Millennials and the Big Companies dilemma
What leads a millennial to work at a company? And at their first company? With salary conditions being equal, what would the drivers be for choosing that first job, knowing that what is coming may well be learned better at a startup than at a large company. And if big companies also want to look like startups in order to break with their rigidities and their management silos, what is the incentive to choose a big company?
It all starts with a conversation I have had over the last few days. Someone asked me what it takes to work at a digital consultancy. And here is the answer, word for word:
“Be yourself, be up for some <
_[Originally published on the DIVISADERO News BLOG]_
I wonder whether in any of the jobs I have had over the last 20 years there was a “check” to be ticked on any of these recommendations. And when I do find a check, I have the feeling that I am making a judgement at a micro level, at the level of the department or the team I was working in. And it is also true that in large organisations leadership does have a place, and sadly it happens in silos.
Weeks ago I was reading a post about the decreasing appeal that “millennials” find in working for large corporations and their lack of commitment. Here is the link. The most curious thing about the letter this millennial writes to the leadership team of a fictional company is that it asks for passion, authenticity, fairness and person-to-person treatment. Is it possible that these values have not been the predominant ones of the last decade? Isn't the executive of 10 years ago a somewhat cynical profile, an alienated guy (and here I don't say gal), who has taken on status as a form of pay (boosted by an archaic style of human resources), and who has repeated with his peers, until he believed it, the phrase: “You know that here, we are all a number”. With so many layers of pain it is sometimes difficult to change the raw material that has to manage the change. It doesn't surprise me that, even where salaries are unequal, the big corporation option is no longer so attractive as a first step.
In a conversation with an Israeli venture capitalist, he explained to me the differences in perception between Spain and Israel. His conclusion was that mums in Israel, unlike mums in Spain, are proud when their children decide to start a business. Can you imagine a Spanish mum proud that her son is an entrepreneur? I think we are a generation away from seeing something similar. And we are getting closer.
If I go back to the beginning of this post and make a list of what today sets apart working at a digital consultancy vs a large corporation, I would come up with something like the following:
- AUTHENTICITY:
Could large corporations claim that what they are really looking for is free-thinkers?, people with a defined personality? I think it would be desirable to bring in free thinkers (and the organisation has to be prepared for the change). Today, I don't see that as a majority reality. Sometimes I think we have confused what the organisation wants to say with cancelling out the voice of each and every one of those who belong to it. Perhaps the exposure of large organisations on social media is drawing a new picture of the concept of corporate reputation. Closer to the coming together of individual wills and further from the single voice, similar to a stable and unshakeable statement. Today we all admire a CEO who apologises in a tweet and we disown a company that legally threatens a user on social networks for staining the company's name. Respectability? Authenticity.
Hint****_: “...Be yourself…”_
- STATUS [ABSENCE OF]:
Is it possible that for many years the old guard running human resources chose to climb in exchange for confusing non-financial rewards with pay in the form of status? Is it possible that they generated retention indicators that justified the success of their decision-making? It is quite possible. And it is also possible that the concept of success and social recognition today goes beyond driving an expensive car or having more floor tiles in your office. I am not denying the power of status, and perhaps the drivers have changed. We all need to feel recognised, and an imbalance in recognition sets off serious threats for any human being. Respect is a powerful lever for strengthening that balance.
Hint****_: “... Be up for some <
- AUTONOMY AND TALENT:
How many of us could claim that in recent years we have been allowed to create, to contribute, to take part in decision-making in a committee, or in a crowded meeting? And how many of us have had the autonomy to carry out our contributions? What amused me when reading the earlier post about the lack of commitment of “millennials” was the line that read: ”I need to be surrounded by people who are on fire for what we’re doing. I need a manager who is motivated to push boundaries and think differently. ” We are in need of leaders willing to think differently. Attracting different talent so that they think the same way you already think. That sounds like a waste of energy. I think 40 years paying back the same loan every month leaves little room for thinking differently. Fortunately millennials will not make the same mistake. And those burdens may well not limit their autonomy.
Hint: “... where there is talent and a desire to contribute and plenty of autonomy to create…”
- DISCIPLINE AND CREATIVITY:
If there is one thing someone starting out at work longs for, it is method, or “fundamentals” as it is called in English. Most of the companies that have proliferated around the opportunities of the new digital era have created a method forged in the learnings of the “test-and-learn” dynamic. And fortunately, that way of learning has become a “must” in the digital era. And to learn you need the creativity to design new scenarios and the courage to accept that the results may move away from our initial expectations.
Hint****_: “... And method. Lots of method. And where creativity to come up with new service ideas is a plus …”_
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If some of you have had the chance to read David Rock's SCARF model (SCARF: a brain-based model for collaborating with and influencing others, NeuroLeadership Journal, 2008) many of the statements above will ring true.**
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Summing up the "hints" and going back to the beginning of this post, I am going to give the initial recommendation the rank of “Digital Worker Statement”:
Digital Worker Statement
“Be yourself. Be willing to work in a company where everyone is treated equally.
Where talent and value creation are abundant.
Where you can find a degree of autonomy to come up with new ideas. And fundamentals, lots of fundamentals.
And where creativity to develop new offering is an asset”
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Bernardo Crespo is Digital Transformation Leader and an Ontological Coach certified by Newfield Network in Bogotá (Colombia). Degree in Business Studies from UCLM and final year of a BA Honours in Management and Economics, University of St Andrews. Executive Master in Relationship Marketing, CRM and E-commerce from ICEMD and a teacher at various business schools in Spain. He worked as digital marketing director at BBVA España.
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I currently devote myself to helping companies walk the path of Digital Transformation at DIVISADERO._
I have discovered and keep discovering the beauty of play applied outside of play #gamification
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Bernardo Crespo
C-suite advisor in AI, data and strategy. CEO of Quantum Markethink and Academic Director at IE. He helps leadership teams make sound decisions in the age of AI.
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