Millennials and Followership — Building a Stronger Connection

• In Event: Millennials: Influencers and Motivators

Short Description

Concern about millennial needs is a key consideration for leaders, due to the complexity of that generation. This literature review on millennials and followership suggests an explanation of the “what” and “why” of millennials in the workplace. The missing link — the “how” will be the focus of this presentation.

Detailed Abstract

Change is necessary to continue the growth of organizations (Gilley, Gilley, & McMillan, 2009). Shifting focuses have posed many challenges for organizational leaders. Based on the complex nature of certain tasks and timeframes, leaders and junior personnel need to work more closely together. This connection extends to global partners. Managing and leading employees has become more complex as a result of various generational dynamics (Meier, Austin, Crocker, & Austin, 2010). This literature review on Millennials and Followership aims to show why cohesive “followership” is essential during these turbulent times to implement and achieve organizational goals. The implementation of a “DIGITAL connection” could prove instrumental to connect leadership and followership.

The idea of value proposition between the leader and employee is complex. Woods (2016) alludes that value is “ambidextrous” and should apply to the focus of the company and the people within it. Dixon, Mercado & Knowles (2013) assert that it is the responsibility of leaders to build relationships and understand millennials to develop an efficient work environment. Leaders will have to be sensitive to the needs and view technology as part of critical component to connect with the millennial, enhance their followership, (Ribble & Miller, 2013) and get the job done.

Since the early 90’s, research has focused on the attributes of “millennials” showing that this generation is more concerned with their personal needs than those of the organization. This younger generation is not willing to change what is important to them (Rosethorn, Hodes, & Mensink, 2007). Howe & Strauss (1992) conducted extensive research on generational disparity and the meaning for the different needs within the organization, especially with the millennial generation. Millennials’ needs are different from other generations (Shaw & Fairhurst, 2008), requiring a rewarding workplace (Tews, Michel, Xu & Drost, 2015), incorporating social media, internet, and technology as a part of their personality (Wieck, 2007), and utilizing technology to establish a digital connection with others (Eastman, Iyer, Liao-Troth, Williams & Griffin 2014). Leaders have been groomed to lead but not to follow so followership can get complicated when they have employees to develop. Leaders do not appear equipped to handle millennials (Thompson & Gregory, 2012) and must rethink their approach to success and connectivity (Campione, 2015).

Comparing the various demographics that comprise the workforce, millennials are more tech savvy and understand organizational politics (Meier et al, 2010; Ribble & Miller, 2013). Millennials desire to follow the latest trends, brands, and major developments. Facebook, Instagram, Wechat, and Line are some social media outlets that enable Millennials to stay engaged with global current events.
Greyvenstein, & Cilliers (2012) conducted a study in South Africa that could be implemented globally; leaders have to understand the values of their employees, what calls them to action, and how to keep them engaged in the workforce to improve followership. Van Vugt, Hogan, & Kaiser (2008) assert that during turbulent times, leadership takes a more critical approach in leading employees to be more engaged and to perform at a higher level. Understanding “followership” early on can soften the impact when employees need to support organizational directives.

The topic of “followership” is timely as the employee is more brand-aware and tech savvy. Millennials desire to establish their presence in their workforce, schools, and personal life (Gilley et al., 2009). Two components leaders might consider:

1. Change management. When making changes in organizations, success rates are usually minimal (Meier et al., 2010). Leaders have to understand the change process and what the process means now and in the future to the leaders and junior personnel. Change processes have been designed to help leaders plan and implement methods that promote inclusiveness (Gilley et al., 2009). Lewin, Ulrich, and Kotter offer steps for leaders to consider in the change management process along with open dialogues, follow up, and sharing of various inclusive techniques (Gilley et al., 2009).

2. Branding. Brands attract Millennials who follow the latest designers and their creations, the famous and their trends, and expect the same in the workforce. Understanding the impact of brand awareness provides a platform to blend the needs of the employee and the organization, thus creating a win-win scenario (Rosethorn, Hodes, & Mensink, 2007). Branding of the organization, especially in global markets including India, has been an item of focus to gain momentum in recruiting talent (Sengupta, Bamel & Singh, 2015).

Hiring managers follow social media to gain access to this generation (“The Power of the Net Generation,” 2012). Social networks are the primary form of Millennium communication. Leaders still have to be sensitive to the impact of employee engagement following hiring and onboarding new workers. Results in the “2014 Trends in Global Employee Engagement” indicated Africa/Middle East has the highest increase of employee engagement, while Latin America had the largest decrease; Europe remained consistent and the United States and China had minimal changes (AON Hewitt, 2014). Western and Eastern cultures are growing quickly; thus, their success plans are dependent on the availability and timelessness of employees.

Like leaders in Europe, global leaders who commit to organizational changes and contemplate future employee trends could broaden their perspective on the growing population in the workforce to speak the language in a digital era (Vassiliou & McAleese, 2014) that often includes the language of social media communication. Technology continues to evolve globally. As technology is becoming more prevalent in the workplace so are the needs of Millennials who will be the “voice” of the future (“The Power of the Net Generation,” 2012).
This sense of connection and concern about millennial needs is a key consideration for leaders, due to the complexity of this growing generation. Challenges include hiring the right talent and keeping this sector engaged (Lingeil, 2014). The literature suggests an explanation of the “what” and “why” of millennials in the workplace; what is missing is “how.” This researcher asserts that leaders may connect effectively with Millennials using a universal language such as a DIGITAL connection (the “how”).

Participants

• Renee R. Green, University of Phoenix

• Erik Bean, University of Phoenix