Stay Ahead of the Curve: How to Recruit and Hire Millennials
Much has been written about the “millennial” generation and how they are very different than workers from older generations. Many business owners – especially older ones – have a hard time hiring and working with millennials due to the differences in experience, expectations and work style. However, millennials are the workers of the future. It is important to learn how to work with and around them in order to help your business stay successful.
Tips for Recruiting and Hiring Millennials
Use Social Media to Your Advantage
Millennials grew up online, and many of them have an established social presence. You can make the hiring process much easier by using social media to recruit and evaluate employees before you even schedule an interview. Along with Facebook and LinkedIn, many millennials also have social profiles on industry-specific networks, personal websites and blogs, and portfolios or projects from past work. If you’re looking for a talented employee, you can use these materials to find someone who might fit your needs.
Be More Personal
One way to help attract millennial talent is to be more personal about who you are and what your business does. Many young people want to have a personal connection with their work, and that includes knowing who they are working for and what values the business represents. If you want to attract millennial employees, ensure your personal and business story is easy to find and represents your business values accurately.
Ensure You’re Clear and Consistent
Along with making your business accessible on social media and other platforms, you want to ensure your business’s “voice” is consistent across different sites and media. In the days of classifieds and job boards it was easy to control your messaging and tone, but now it’s important to keep it consistent across your entire online and offline presence. Otherwise you might turn away potential employees who aren’t sure you’re being authentic.
Offer Benefits
A final way to attract millennial talent is to offer benefits beyond a strong starting salary. Millennials grew up and entered the job market during the Great Recession, so to them it’s important to have tangible benefits like insurance, retirement plans and paid time off.
However, it’s also possible to attract millennial talent by being flexible, such as by allowing employees to work at home, bring their own computers, or work non-standard hours.
Things to Understand About Millennial Workers
Hiring millennials isn’t too different from hiring older workers – but it’s also important to know that they think and work in very different ways than older generations. Here are a few important things to remember:
They Want their Work to be Meaningful
Millennials might seem naive about complex topics, but this is often due to their vastly increased social awareness and connectedness. This also leads them to want to work for companies that match their social and ethical views. In other words, they want to be able to do work that makes a difference both in their company and in the wider world.
They are Flexible but Need Guidance
Millennial workers are extremely flexible and multi-talented. Many of them have education and experience in many fields, and they can surprise you with their knowledge and drive. However, they also often need guidance and reassurance about their work. They tend to ask lots of questions and double-check progress more often than older workers. This might seem annoying at first, but just look at it as a way to catch errors and provide additional training.
They are Tech-Savvy and Fast Learners
Finally, millennials make excellent employees for new projects where you need someone to learn something new or try it for the first time. Their natural tech-savvy and thirst for knowledge and experience lends itself well to trying new things. If you have a new project, position or department that isn’t quite in your wheelhouse, a millennial employee can be a great asset.
Millennials are just one of many demographics swimming around the candidate pool. If you’re about to initiate a hiring process, the experienced recruiters at Neese Personnel understand that different positions need different candidates. During our 40-plus years of staffing in the Oklahoma City area, we’ve matched companies with qualified temporary and permanent workers from every generation. Contact us today and find the right talent for your next big project.