Top 10 ways to Attract and Retain Millennials

By: Tim Finnigan

Millennials are lazy, entitled, difficult to manage, self centered and job hoppers. Is this perception or reality and can data explain it?

​I was asked by a large bank to help with an issue that their clients were having: attracting and retaining Millennials. My quest was to understand what Millennials want from employers so I could present my findings on how to recruit and keep them as employees.

To really find out what Millennials wanted from employers I had to ask them. I interviewed a group of Millennials that were getting ready to graduate college and enter the work force. They wanted things like, collaboration, mentoring, motivation, to work in groups and have a strong work/life balance. Wait, am I a Millennial? I want those things as well. Let me get some more data before I can jump on the millennial bandwagon.

Here are some specifics from the interviews:

• Social Events - having a community of friends in the office is important. It keeps them engaged and don’t mind working longer hours. This is not just grabbing a beer after work it’s about doing or creating something as a team. Volunteering, food drive, raising money, 5K’s - there are endless social events you can do as a team.
• ​Incentives for great work. We were raised with getting trophies and accolades. Incentives don’t have to be more money. It could come in the form of their picture on the wall, leaving an hour early (or better yet come in late) or letting them pick the next person to be recognized. Point being, think of creative ways they can stand out.
• Attracted to employers who stay in line with the most innovative technologies and foresee the changes to come in the industry. Do not skimp on tech.
• Have a collaborative atmosphere. We have grown up being able to voice our opinions on social media, and are ready and willing to help with our ideas. It may turn you off that they think they have all the answers. But what if they do and you aren’t asking?
• Trust us. We may be young and inexperienced, but we have raw creativity and hard work ethic that may be beneficial to your company if given the chance. Didn’t someone say give peace a chance? Everybody wants a chance to show they can succeed.
• Have a great work culture- one that allows for work-life balance and that has a “work hard, play hard” mentality.
• Multi-generational and multicultural work forces as I see diversity as an integral requirement of any company I would be interested. Mentoring programs can fill this need. Think of reverse mentoring as well. The older employees can learn a lot from millennials and vice versa.
• Advancement/development opportunities.
• Competitive salaries​ ​

Putting all this into practice may sound difficult but remember that Millennials expect technology to simply work so you’d better make sure that it does. Millennials are a social generation—and they socialize while consuming (and deciding to consume) your products and services. They collaborate and cooperate–with each other and, when possible, with brands. They’re passionate about values–including the values of companies they do business with.
So, are Millennials different from other generations? If they are than I am proud to call myself a Millennial. But I can't…I am too old. (If I could do an emoji it would be a sad face).