Engaging Millenial Employees (Megan Fleming)

Engaging Millennial Employees

BY MEGAN FLEMING

It’s a generation that’s been simultaneously pegged both as ‘lazy narcissists’ and ‘powerful changemakers’. But whatever you choose to believe about Millennials, most of us would agree that Gen Y is shaking things up. Hyperconnected, socially-conscious and highly independent, Millennials are demanding more from the brands they support and the companies they work for. They support brands that support the causes they care about and, ultimately, they want a meaningful job that makes a positive impact in the world.

To help companies engage this influential generation, Network for Good (NFG) recently released an eGuide called “Engaging Millennial Employees: Recruit and Retain Top Talent with Cause”. In it, NFG explains how Millennials are disrupting the typical business model and offers brands recommendations on how to best engage Gen Y.  Waggener Edstrom (WE) was honored to see our Digital Persuasion study referenced in there as well!

Here is a quick peek at some of the findings and recommendations that we’ve pulled and paraphrased from the report:

Three key features that will help you retain your Millennial workforce:

1.        Engaging Workplace

Corporate culture matters. A lot. A company’s values and principles are of paramount importance to Millennials. They need to feel like they’re a part of a team and be continually recognized for a job well done. This generation isn’t just about praise, though; constructive criticism is also welcome.

What to Do:

• Annually survey staff on the company’s culture and values.
• Communicate survey results to your employees as well as your intended plans for what you’ll do with their feedback.
• Identify engagement drivers and opportunities to improve engagement.

 2.        Purposeful Work

Net Impact recently surveyed Millennial, Gen X, and Baby Boomer employees. They found that employees of all generations who felt they held “impact” jobs were more satisfied at work. In fact, they were two times more satisfied!

What to Do:

• Embed cause into your company’s DNA.
• Give employees the flexibility to give back in the way they’d like.

 3.        Giving Back

All employees benefit from giving back. In a study commissioned by Waggener Edstrom and Georgetown University’s Center for Social Impact Communication, participants were asked, “Which of the following do you feel is the most important resource you can give to charity or cause?” Respondents split their primary focus between volunteering (“my time,” 37%) and donations (“my money,” 36%). Millennials are community oriented, which means they like team building in many forms, such as skills-based volunteering and pro bono work. Millennials develop a sense of pride and loyalty and gain critical-thinking skills when participating in these activities.

What to Do:

• Organize one-off and recurring volunteering projects.
• Reward all-star employees with charity. 

Check out the entire “Engaging Millennial Employees: Recruit and Retain Top Talent with Cause”  eGuide – it’s a short-and-sweet read with tons of actionable recommendations that you can start employing right away!