What are the Core Competencies needed for Leadership when Managing Millennials?

While the positives and negatives about working with millennials are still out for debate, one thing is for certain - you better get used to it. The millennial generation holds a huge presence in the modern workforce. According to Navex Global, millennials are now the most prevalent generation in the workforce, making up 25% of employees. The group has now surpassed both the Baby Boomers and Generation X.

If you aren't working with them already, you're more than likely to manage millennials at some point in your career. Instead of focusing on generational differences, it is important to focus on their strengths. Millennials can be creative, intuitive, and inventive problem-solvers. Appreciating the skillsets of your young workforce can lead your company to success.

While we can make generalizations about the strengths and weaknesses of every group in the workforce, it is essential to remember that every employee is unique. These core competencies are essential when managing millennials, but always remember that successful management should be tailored to the individual.

Understand what drives them.

Millennials are the first generation to have used the internet and other modern technology from a very young age. According to the Navex Global study, they are often highly confident due to affirming parents. But these extremely involved parents also gave millennials other skills, such as multitasking and social responsibility.  Navex breaks down the millennial workforce: "Millennials expect lots of feedback and rewards in the workplace and are considered to be idealistic. They work to live, not live to work. Work/life balance is more important to them than salary and they want to do work that improves society, putting emphasis on corporate social responsibility, sustainability, and diversity. They crave more frequent learning and advancement opportunities. They are technology experts."

By understanding your employee's wants and needs, you can manage them more effectively. When managing millennials, you should create an environment where employees sense that they are serving a bigger purpose. One good way to do this is to directly discuss the team member's role and the contributions they are making toward the organization as a whole. Millennial employees are more likely to be engaged when they feel that their work is recognized and significant.

Set clear expectations.

Unclear expectations don't drive results, regardless of the generation of the employee. Millennials are extremely goal-driven, so setting explicit expectations is especially important when managing this group.  Continually checking in and providing feedback on the path to the larger goal eases the stress of millennial employees. Managers should avoid micromanagement, but also being vague. A great way to achieve this is to give a clear assignment, but allow flexibility within the execution. This gives workers a feeling of value and purpose, while still maintaining a level of independence.

Provide consistent feedback

As previously mentioned, millennials value frequent feedback that is constructive and actionable. But, it is important to understand why they desire feedback in order to give it properly. Millennials are goal-oriented and want to be assured that they are making progress toward their own career development. Opportunities to learn and grow are highly valuable to them.

Instead of looking at these employees as needing unnecessary or unearned praise, recognize that they are striving for efficiency. By affirming behavior that is working, and giving constructive feedback for tactics that are not, you can help them navigate the road to their goals. When these strong personal goals become intertwined with your company's greater good, you will see the benefits in the long term.