Managing Millennials For Dummies

Chapter 10

Dropping Workplace Formalities: Let’s Be Friends

IN THIS CHAPTER

Understanding how Millennials’ perception of work ethic differs from other generations

Making the distinction between manager and friend

Wrapping your head around Millennial communication etiquette

Seasoned employees feeling frustration toward the new kids on the block is not a new phenomenon. Traditionalists wrote off Boomers as hippies, Boomers denounced Xers as apathetic slackers, and just about everyone thinks Millennials are entitled narcissists who expect to be rewarded for just showing up.

When a Millennial, experienced or not, joins a team, questions mired in this frustration inevitably bubble up: Are you going to work as hard as I did? Why do you think you can work flexible hours? Are you incapable of putting down your phone? Why don’t you show some effort and dress professionally?

The root of the problem here is pretty straightforward: Change is hard. Each generation brings different perceptions around what the work ethic looks like, the lines that should be drawn between workplace colleagues, and how to communicate effectively.

With so many preferences in the mix, trying to understand the correct ...