Amongst the many areas of change confronting the healthcare industry, one is inevitable – the rise of millennials in the workforce.
So, what are millennials? Millennial is the term used to describe the generation of people born between 1981 and 1996 – also known as gen Y. The millennials are followed by gen Z – those born between 1997 and 2012.
According to Deloitte, generation Z and millennials now make up over 40% of the Australian workforce. But what does this mean for you and your healthcare practice? Let’s dive into it.
Are the claims true?
There are many overarching perceptions of millennials in the workforce – that they’re entitled, have an elevated sense of the worth they bring and a poor work ethic, and can’t take criticism. But are these ideas true?
Well, obviously it depends – surprisingly enough, not all millennials are the same. And there’s a lot of research into the trends and commonalities of millennials in the workforce that strongly dispute these views. Here are a few findings that are worth contemplating:
They’re more driven by purpose than money, with a desire to “make a difference” and contribute to bigger goals. This doesn’t mean that they don’t care about how much they get paid, but it is prioritised differently from past generations.
They value opportunities for continuous learning and career advancement.
They appreciate (some might say need) frequent feedback and recognition for their work.
They see the value of emotional intelligence.
They value a sense of culture and diversity in their workplace.
They value mentorship and coaching from their superiors, so pairing junior team members up with senior team members for support can greatly impact their engagement.
We’ve already seen the workforce take up millennials at pace, and you likely have millennials working in your practice. Some of the changes presented already span a number of industries, including healthcare. These include pushing for a healthy work/life balance, rapid take up and adaptation of technology, new and innovative ideas and solutions, and demanding transparency from companies and their managers.
In short, millennials have already done a lot for the advancement of industry and have immense potential to create positive change for the future. While some of their approaches may be different to the longer established norms, automatically discounting this cohort as lazy or entitled does both them and your practice a disservice. These are the people who will pave our future, and there are many cases in which they’re already doing a really great job of it.
What do you need to know?
Taking all this into account, what do you need to consider when hiring millennials and integrating them into your practice?
Firstly, it’s important to remember that millennials may have different motivations, expectations and mindsets to what your team may be used to, so keeping an open mind to their approaches and drivers can reap rewards for both parties. We suggest that you implement strategies to gauge the motivations and drivers of your millennial team members – this can be done at interviews prior to employment, during probation meetings and even through light and casual questions. However, it‘s important to note that these may be extremely personal for some people – so ensure that your approach is not overly intimidating and avoid putting them on the spot.
You should also understand that they may require more of your (or your team members’) time in the initial period of their employment with you, to really understand the business, ask questions, get feedback and find their feet in the role. But all these things mean that once they’ve found their place, they’ll be invaluable members of the team, bringing fresh perspectives and ideas to build and grow your business. In fact, we highly recommend that you openly invite them to question the status quo and the normal processes in your practice. Welcoming their input and harnessing their perspectives and suggested approaches will likely uncover great opportunities to drive improvements in your practice and grow along with the everchanging environment that is the healthcare sector.
Here are a few concrete strategies that you could utilise to ensure you make the most of the opportunities your millennial employees offer you and help them to find their place in your practice:
Develop thorough Position Descriptions – this ensures that all parties are aware of the expectations and where the role contributes to the practice.
Develop a training plan – this should detail and cover what is needed to achieve the goals and objectives set out in the position description.
Create a base for strong communication on both sides, so that all team members (millennial or otherwise) feel comfortable sharing their perspectives and suggesting new approaches to the way things are done.
Implement mentoring within your practice by pairing up new and longer-term employees. This can benefit both parties – newer employees are shown the ropes of the practice and benefit from their mentors’ rich experience, and in return, they provide a fresh perspective to facilitate growth in other team members.
Invite regular feedback on how they think the practice is tracking and any suggestions they may be able to offer.
Don’t shy away from hiring millennials.
Healthcare practices that employ millennials (and integrate them well into their team) are better equipped to continue to grow with the changing world around them and to meet the needs of their increasingly diverse clients and patients.
So, don’t shy away from hiring millennials – they understand a growing proportion of your patient base, are the future leaders of healthcare, and can help your practice to grow and adapt to the ever-changing environment presented by healthcare in Australia.
The Augmentum team provides a broad range of consultancy and management services, supporting healthcare business owners and decision makers in key areas such as strategy development and action planning, building effective foundations and teams, keeping your finger on the pulse, and driving growth and success. We can also assist in workforce planning, diversity and culture development. Get in touch to find out more, or check out our website www.augmentum.com.au
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