As Gen-Y infiltrates the IT channel more and more, CompTIA examines its characteristics and potential.
1. They’re the smartest generation to date.
Millennials are more highly educated when ranked with other generations at comparable ages. More than half of millennials have at least some college education (54 percent), compared with 49 percent of Gen Xers, 36 percent of baby boomers and 24 percent of the Silent Generation when they were 18- to 28-years old. Millennials, when compared with previous generations at the same age, also are more likely to have completed high school; this according to “Millennials: A Portrait of Generation Next” by the PewResearchCenter.
2. They’re born with technology in their hand.
According to the CompTIA study, “Generational Research on Technology and its Impact in the Workplace,” 74 percent of Gen-Y workers used a smart phone for work purposes in the last year, compared with 37 percent of baby boomers.
3. They demand work-life balance.
Forty-four percent of people between the ages of 20 to 29 surveyed in the same CompTIA study said “Companies that do not offer the option to telecommute are old-fashioned.”
4. They thrive on innovation and change.
According to “the Deloitte Millennial Survey”, published in January of this year, millennials want to work for organizations that support innovation. Seventy-eight percent of millennials surveyed were strongly influenced by how innovative a company was when deciding if they wanted to work there, but most say their current employer does not encourage them to think creatively.
5. They trust and put faith in peer-to-peer interaction.
New research by marketing startup Crowdtap and the global research company Ipsos reveals that millennials trust user-generated content (UGC) just as much as professional reviews. To Gen-Y, UGC is also 20 percent more influential when it comes to purchasing and 35 percent more memorable than other types of media.
6. They are team players.
Millennials like to work in teams and on projects to accomplish goals. It’s less about what company they work for and more about who they are working with and the types of projects they work on. A recent study by IdeaPaint found that 38 percent of millennials feel outdated collaboration processes hinder their company’s innovation and 74 percent prefer to collaborate in small groups. They are used to using wikis, social networks and other technologies to share ideas and innovate so when they become leaders, they will take those behaviors with them and spread them across their organizations.
7. They treat life as an experiential journey.
According to a recent survey by JWT Intelligence, 81 percent of millennials value experiences more than material items.
8. They prefer continual feedback and guidance.
A recent poll conducted by MTV, “No Collar Workers,” suggests that unlike baby boomers, who want their objectives and to be left alone to execute, Gen-Y wants an almost constant stream of feedback. Millennials find semi-annual reviews frustrating. They want to know how they’re doing now – not once a year.
9. They do not want to feel confined to their home turf.
According to a recent study by PwC, millennials have a strong appetite for working overseas and 71 percent expect and want to do an overseas assignment during their career. This is great news for many employers looking for global growth. However, the bad news is that millennials are most attracted to destinations in the U.S., UK and Australia. Only 11 percent said they were willing to work in India and just 2 percent in mainland China. Despite this, over half said they would be willing to work in a less-developed country to further their career.
10. They’re ambitious.
According to the same PwC study, career progression is the top priority for millennials, who expect to rise rapidly through their organizations. Fifty-two percent said this was the main attraction in an employer, coming ahead of to competitive salaries in second place (44 percent).
11. They believe in giving back.
Deloitte’s 2011 “Millennial Survey” found that 92 percent of millennials believe that business should be measured by more than just profit and should focus on a societal purpose. A survey by PolicyMic found that 83 percent of millennials gave to charities in 2012, up from 75 percent in 2011.
Know a millennial changing the channel? Nominate your very own ChannelChanger or submit yourself. The ChannelChanger award recognizes future leaders in the IT industry. Young professionals who are making their mark within a CompTIA member company, have shown success or originality as an entrepreneur or have made an industry impact in some other demonstrable way are encouraged to apply.
