FEATURE
Australian Millennials in the Workplace International consultants centre
International Consultants Centre (ICC) conducted Australia-wide research into the motivations, expectations and preferences of Australian Generation Y professionals – the socalled millennials.
work, only 47% felt that they were being sufficiently challenged, and, of these, the majority (74%) were less likely to be looking for a job elsewhere. The few millennials who had mentors (25%) expressed greater satisfaction with their current role and were six times less likely to be hunting actively for alternative jobs than those without a mentor. Sixty per cent felt that it was very or extremely important to meet with their manager regularly to discuss career development, and there was a strong correlation between a manager understanding the professional’s skills and capabilities and overall satisfaction with their role. On-the-job and targeted face-to-face workshops were the preferred professional development and training approaches, with less than a quarter preferring online modules or workshops. The vast majority of millennials (98%) say that it is important for their organisation’s values to align with theirs.
ICC’s key question was ‘What does it take to engage and retain Australian professionals aged 23-38?’ Six hundred professionals in this age range responded to a survey which had three key domains of interest in relation to millennials: 1. reasons why they might leave a job; 2. factors that contribute to their engagement at work; and 3. the effect of workplace environment and culture on their engagement. The findings suggested that many millennial stereotypes were not supported. Millennials are not job-hoppers by choice. The majority of respondents would like to be employed by their organisation for a long term (at least four years) and with their next role being with the same organisation. The majority expressed satisfaction with their current salary and though they regarded salary as important, they also sought challenge and variety in their role.
Recommendations for this domain were thus to: • find out if employees are being sufficiently challenged and, if not, provide challenge and variety in their role; • gain an understanding of their skills and capabilities, and seek to utilise these where possible; • facilitate mentorship opportunities within the organisation;
Recommendations for this domain were thus to: • increase the level of challenge or offer a change of role every few years to keep millennials engaged;
• ensure regular face-to-face meetings with managers and discussions about career development; and
• offer stable contracts and conduct regular salary reviews, with professional development and regular salary increases as they progress through the organisation; and
• provide on-the-job training opportunities wherever possible. Millennials look for leaders who mentor, develop and lead by example, with 83% indicating that leadership in their organisation is very important or extremely important to their level of job satisfaction. Workplace culture is also important for job satisfaction,
• provide flexibility with hours and with the work location. While the majority of millennials (69%) expressed the want to be challenged by their www.graduatehouse.com.au
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