5 Tips To Make Recruiting Millennials Easier

You have undoubtedly heard the stereotypes surrounding Millennials (aka, Generation Y) in the workforce. They’re job hoppers. They’re entitled. They require constant feedback. But before they start giving their supervisors headaches, many start as candidates of independent recruiters like you.

Whether or not the stereotypes fit, these young candidates, born between the early 1980s and early 2000s, are creating a bit of a challenge for recruiters. So with that, here are five tips to make recruiting Millennials easier:

#1 — Their generation may not be the problem.

People tend to blame a candidate’s generation for any issues they may have. However, you have certainly encountered entitled, arrogant candidates of ALL ages. Sometimes a bad egg is a bad egg, and you have to decide if they are truly worth your time.

#2 — Be prepared to coach the basics.

One would think it is common sense to not wear jeans to an interview or ask about salary right away. You may know that texting abbreviations is not appropriate when emailing a prospective employer, but don’t assume your candidates do.

Recruiters are finding out the hard way (through their clients) that some of these basics elude Millennial candidates. Be prepared to do more coaching than usual. Better to over-educate and over-prepare your candidates than to have them potentially damage your reputation with a client. You may also want to provide some formal training on basic skills, such as interpersonal communication and business writing.

#3 — You may need to coach clients, too.

Again, Millennials come with a lot of labels, and some of your clients may have preconceived notions. You can help them understand that those are generalizations that don’t fit every candidate.

And while young workers will most certainly have a different approach to work, that doesn’t have to be bad. Your clients may find that these candidates are great at multi-tasking, skilled critical thinkers, and particularly experienced with technology. If clients can look past potential biases, they may be able to see how Millennials can breathe new life into their organizations.

#4 — Patience is a virtue.

Millennials can try a recruiter’s patience with their barrage of questions and choosy nature. But remember that they are just trying to make sure they find the right fit, which can only benefit everybody involved.

It might help if you understand from the get-go what they’re looking for. In general, Millennials tend to crave collaboration, work-life balance, and innovation. Technology is important to them. They tend to be more concerned about whether the company they work for is socially conscious. If you can present opportunities that meet these core needs, then you will likely save yourself a lot of frustration.

#5 — Traditional employment may not work for them.

Yes, there are some Millennials who are truly job hoppers. They need variety and they can’t find it staying in one place. Others need flexibility that the 9-to-5 grind can’t provide. For these candidates, you will be hard-pressed to find a direct hire position that will work for them long-term. Instead, you may want to find contract opportunities that will better fit their need for flexibility and variety.

And if you do, then adding contract staffing solutions to your agency’s business model is a strategic business move.

Recruiting Millennials does present new challenges. But when it comes right down to it, Millennials just want what we all want:

• A job they can enjoy and of which they’re proud
• Time for family, friends, and other interests
• Respect

If you can get past some of their idiosyncrasies, recruiting Millennials may get easier. AND you might just find some new star candidates among this young group.