Sixty Minutes did a great show on the millennial generation titled The Millennials Are Coming. In that report, they explained how Generation Y or millennials are unique in their expectations at work.
The Wall Street Journal’s article Firms Bow to Generation Y’s Demands continues to explore how companies are offering incentives and jumping through hoops to keep millennials happy. This has become a problem for older employees who feel this is inappropriate.
Companies are bowing to younger generations’ needs because, “they bring fresh skills to the workplace: they’re tech-savvy, racially diverse, socially interconnected, and collaborative. Moreover, companies need to keep employee pipelines full as baby boomers entire retirement.”
Companies like Aprimo are dangling the carrot of the probability of a one-year promotion to attract talent. Their OnTrack program, launched in 2005, has had 100% of participates receive promotions and increased salaries within a year.
Companies are witnessing personality conflicts within the workplace because boomers may view that millennials receive special treatment. “Boomers often gripe about their younger colleagues as arrogant kids who don’t know how to dress appropriately, deal with customers or close deals.”
The key to handling multiple generations within the workplace may revolve around understanding individual personality preferences. To find out more about personality types in the workplace check out: It’s Not You It’s Your Personality: Skills to Survive and Thrive in the Modern Workplace.
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