How are millennials changing corporate workplace culture? originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.
Answer by Maria Matarelli, Founder & President at Formula Ink, on Quora:
Meet The Framework That Builds The Ideal Millennial Corporate Culture
If you want to attract the best Millennial candidates for your business, then you need to have a culture that promotes two things: empowerment and collaboration.
I have seen a lot of companies struggle with this, and it’s almost always because they don’t fully understand what it is Millennials really want. Some companies try to catch their attention with open workspaces and remote work privileges. Others celebrate Fridays with craft beer tastings in the conference room. But the truth is, Millennials (just like every other demographic) want an environment that speaks to their interests, sure, but also ensures that they are allowed to bring creativity and their ideas to how they work.
Millennials want to feel good about the work they’re doing.
Over the years, I have found that there is one framework that does this exceedingly well:
The Scrum Framework.
I’ve been teaching the Scrum Framework to companies all over the globe for years now (and not just to companies wondering what to do with their Millennials). Scrum is a rugby term for when the teams huddle around the ball when it is put back in play. Scrum is also the name of the most commonly used Agile approach that helps people do twice the work in half the time. It’s a very collaborative approach that engages a self-organizing team and empowers people to determine the best way they should work to complete incremental tasks that lead up to a larger goal.
As the ball is put into play in rugby, each person on the team pushes forward to contribute to gaining possession of the ball and moving closer toward the goal. And while the Agile mindset wasn’t invented to specifically target Millennials, the heart of it addresses exactly what these companies are after: to exponentially increase productivity and deliver value sooner.
Millennials are looking for a chance to show what they can really do—if given the right culture.
Understanding A Millennial’s Work Ethic:
Contrary to popular belief, Millennials aren’t lazy.
They want to work—and they work hard when they do. They just want to be able to work on their own terms, and in a way that makes them most effective.
That’s not too much to ask, right?
For Millennials, it’s more about the result than the process. They don’t want to feel trapped by repeating the same protocols as everyone else who has sat in the desk before them. They’re less interested in following a tedious, conventional framework if they can get the same results in a more creative, engaging, or immediate way—and a way that will allow them to stand out.
What do I mean by this?
I mean that Instead of writing long, formal emails or reports, Millennials would much rather submit the information via text message or a messaging app. They prefer video chats instead of in-person visits. They utilize the latest technology to get the results as quickly as possible, regardless of who thinks it should be done “the more professional way.”
They want to be judged on their results, not on how they got there.
A Culture of Agility:
Millennials aren’t just looking for a workplace where they can punch a clock.
Studies show that what Millennials want, even more than a higher paycheck, is to feel fulfilled. They want to be empowered to do great work, and to feel like what they’re doing on a day-to-day basis is actually making an impact. I don’t mean they have to solve some global issue. They just want to know that the report they just spent six hours working on wasn’t for nothing.
Which means, as a company, communicate with your Millennial employees in a way that is transparent. It’s in your best interest to fill them in on things the company is working toward—and more importantly, how each employee’s tasks end up contributing to those larger goals. Share the vision.
This shift, in itself, is what allows a company to be more creative and collaborative. After all, that’s what Millennials are really after. They want to feel like the company they work for is willing to hear their ideas out, and to see the value in making them part of larger company conversations.
What Millennials want is Agility.
Why The Framework Is So Important:
The Scrum Framework is all about setting a vision, a goal, and incrementally working toward that goal.
It’s not about following one specific protocol, or putting out orders to your employees like a drill sergeant. It’s about showing your employees where you want the company to be, and then giving each and every employee the freedom to work collaboratively and creatively to reach that goal.
If the goals are met, or exceeded, and no ethical boundaries broken, why criticize the process of how they got there?
And if your employees feel more fulfilled and personally invested in the company’s success, they’re more inclined to keep pushing forward.
How It Worked For Me, As A Millennial:
Here’s my story on Agility:
I was working at a Fortune 100 company right after college—a company very much ingrained to the “old school” rigid approach to business.
Each day, I did my work. I planned out my projects. I found myself finished with my work halfway through the week—but with no reward. There was no incentive for me to get my work done in half the time, except to twiddle my thumbs around for the rest of the week. I actually had a co-worker tell me I should slow down because I was getting so much done that I was making everyone else look bad.
As a result, I felt underutilized and not challenged. Sure, I was doing great work, even saving the company millions of dollars by improving the efficiency in some of their processes, and still, I wasn’t feeling challenged—or even appreciated. The company wasn’t letting me tap into my creativity or leverage a fraction of the specific skills and talents I knew I could offer.
Is it a mystery, then, why I left to pursue another path that would empower me to be the most effective, efficient, innovative person I could be? Is it surprising I found myself drawn to Agile?
Of course not.
Creating an ideal framework for Millennials doesn’t have to be a great mystery.
What Millennials really want out of a corporate culture is one that will allow them to become their best selves. They want to be useful, yes, but more so they want to be given the opportunities to be innovative and have fun doing it. They want to use their own skills, talents, and interests to put their personal stamp on the company. They want to be able to point and say, “I did this.”
And most importantly, they want to take pride in the company they work for because their company has taken pride in them.
How?
By allowing them, and trusting them, to deliver their best.
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