Brought to you by the insurance specialists at
Engle-Hambright & Davies, Inc.
Recruiting and Retaining Millennial Workers
As baby boomers continue to retire,
many vacancies in your work force
will be filled by the next generation:
millennial workers. There’s no doubt
that recruiting the millennial
generation can bring hardworking,
enthusiastic employees who are
eager for new opportunities, but
recruiting and retaining these workers
is proving to be much different than it
was for prior generations. You can
make the most of millennial workers
by taking a new approach to
recruiting and retention.
According to a recent poll entitled
“What Millennial Workers Want: How
to Attract and Retain Gen Y
Employees” conducted by Robert
Half International and Yahoo! Hot
Jobs, millennial workers expect the
following from their careers:
 Job or career changes frequently:
15 percent
 More emphasis on personal or
family life: 12 percent
 A vast knowledge of information
and technology: 10 percent
 More education: 9 percent
Millennial workers also prefer to dress
in the following way for their jobs:
 Business casual: 41 percent
 Tennis shoes and jeans: 27
percent
 Wardrobe dependent on the
situation or profession: 26 percent
 Formal business attire: 4 percent
Millennial workers ranked the
following job consideration
components from 1 to 10, with 10
being the most important.
 Training programs in-house: 6.95
 Tuition reimbursement: 6.44
 Diversity within the organization:
6.07
 Employer’s charitable efforts
within the community: 6.06
Millennial workers ranked the
following on-the-job components from
1 to 10, with 10 being the most
There’s no doubt that hiring the millennial generation can
bring hardworking, enthusiastic employees who are eager for
new opportunities, but recruiting and retaining these workers
is much different than it was for prior generations.
 Salary: 9.05
 Employer-sponsored benefitshealth care, vision, dental, 401(k):
8.86
important.
 Working with management they
can respect and learn from: 8.74
 Working with others they like: 8.69
 Career growth and advancement
opportunities: 8.74
 Having a solid work/life balance:
8.63
 Employer’s location: 8.44
 Having a short commute to work:
7.55
 Employer’s leadership: 7.95
 Company reputation and brand
recognition: 7.56
 Job title: 7.19
 Working for an organization that is
socially conscious and
responsible: 7.42
 Working in a nice office: 7.14
 Working with new, state-of-the-art
technology: 6.89
Recruiting and Retaining Millennial
Workers
Recruiting and retaining employees
from this generation can be much
different than some traditional
techniques previously used by many
organizations. Here are some ideas
for recruitment and retention.
 Have existing millennial
employees assist in your
recruiting efforts.
-
These individuals can go to
job fairs and discuss the dayto-day details of their jobs
while also touching on some
topics that may interest other
millennial workers, such as
company philanthropy efforts
or flexible scheduling.
-
A company executive should
also attend any recruiting
sessions to support younger
employees and answer
questions.
 Avoid PowerPoint® presentations
when possible, and instead
impress them with animation
software and other new
technology.
-
Since many younger workers
watch YouTube™ and log on
to social networking sites
regularly, they are not
impressed by slides. However,
a presentation done with
animation software can
interest them as much as a
well-designed website.
-
Flash presentations are also
instantly customizable, so you
can gear your presentation to
your audience.
 Recruit employees online using
job boards, career building sites
and industry-specific forums.
Many millennial workers will look
to these sites before thinking of
applying to companies in a more
traditional way.
 Allow potential employees to apply
virtually through your company
website or through a career site.
Avoid using paper applications
that are tedious and take a lot of
time to fill out.
 Connect your employees with the
issues that are important to them.
-
According to bnet.com,
millennial workers want to find
substance in their lives, which
includes their careers. To
motivate them, offer on-staff
career coaching so employees
can move around the
company and hold different
positions. This will produce
loyal employees who want to
stick with your company for
the long haul.
Whatever the look and feel of your
organization, recruiting and retaining
the future of your work force is
essential. For more assistance and
information on how to do so, contact
Engle-Hambright & Davies, Inc.
today!
This HR Insights is not intended to be exhaustive nor should any discussion or opinions be construed as professional advice.
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