5 Key Takeaways From The “Becoming an Employer of Choice for Millennials” event

Posted on Friday, September 28th, 2018

Yesterday, the Co-op Department hosted nearly 100 employers at Becoming an Employer of Choice for Millennials. An informative session, providing the audience with a greater understanding of how to adapt recruitment tactics to recruit, retain, and promote millennials.


As one of Canada’s leading researchers and speakers on generational change, David Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data, shared data and insights on what employers need to know about Millennials: what makes them different, why it matters, and what you can do about it. The session was followed by a panel discussion exploring key thoughts on attracting young talent to an organization. David curated the information in a way that was comprehensive and data-integrated. A Millennial himself, Coletto provided a unique and original perspective on what is needed to obtain and retain the Millennial workforce in your workplace.

Initially focusing on the pre-existing reputation of Millennials as ‘The Me Me Me Generation’, David shifts the focus on Millennials’ experiences and upbringing. This information allows listeners to pivot their perspective of those born between 1980 and 2000 to a point of understanding.

Key practical takeaways

“You (employers) need to be open, authentic, real. Sometimes it’s as simple as ‘thanks for your work this week, see you next week.’ It was personal.”
– David Coletto

David Coletto shared with us five ways to think about work in the Millennial age:

  1. The fundamentals still matter
  2. Give us the tools we need to succeed
  3. Communicate openly and frequently
  4. Uniqueness, personal expression, novelty
  5. Tell your story

You can hear a detailed description of each of these takeaways on the Algonquin College website.

Final Thoughts

Coletto emphasized the importance of inclusion for Millennials in the workplace. At home, they come from a generation of parents who were inclusive, and for the first time in history, it was normal to ask your child for their opinion. Opinion-requesting questions such as, “How was your day?” “What would you like for dinner?” “We’re going on family vacation this summer, where would you like to go?” are all newer topics Millennial children were able to weigh-in on, as opposed to their predecessor generations who were more or less told what their parents had already decided.

“You work… for me with me.”

In order to be a great leader for Millennials, they need to feel a sense of inclusion. They want some control and say over what happens in their environment and workplace, and they want to be a part of impactful decisions.

And that’s a wrap! We hope you attended the event, enjoyed yourself and the new building.

Want to learn more about how co-op can benefit you? Explore our website, send us an email at coop@algonquincollege.com, or follow us on Twitter!

 


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