popular opinion, unlocking the potential of millennials really isn’t that complicated. “You have to help millennials find a reason to care,” they advise. “They are the easiest of the workforce to motivate once you have helped them find meaning in what they do. You keep them motivated by letting them see how what they do matters. They thrive in an atmosphere of change—not because of change itself, but because they get to put their mark on the future.”4
This idea that “finding meaning” in work is important for this generation is also expressed by Lee Caraher in her book, Millennials & Management: The Essential Guide to Making It Work at Work. In it, she has prescriptive advice for managers who want to get the best work out of their millennial employees:
[Managers] should be able to answer these questions:
1. This job exists to:
2. My job is to make sure that:
3. If I wasn’t here, this is what wouldn’t happen:
That last step, the individual’s immediate picture—why “I” make a difference—is critical. It may seem excessive, I know, but if people understand their purpose within the bigger vision, if they can tie their day-to-day work to making a difference, then work goes a bit more smoother and more efficiently, with better output and good morale all the way around.5
Whether common characteristics of the millennial generation are labeled “core competencies” or “intrinsic values,” they significantly affect the workplace. Managers who want to engage this generation must recognize that giving clear, unambiguous instruction and feedback is as essential as realizing that the old “command and control” hierarchy is not a good fit for people who grew up Googling answers on a computer instead of asking an authority figure. Understanding that there truly are differences in the way this generation works and interacts compared to previous ones also means acknowledging that different techniques to teach, nurture, and manage them are required compared to earlier generations, whether they are working in a hospital or a hotel.
Let’s face it: for all the benefits technology brings, hospitality as we have defined it is not in the mix. This means ongoing, purposeful customer service training is required. Whether they’re working