If your organization hasn't started to see the influx of Millennials (those born between 1980 and 2000), it will soon. According to PwC's "Millennials at Work: Reshaping the Workplace," Millennials (also known as Generation Y) currently make up 25 percent of the workforce in the United States, and they will form 50 percent of the global workforce by 2020.
Like any "new" generation, its members come to the table with new ideas, new needs, and new challenges, while many of its predecessors tend to sit back, wax poetic about the good old days, and poke fun at the new kids on the block. I'm not here to referee generational wars or fan the flames. I'm here to talk about how organizations can step up and start nurturing this younger generation today. And by "nurture," I mean mentor, but not in the traditional ways we've all come to know.
See, while Millennials can appreciate a good one-to-one mentoring relationship, they also believe that mentoring can happen anywhere and from anyone, if you will. This is a positive thing because it celebrates the correct notion that we all have something to contribute in the workplace (and to society in general). Millennials see the inherent value in everyone and, as a result, are open to learning from, well, everyone around them.
So the question is, how do you harness this willingness to be mentored by everyone into a viable approach within your organization? Here are two models to consider:
1. Group mentoring. The beauty of group mentoring is that you have one mentor working with (you guessed it!) a group of mentees—anywhere from three to six. The mentees receive the benefit of working with a more senior mentor, but they also receive the bonus benefit of working with (and being nurtured by) their fellow mentees, something that jives with the Millennial mentality.
2. Situational mentoring. This model is akin to coaching. The mentee seeks out a mentor with expertise in a specific area. For example, if the mentee wants to brush up on her sales call etiquette, she might reach out to one of the senior sales reps in the office for guidance and feedback. The purpose is specific and the mentoring "relationship" is short term, completed once the goal has been achieved.
At this point, you might be wondering if it's possible for a person to take part in situational mentoring, group mentoring, and traditional one-to-one mentoring all at the same time. The answer is yes, and this "tri-brid" model might be one that scores big with the Millennial crowd, since it satisfies the Millennials' desire for regular learning and feedback.
So, what should your organization do if it's only offering the more traditional one-to-one program, a program you've probably invested much blood, sweat, and tears in creating? Don't worry! Traditional mentoring is still relevant and meaningful, especially to those "other" generations that still make up the workforce (Gen X and Boomers).
But if you currently have many Millennials on staff (or you anticipate growing numbers soon), consider creating a mentoring program that provides options and include the models above in your menu. Let your employees choose the "flavor(s)" that work best for them. And don't be surprised if the older generations try some of the new offerings (couldn't we all benefit from some situational mentoring from time to time?).
Bottom line: Embrace Millennials. And don't worry—once you've gotten them figured out, you'll have Generation Z to contend with next.
