Millennials at work: reshaping the workplace

This report aims to provide some insight into the minds of new graduates from around the world entering the workforce for the first time. [Chief executive officers] CEOs are becoming increasingly concerned that they will soon be unable to find the talent that they will need to succeed, with a shortage of suitably skilled workers their single biggest worry. Businesses are competing fiercely for the best available workers and for the talent that will replace the retiring Boomer generation in the coming few years. Every year, more and more of that talent will be recruited from the ranks of...  [+] Show more

This report aims to provide some insight into the minds of new graduates from around the world entering the workforce for the first time. [Chief executive officers] CEOs are becoming increasingly concerned that they will soon be unable to find the talent that they will need to succeed, with a shortage of suitably skilled workers their single biggest worry. Businesses are competing fiercely for the best available workers and for the talent that will replace the retiring Boomer generation in the coming few years. Every year, more and more of that talent will be recruited from the ranks of millennials. As they begin their working lives, what are the hopes and expectations of this generation? And most importantly, do business leaders and [human resource] HR teams need to revise their current strategies accordingly? This research suggests that there is a significant gap between what millennials want and expect from their employer and career and their experience of the workplace. Superficial changes that are intended to connect with younger workers, such as unconvincing social media outreach programmes, 'greenwashed' corporate values and diversity tokenism will not work. Millennials may have made some compromises during the downturn but their ambition and sense of self-worth has not diminished. Before long this generation will form the majority of the workforce and they will look for employers who are truly acting on their promises.

Excerpts from publication.