RULES OF MANAGEMENT “Building a relationship” with your team is one of the accomplishments millennial managers are most proud of. You take the time to get to know your employees and share advice, and you give everyone a voice. No one is better than anyone else, including yourself—the leader. For millennials, the social and collaborative piece is one of the most rewarding aspects of work. Why work on something alone when you can have partners pooling ideas and resources?
FLEXIBLE: Open to How the Job Gets Done Besides collaboration, millennials crave flexibility for themselves, and they are willing to give flexibility to employees. When talking with millennial managers, they stressed the importance of flexibility not only in work schedules but also in what work is done and how it gets done. You know that work can’t be confined to 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, so you’re less concerned about the “where” or the “when” and more concerned about the quality of the final deliverable. Maybe an individual works better later in the day, or has personal appointments or works from home because of a long commute. Millennial managers are very open to these ideas. With technological advancements, you can tune in to the office anytime or anywhere. If a millennial needs to leave early on Friday, he can just finish up his project Sunday evening. Millennials question, “If they know what the deliverables are, why should I regulate how they work best?” As employees, millennials value flexibility, and they will instill this culture as managers. Trust goes hand in hand with this idea of flexibility, and millennial managers, as a generalization, are a trusting group. You believe that people will do what they say they will do, and you trust that employees are bright and committed enough to get the job done. Millennials are also flexible in their management style—they can decide as they go along. Since your lives are always changing, you can “roll with the punches” as change hits your team and work environment. This adaptability seems to be ingrained in your “hard drive” and makes you more nimble and open to change. Millennial managers are bringing trust paired with flexibility to their role. Again, these are two key attributes that foster highly engaged employees. This open mind toward flexibility will help millennials thrive and excel in a more diverse and virtual workplace and global economy. MWORLD WINTER 2013-14
American Management Association
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