According to a new research report, 75% of millennials believe that frequently changing jobs – a trait that has been broadly frowned upon by employers – helped advance their careers. The finding is part of the 2019 Millennial Manager Workplace Survey released today by Akumina, the employee experience platform (EXP) powering personalized digital employee experiences.

The company polled more than 1,000 mid- to executive-level managers between the ages of 18-36 years old to gain insights into the realities of millennial managers’ career journeys, workplace needs, and technology preferences.

Millennial workplace loyalty has long been a hot topic of debate, leading many to believe the generation is flippant towards work and virtually unmanageable. While the data supports the stereotype that millennials move jobs frequently (40% of respondents have had four or more jobs since graduating high school or college), the report provides a more pragmatic view into the group’s job hopping. The research shows that millennials’ strategy is paying dividends as only 10% of respondents felt they were underemployed.

“Millennials are both the largest demographic in the workforce and the most misunderstood,” said David Maffei, president of Akumina. “Our data shows many of the negative stereotypes associated with this group either lack context or are outright wrong. Businesses need to avoid operating under outdated notions and instead align their workplaces to the psychological and technological needs of millennials who are taking on senior roles and driving business success.”

Key themes and select results from the survey include:

• Millennials aren’t afraid to use tech to optimize productivity – Rather than being overwhelmed by new tools or questioning the validity of emerging technologies, millennial managers – both men and women equally – are embracing technology and using it to be more productive.
  • Survey respondents said they believe that the workplace problem technology is best able to solve is productivity (collaboration and communication came in second and third).
  • Email is the preferred productivity tool used at work and is almost five times more popular than its closest competitor.
  • Slack is polarizing as it’s ranked as both the second-best productivity tool by millennial managers and the second least preferred productivity tool.
  • Video conferencing is the least preferred productivity tool used at work.
  • 62% don’t believe their workplace uses too many tech tools. This is a striking contrast to other workplace reports that position technology as a productivity inhibitor.
• Millennial managers are willing to pay their dues –Survey respondents demonstrated a clear understanding of growing into a role.
  • 54% of respondents said they understand the importance of paying their dues and waiting their turn for a promotion.
  • 42% said they had “a lot to learn” and value the opportunities their job is affording them.
  • 64% of respondents believe that it’s reasonable to work in a role for 12-24 months to move up in their organization.
• Millennials’ high-touch needs are reflected in their management style – Millennials have made their desire for personal feedback and deep connections with their managers a core component to their management style.
  • 92% of respondents said that it was “very important” or “important” that their accomplishments were recognized by senior staff and colleagues.
  • 47% of millennial managers prefer to train their employees individually to provide personalized career advancement guidance.
  • 33% of respondents said they shared feedback with their employees on a daily basis while 41% prefer weekly.
  • Millennial managers consider office hours with the company CEO the top workplace perk – beating ping pong tables and other office games.

More resources

• To download the full report, please go to www.akumina.com/millennialreport.