According to a new Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data, over a third of American workers today are millennials (adults ages 18 to 34 in 2015).
This year, millennials surpassed Generation X (those aged 35 to 50) to become the largest share of the American workforce.
How does this increase in the number of millennials in the workplace affect an organization’s training strategy?
It helps to understand how millennials think about training.
“Millennials are eager to gain the skills that will ultimately allow them to become leaders in their field and be successful in their chosen industry,” according to an article in CIO.
“And 54 percent have an interest in increasing their technical skills.”
An article in Chief Learning Officer says millennials have some expectations about learning. They have grown up using the Internet with personalized, on demand, and contextualized experiences. As a result, this is what they expect from training.
Dashe & Thomson, a training consultancy, published a blog entitled 5 Things Millennials Want From Training, which lists five tips for training millennials:
1. Provide learning resources, in one easy-to-access place, so employees don’t have to search all over the Internet for appropriate training.
2. Use gamification to engage employees and provide context.
3. Provide feedback to let employees know how much progress they’re making as they learn new skills.
4. Deliver training that has meaning, and give realistic reasons why a lesson will be helpful in the work environment.
5. Segment information by breaking learning into small sections; this approach works best for engaging the active minds of millennials and increasing their retention.
