Sanket Pai in
Let’s face it, Millennials are taking over the world. According to a study by PWC, millennials will make up an estimated 50% of the workforce by 2020. Some of the most profitable and disruptive companies today, such as Facebook, Uber, and Airbnb are led by millennial leaders. A lot is being discussed about millennial leadership styles and rightly so; after all the next decade is going to see a lot of millennials move into leadership positions.
In this blog, my aim is to highlight a few aspects of how millennial leaders are changing the leadership paradigm
Disruption is the order of the day
Millennials are a generation that believes in instant gratification. Outcomes can’t wait, impatience is good! They also are very passionate about creating a lasting impact, not only for themselves but for the world. So disruption for them is not just a phase, but a way of life. Millennial leaders tend to embrace change much better than the previous generation and thrive on challenges that change brings. The millennial workforce is in a much better position to adapt to change and also drive innovation that impacts the world in a positive way.
Collaborating for success
Given their impatience and ingrained desire to change the world, millennials don’t adjust well in bureaucratic environments. Growing up in an age where the avenues for communication and networking are endless, millennials love ideating and collaborating with people to make the ideas a reality. Millennial leaders tend to give a more important to collective achievement rather than individual successes and for an organization that could do wonders.
Technology is intrinsic, no additional
To millennials, digital is a way of life. We are living in an age where a smartphone can talk back, you can interact with your home and cars can drive themselves. While this is an exciting time for the Gen-X to be alive, for millennials this is the new normal. Technology is disrupting age-old ways and the millennials are lapping it up. This trend is only going to accelerate in the coming decades and why not! Skeptics will argue about the downside of technology dominance but millennials are not going be get bogged down by naysayers. With tech-savvy millennials at the helm, it is definitely going be an exciting time ahead.
A diverse, creative and inclusive work culture
We are seeing a huge positive shift in diversity in corporate culture. Organizations are encouraging different points of view, an unbiased approach to gender and race and acceptance of cultures in a big way. When employees embrace this diversity, it propagates an inclusive culture, leading to better collaboration, teamwork and thereby better business outcomes.
As the baton gets passed from the older generation to a new one, there is always some level of apprehension and dissent. But that’s the thing about change; not everyone is in for it. The good thing is, millennials thrive on change! The future is in good hands!