Employers invited to learn about ""millennials:"" a new generation of employees
Janel Shoun |
“Recruiting and Retaining the Millennial Generation”
Ezell Center, 3901 Granny White Pike
8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
To register call 615.966.1792 or e-mail careerdevelopment@lipscomb.edu.
The seminar will outline how millennials fit into the big hiring challenge of the future – a predicted shortfall of employees as baby boomers move into retirement.
The workshop will feature keynote speaker Amy Lynch, a local writer and researcher of the millennial generation, who will address the topic “Millennials: Attract Them, Engage Them, Become Their Employer of Choice.”
Also on the agenda are Nancy Eisenbrandt, vice president of workforce for the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce; a panel of employers including HCA, Dell, Capital Financial Group, Carter’s and Disney, discussing best practices in recruiting and employee management; and a panel of recent Lipscomb graduates discussing their work experiences.
For the first time ever, four generations of workers are employed in the workplace, noted Lisa Shacklett, director of Lipscomb’s Career Development Center. The collision of multiple generations, born anywhere from 1920 to the 1980s, and their differing work philosophies can cause management challenges that have never been faced by employers before, Shacklett said.
For instance, while matures (born from 1920 to 1945), having seen the Depression, often wear their work ethic as a badge of honor and show great loyalty to their employers, millennials (born from 1980 to 2000), having seen the Enron scandal, are much less trusting of their employers and will often question their supervisors. Different generations clash over use of technology; they approach climbing the career ladder differently; and expect different things from their bosses, Shacklett said.
“Many young professionals searching for a job have a new mindset that employers may not be familiar with,” Shacklett said. “With a large gap between job openings and employees to fill them expected in the next decade, it is important for companies to understand millennials in order for their companies to survive. Retiring baby boomers likely have completely different skill sets than the incoming millennials, which adds another challenge to employers for the future.