Blog

There’s a lot of talk about the “Gen Y” employees, but what exactly do they want out of corporate training? Here are some ideas.

Millennials have been described as “digital natives,” which means they grew up with computers and the internet. They’re less interested in a traditional classroom-based training and more interested in online learning; this generation has become known for their digital competence. It has become easier than ever to learn through the internet by using resources such as YouTube, Udemy courses, or Coursera courses to learn new skills while working full time. As a result, millennials now make up the largest share of online learning students out of all ages.

Marketing and sales training through online courses is a great way to connect with millennials. Don’t be afraid to try new things as well. Set up surveys to see which online courses are most helpful to your target audience and what trends they’re interested in for their careers. Watch and get an idea of what’s going on in the industry you are trying to reach out to and learn more about it before starting any sales or marketing program. If that’s not enough, then some interactive tutorials can help you understand these new skills just in case you missed them the first time around.

Some online courses will teach you the right way to use social media platforms to build your brand. Pieces of training like these can also help you create a better personal brand and improve your customer service skills.

You need to make sure that you are providing the highest quality training for your Gen Y employees, and this can be done by creating short, engaging, and valuable videos. Quick one-minute videos are popular on YouTube, known as the “second screen” because people often watch videos while doing other things on their phones. In addition, short videos with a catchy title and trendy songs can entice viewers to watch them.

But what does Gen Y want from corporate training? And is there anything they will willingly give up for increased activity? Here’s everything you need to know about the culture and expectations of today’s young professionals to have a well-trained team that remains satisfied with their job.

Let us explore the nitty-gritty of corporate training to learn more about what Gen Y wants and how you can provide it through effective ongoing employee education. Your business will be better for it.

What’s the problem with training Gen Y?

Gen Y employees want to learn, but they also want to have fun while doing it! Recruiters find that young professionals have little interest in the dry, boring training your company offers. They are not engaging! Your Gen Y workforce also expects more from exercise than previous generations did; they expect an immersive, interactive experience that will immediately make them more marketable and competent. Finally, Gen Y has significantly higher expectations of what “reasonable” means in terms of compensation and benefits than previous generations did.

This generation has grown up with the internet as part of their lifestyle and sees it as a natural extension of life to work and socialize online all day long, in any time zone, from anywhere. If you place these people in a corporate environment that does not provide the same opportunities, they will feel as if they have been left behind and used to have everything they need on their own digital devices. 

Millennial employees are also very competitive. They do not want to put up with what they perceive as outdated systems or procedures that do not provide the same level of service or communication.

Millennial employees will be encouraged to stay in an organization that takes a two-pronged approach that provides just-in-time training online instead of live lectures and new best practices for a virtual system to reach corporate goals. 

Most people assume that training is about supplying information on how to do a specific task. While this may be true, training is actually about developing employee capabilities and employee effectiveness. Therefore, emphasis is on the training process itself and how this process can deliver the learning content. 

The Millennial workforce wants to see a change in corporate culture that will enable them to be more involved with what they do and feel an increased connection with their company. There should be some tie-in between the two employees and their own personal development goals for this change to occur. 

When speaking to a Millennial employee, there are key areas that should be addressed:

1) Encourage the participant to discuss how the training can help them maximize their potential in their career. 

2) Have the participants list all of the employees they feel will benefit from the training. 

3) Ask what obstacles have kept them from being better performers. 

4) Disclose how long the training process will take and what it may cover. 

5) Encourage the participants to complete the training on their own time and at their own pace. 

When a Millennial employee is trained in a new environment, they will feel included from the beginning. It will feel as if they have been permitted to be themselves in a familiar atmosphere and make them feel comfortable and comfortable included.

Corporate leaders must understand what their workforce is looking for and adjust their approach accordingly. With Millennials, it is not enough to see something as a doer of the desired task and as a person. To succeed in an ever-changing environment, organizations need to evolve with the people in it or risk losing all of the precious talents they have worked so hard to attract and retain.