Providing training and development opportunities shows your millennial employees that you value their skills and want to invest in their learning. And embracing millennial training and development will help you turn these young, talented employees into a productive, skilled workforce that will help your company thrive in the coming years.
This week, I’ve collected several articles that look at how millennials and their employers benefit from training and development opportunities.
3 Ways to Bridge Millennials’ Skills Gap. The Wall Street Journal: “According to a global survey of nearly 8,000 millennials conducted on behalf of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd., respondents overwhelmingly rated the skills they gained on the job since graduation as more helpful in achieving their organizations’ goals and executing their day-to-day responsibilities than the knowledge and skills they gleaned in college. Findings from the Deloitte survey thus indicate a gap between the skills organizations seek in employees and those millennials felt they possessed at graduation. Josh Bersin, principal and founder of Bersin by Deloitte, Deloitte Consulting LLP, says U.S.-based businesses are aware of millennials’ skills gaps.”
Why Online Learning Is The Most Valuable Millennial Training Tool. TINYhr: “The Gen Y skills problem exacerbates this management competence issue, but it’s primarily a result of the Peter Principle: the idea that companies are forced to promote or shift employees to a position of incompetence. Think of Joffrey on the throne, and the havoc his lack of experience and maturity wreaks on the kingdom. Sebastien said a number of companies he’s worked with needed management training after promoting a programmer to managing a development team. The companies knew the potential drawbacks of doing this but preferred to promote employees with company experience rather than hiring a new employee with management experience.”
Millennials Decry Lack of Career Development. SHRM: “The top piece of advice Millennials have for the graduating Class of 2015, according to nearly 40 percent of respondents, is to ‘invest in your own skills training to make [yourself] as marketable as possible.’ ‘Perhaps against conventional stereotypes, the majority of Millennials are shocked by the lack of skills development available in the workplace today, and [are] committed to taking matters in their own hands,’ said Donna Wells, CEO of Mindflash. ‘This should be a signal for companies that both online training and traditional live training will be a critical component of harnessing the potential of these young professionals, especially with graduation season upon us.’”
Career Progression is a Top Priority for Millennials. HRreview: “Research into the attitudes and working habits of Millennials (born 1980-1999) reveals that 91 percent of professional Millennials consider opportunities for rapid career progression to be the most important aspect of their jobs…It reveals that the desire for career progression is key to attracting and retaining Millennial employees, as well as keeping them engaged in their current role. 15 percent of employers believe that personalised training programs are a priority for keeping employees engaged. In contrast, 53 percent of Millennials reported that they were disappointed by the lack of training and development provided in a new job.”
Training Millennials. Restaurant Business: “At Perkins & Marie Callender’s, that rationale drives training. ‘Lead with the why,’ says Donna Herbel, lead director of training and development for the Memphis-based chains. How operators deliver that ‘why’ also is shifting. Gabe Hosler, director of training and operations services for Carlsbad, Calif.-based Rubio’s, has found that millennials don’t see the need to memorize an entire manual up front. Rather, he refers to this demographic as ‘on the job’ people. ‘They say, ‘Give me the least amount of information needed to get my job done.’ Over time, they pick up on more,’ he says. So Hosler has embraced this in his training practices, creating what he calls a ‘succinct, scrubbed-down’ program. ‘Get them onboarded with the small details, then impart bigger, cultural details over time,’ he says.”
How does your company train and develop millennial employees? Leave your answer in the comments!
Lindsey Pollak is a New York Times best-selling author and a nationally recognized millennial expert who helps employers recruit, train, manage and market to the millennial generation. Her speeches and training sessions inspire multigenerational collaboration and foster lasting organizational success. Contact Lindsey to learn how she can help your organization understand and connect with millennials.
