RECRUITMENT JUNE 2019
THE
MISUNDERSTOOD
GENERATION nd3000/stock.adobe.com
With millennials set to make up the majority of
those in employment by 2020, do workplaces
need to do more to accommodate them?
G eneration X (people born between
BY DAVID WOAKES, GROUP BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, JONATHAN LEE RECRUITMENT
1960 and 1980) are beginning to reach
retirement age, while PwC research
suggests that by next year more than
50% of the workforce will be millennials
(those born between 1980 and 2000).
Businesses are recognising that millennials
are making up an ever-bigger proportion of their
workforce, bringing new values and perspectives
which are ultimately reshaping the workplace.
So how can manufacturers adapt to engage with
future generations?
This is where the narrative starts to get
interesting. Prejudice towards millennials is
surprisingly common, with many established
professionals failing to recognise or understand
the differences in their views.
When developing future
workforces, manufacturers
should be asking themselves
the following questions:
● What makes millennials tick?
● How do they fit in with and
learn from the wider team?
● How will you attract, retain
and nurture the millennial
generation to achieve both
controlled and sustainable
growth for your business?
One of the most frequent
frustrations aired by business
leaders is a perceived lack of
long-term commitment to
one employer (so called jobhopping)
and, more worryingly,
a tendency to categorise the
new generation of workers as
‘entitled know-it-alls’.
But is this justified? Like
every generation before them,
the digital and technological
landscape that millennials
have grown up in has evolved,
in many cases resulting in
behaviours and experiences
very different to those of their
parents. This is nothing new;
however, if we are to address
future skills, time should first
be taken to understand the
strengths and motivators of the
millennial demographic.
Understanding millennials
Millennials are often portrayed
as ‘generation nice’, with an
‘everyone’s-a-winner’ mentality.
This optimism stands at odds
with the economic realities
they face. Millennials have
had to contend with entering
a marketplace still scarred by
9/11, the credit crunch and
long-term austerity. Escalation
in tuition fees and house prices
has made attaining degree/
masters qualifications and
home ownership unreachable
for some.
This generation is riding a
wave of uncertainty, with Brexit
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