Millennials (the generation born between the early 80s and the late 90s) are expected to make up 50% of the workforce by 2020. The good news is that’s a massive talent pool! The bad news is that not all businesses are attracting millennial talent. We have ideas about how to recruit millennials. It’s possible your company might need to update your employee offerings to appeal to new hires in a way that resonates. Here are some tactics to consider to help your business attract millennial talent.
Recruiting Millennials.
1. Host learning opportunities to attract interest.
Millennials grew up in the Internet Age and have a thirst for knowledge. A great way to increase your potential candidate pool, and recruiting millennials, is to host “lunch and learns,” company mixers or even attend student seminars geared towards learning and career development.
2. Create a culture of inclusion.
Millennials want to be heard and to feel part of a workplace that welcomes feedback from all levels. They appreciate having the autonomy to execute projects on their own but want to feel like their work is making an impact. HighMatch can help you identify your current company culture so that you can make any necessary changes before recruiting millennials.
3. Offer flexible hours and remote work options
Millennials don’t jive well with the strict 9-5 office schedule. Consider offering flexible hours where employees log a certain amount of time each week but can do so on their schedule. This can also extend to vacation time, where employees can take vacation days whenever they want without having to count or accrue hours. A lot of work doesn’t require an employee to be at the office. There are so many great tools available to facilitate remote working such as video conferencing, issue tracking, and team chat apps. Millennials love working from home, out of coffee shops or at the beach and giving them the option to do so will make your company much more appealing.
4. Modernize your perks.
In addition to health insurance and other basics, more modern perks like gym memberships, weekly happy hours or social outings often sway millennials. Some companies allow pets in the office or offer nanny services for parents who want to bring their kids to work. These types of perks help when recruiting millennials because they want to have a fulfilling work-life balance.
5. Be social.
Place ads on social networking sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Using social networks to promote your company culture is also important. Let candidates get to know your unique company personality in their preferred environment.
6. Be mobile.
Often, phones are Millennials’ preferred device. It’s important for employers to keep that in mind when recruiting – and to make finding information, applying for jobs and communicating easier on mobile devices. First, you need to make sure that your career site is readable on the phone. It may be necessary to remove the resumes and cover letters from applicant submissions and rely more on LinkedIn profiles. Get used to communicating with candidates by text message or chat as well as email and phone calls.
Before You Hire Millennials.
Having the right measures in place to attract millennials can boost your company’s chances of long-term success. With a full candidate pool, it can be difficult to identify the best person for the job. HighMatch can help you determine which traits your company needs for success in each role. Learn more about job profiles.