Last week I attended a recruiting seminar titled, "How To Attract Millenial Job Candidates" and I have to be honest, I was very skeptical.  I get invited to dozens of human resources seminars, webinars and trainings each month and the majority of the time I walk away feeling like I didn't learn anything new.  As knowledgeable as I am in this space, obviously I can and WANT to learn more.  But I was surprised to learn new some tips on recruiting millenials.

First, the speaker, let us know exactly who millenials are.  We hear the term all the time but to clarify on this special demographic, he pointed out that millenials are people born between 1980-2004 and they make up 1/3 of the workforce today (that actually makesme, a millenial, ha! Time to stop passing judgement).  Then he went on to clarify some misconceptions about millenials.  We've heard them all before, "they're lazy", "they're entitled", "they're idealist."  The list goes on...

Misconceptions About Millenials

They Don't Stay In One Job For Very Long This one is tricky.  While it's true that 79% of millenials are actively searching or "open to new opportunities" (hey, aren't we all?) the truth is that they are staying at their early career company longer than the previous generation. That's a good thing!

They're Only Motivated By Money  Hmmm, not true.  On average, millenials say they would take a $7,000 pay cut for a better work situation or a company that offered career advancement, training opportunities and a better work/life balance.

They Only Care About Themselves  Millenials, compared to previous generations, are looking more towards companies whose values and mission match their own.  They really want to be part of an organization that's making a difference.

The Truth About Millenials

Here are some interesting statistics on millenials in the workforce:

• 88% prefer a collaborative environment vs. a competitive one and...
• 79% want their bosses to serve more as coaches and mentors

 So, now that you have all this knowledge, how do you attract millenials into your organization?

Diversify your conversation. That means using different ways to target millenials.  Think social media and be creative:

•  Ensure that your careers pages are mobile friendly Millenials are pro-active and do their homework.  Make sure you're giving them  something great to look at while they visit your careers page and ensure that it's mobile friendly.
• Encourage employee-referral programs Word of mouth is always a great way to bring people in.   Give your employees an incentive to talk up your organization by rewarding referrals.
• Visualize your employment brand We were shown an amazing example of an employee video (see below) from Tom's shoes.  They definitely do a great job of establishing an employee brand here.

 What are some of your challenges when working with millenials?