Generation Y workers, also known as Millennials (born between 1980-1993), are entering positions with increasing levels of responsibilities and have more influence on important business decisions. Should we worry about it? Are they really as lazy, egotistical, and overly optimistic as we think? Answers to these questions were published in a study by IBM entitled Myths, Truths exaggerations and uncomfortable truths - The real story behind Millennials in the workplace.
The main difference between Millennials and older workers lies in their level of digital literacy. Millennials are the first generation to have grown up in the digital world. They are accustomed to instant access to data and instant communication, but otherwise they are not really that different from the others. The IBM study, which involved more than 1,700 employees from three generations in 12 countries, identified the following five myths about Millennials.
Myth no. 1: Millennials' career goals and expectations differ from older generations
The study showed that Millennials actually have very similar expectations. They want financial security, opportunities to grow professionally and to work with different kinds of people.
Myth no. 2: Millennials demand constant praise
The Millennial respondents of the study described their ideal boss as ethical, fair and transparent - willing to share information. Recognition was less important.
Myth no. 3: Millennials live in an online world and prefer it to real life
Millennials are obviously used to communicating online. However, this does not mean that they want to deal with everything virtually. For example, they prefer face-to-face contact at work to learn new skills. In comparison with older generations, they are better at separating their work-related and personal online activities.
Myth no. 4: Millennials are not able to make independent decisions
Millennials have a reputation of non-independent employees who need to have consensus with their colleagues on every decision. The study showed that more than half of Millennials think they make better decisions when more people were involved in the process. However, that is exactly the same response as two-thirds of Generation X employees.
Myth no. 5: Millennials are more likely to leave if a job does not meet their expectations
In fact, Millennials change jobs for the same reasons as the older generation of employees. The reasons most often include offers of higher salaries and more creative or innovative work environments.
The complete study is available for download on this page.
What differences between employee generations have you observed in your company? Is the generation gap really as wide as people think?
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