According to Pew Research, there are now approximately 53.5 millennials in the workforce, which is more than both gen X and baby boomer employees. This generation is already the majority of your available recruiting base and the figures will only increase in coming years. If you are recruiting for tech talent, you need to focus on millennials whether you like it or not. Luckily, there are unique benefits to hiring this generation of tech talent. Here are four that you should be excited about:
Digital from Birth
Millennials were the first generation to be raised on computers. And many of them played video games at an early age, logged onto the earliest versions of the Internet, and introduced older generations to cell phones and tablets. In short, this generation has been digital from birth which accounts for them having a dynamic and deep tech skill set. Rather than learning many of the tech skills you’re recruiting for, millennials have absorbed them since a very early age.
Affordable to Employ
The millennial generation has consistently cited work/life balance and flexibility higher than compensation when asked about priorities for employment. Considering how much tech salaries have ballooned in recent years, you may be able to recruit relatively inexpensive millennial talent by offering more vacation time, work-from-home opportunities, and flexible scheduling. Those have proven to be enticing benefits and they cost you very little.
Preference for Teams
Successful IT initiatives rarely sprout from individuals and almost always sprout from teams. For a variety of complex psychological and historical reasons, millennials prefer to work in teams and feel more excited about collective rather than individual accomplishments. If you’re looking to recruit tech employees that can organize themselves together effectively, organically, quickly, and with a limited amount of hand holding, you will be impressed by the responsiveness of millennials.
Willing to be Loyal
Millennials were raised in a time of crippling recession and ubiquitous unpaid internships. As a result, they understand acutely how competitive the job market is and tend to be more appreciative and loyal when an opportunity is extended. If your tech team has been decimated by employees who jump ship for greener pastures, recruiting millennials could provide the stability you’re looking for.
The biggest benefit of hiring millennials may also be the most obvious – they are young and current. Many are recently out of school, well versed in or eager to learn the latest technologies, and full of ideas that are relevant to the next big wave of consumers. What you lose in experience you make up for in relevance and enthusiasm. When you’re ready to start considering more millennial candidates, contact RennerBrown.