While you will find tried, tested, and true aspects of project management, millennials are bringing fresh perspectives – leveraging technological advancements and placing additional focus in areas like economic, ecological, and social factors.
Alex Shootman, CEO at Workfront, a cloud-based enterprise work and project management solution provider, said understanding how to work with millennials is vital since “digital natives now rule, and will rise in power and influence over the next several years.”
“Just as with any immigrant and native in a society, you will find differences, the ones differences will change work,” said Shootman. “Differences bring that digital natives look at the workplace as egalitarian vs. hierarchical, they like telecommuting and flexible hours as well as the possiblity to make-up work remotely, (i.e., coming from a cafe on the weekend or while you’re on vacation).”
“Natives like multitasking or task switching and prefer to understand ‘just-in-time’ and only what is minimally necessary.” Shootman said millennials “interact and network simultaneously with lots of, even countless others. Egalitarian, flexible, task switching, just-in-time skills and highly networked. This is simply not the current workplace.”
SEE: Millennials are doubly as bored at the job as seniors, report says
Why the target about the role of millennials in projects?
“By 2020, millennials is likely to make up half the international labor force, and by 2030, they’ll account for 75%. Millennials’ aversion to hidden agendas, rigid corporate structures and knowledge silos along with a willingness to understand more about new opportunities will fundamentally alter the nature of work or severely cost businesses,” said Eric Bergman, vice president of Project Management Books at Changepoint, a professional services automation company. “Gallup estimates millennial turnover costs america economy $30.5 billion annually.” Bergman believes organizations will focus more extensively on employees and their needs so that you can address the negative impact of churn on productivity, quality, and repair.
What does this implies for project activities that support business goals?
Bergman said that this past year, businesses realized their survival hinged on embracing digital transformation. Now, transitioning to shifting expectations means delivering IT capabilities that complement business priorities. Even the most agile, tech-forward organizations are rewriting their playbook industry by storm evolving expectations.”
Marianne Crann, director, recruiting at Changepoint adds “Millennials are disrupting traditional business models. We’ve seen this in HR for a long time. However, everyday processes have to be updated to accommodate new generations of talent. They work differently and still have different expectations. Businesses that see that sweet spot-the the one that attracts talent without detracting from your success from the business-will gain happier staff and happier stakeholders, no matter the generation.” Changepoint has gone into greater detail on millennials and project management in their new 2017 trends report.
At GlassSKY, an organization dedicated to the empowerment and advancement of women, founder Robyn Tingley believes millennials differ in their approach to timelines, collaboration, and communication. “Millennials have a much better a feeling of work/life balance than Gen Xers,” she said. “This does not mean they won’t place in additional time once the situation demands it, or respond to correspondence after hours, nevertheless they will most definitely expect that is the exception.” Tingley said that more so than other generations, millennials are drawing boundaries more clearly which this new thought process is at odds using the old ‘all nighter’ mentality of project management deadlines. “It’s making project leaders rethink deadlines, how to schedule work and wins, key milestones what is truly realistic and achievable whenever your key players clock out earlier than the first choice, and earlier than anyone in the older generations expect,” said Tingley. “It also means decision making has to be put on steroids…if the team members shall be productive just for 8 hours, you can’t you can keep them spending 2-3 of those daily in meetings presenting powerpoints and flow charts to obtain consensus around change requests and scope adjustments.”
When considering into collaboration Tingley said millennials excel: “They are true team players and love to solicit inputs and views and are natural connectors.” And so they expect tools to maintain pace. “Static whiteboards that can not be seen if you don’t require a snapshot, SharePoint sites, Excel spreadsheets, and corporations that do not have adequate video conference solutions are dinosaurs for many years,” said Tingley. “Project managers have to embrace and support modernized software that could handle collaborative brainstorming, real-time updates, multiples readers and users, integrated video, voice plus more.”
Regarding communication, Tingley said millennials are “the true tech generation; gadget-friendly, always on, highly responsive tech connoisseurs, plus they communicate in short bursts of emojis and splintered spelling. Email just will not work to align teams, manage inputs, and drive performance.” With the rise of virtual workers and geographically-distanced teams, Tingley predicted that project management apps will end up the new norm. “The future just may entail millennials working at the local coffeehouse, uploading a visual chart they only drew or a photo they snapped of something inspirational, as well as the entire team can easily see it and make on it, click to vote yes/no, drag it to the next two-quarters out for the future phase, etc,” she said.
How must millennials see their role in projects and affect business goals?
“The millennial generation continues to be dubbed the ‘selfie generation,'” said Daniel Malak, who works well with Motionloft, a service provider of hyperlocal pedestrian and automobile traffic sensors. “I love to think it’s more the ‘self-starter’ generation. Young professionals know that in paying down education loans, advancing in their career, and establishing relevant experiences for growth uses a decisive attitude towards accepting and leading new projects.”
Malack, a millennial, believes his generation has an interest in not simply meeting expectations of a project, but exceeding them as well. “Millennials are nimble and may adapt faster to changes better than others,” he stated. “Younger associates can oftentimes be determined to deliver, which presents an interesting situation in which projects become opportunities instead of hurdles…deadlines are managed with the implementation of latest communication methods, which can both expedite the job and improve the important thing simultaneously.”
What should companies detract out of this?
Millennials will be the future, bringing newer perspectives plus more innovative approaches. Companies have to harness their contributions and recognize the actual potential they possess.
Technology is almost wired in to the DNA of the tech savvy group in such a way the previous generations might not understand fully and appreciate. This may cause millennials a hybrid solution by themselves and a powerful source of projects.
Millennials mustn’t be automatically mistaken as ‘not as experienced’, or unaware. They’ve surface through a business climate which is more diverse, complex, dynamic, e-mail, more stressful than other generations. This may cause their experiences and contributions highly valuable. Project teams should leverage their varied insights for improved outcomes.
When companies can harness the full combined potential of previous generations and millennials, the outcome can offer a sustainable solution than depending upon only 1 or another.
For more details about Project Management Books go to our website: click to read more