Facebook is the first Fortune 500 company founded and managed by a representative of the so-called Generation Y or Millennials (people born between 1980-2000). This generation is continuously gaining a stronger representation in the workforce. According to predictions, it should constitute 44% of all US workers by 2025. As a company created by this generation, Facebook can be a model organization for others.
Lori Goler, vice president for human resources at Facebook, described how workplaces can be prepared for the generation of Millennials in an article on the Harvard Business Review website. Her recommendations are based on a seven-year survey conducted in the company and revealed that the needs and desires of the youngest generation of workers are not significantly different from older generations.
1. Fulfillment
Millennials want meaningful work and the opportunity to be part of something that makes a positive contribution to the world. Facebook internal data clearly shows that they need to see their own contribution and influence on the work of the entire organization. Therefore, for example, the company enables engineers to choose the team they think they can have the greatest impact in after they enter the company.
2. Authenticity
Millennials are often judged to be too narcissistic because they feel the need to continually share information about themselves. Facebook, however, considers this as an advantage that manifests itself in the form of increased interconnection between the private and working lives of employees and leads to more authentic employee behavior. That also leads to a more effective work. Social networks can serve equally well inside companies as on the Internet. Internal social networks allow colleagues to exchange their views on work, create communities and share common interests.
3. Strengths
Millennials rely on their strengths, but that does not necessarily mean they are lazy or unwilling to do anything new. Their goal is simply to achieve excellent results in what they do best and what they are most interested in. If you do not offer this option to them, they may leave. Facebook therefore, for example, lets employees decide whether they want to become managers or specialists. The only possibility of career development is definitely not upward.
4. Learning
Millennials want to learn and further develop their strengths. They expect immediate feedback, coaching and additional development opportunities than those offered by traditional corporate cultures. This is true across all levels of company management.
5. Initiative
Millennials are also often criticized for feeling that they are entitled to act immediately and independently. They come in with their ideas and want to implement them as soon as possible. "But the result is not anarchy. It’s innovation that energizes both the individual and the company. That’s why we encourage people at all levels to put forward ideas and take the initiative to implement them," concludes Lori Goler.
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