Millennials in the Workplace: a Communication Perspective

Communication in the workplace is there to create relationships among co-workers. If a work group has good communication skills it could lead to better work productivity. As more millennials enter the work force there is concern about their work ethic. That is not the only concern people are having, they are also concerned how they are going to interact with older employees. Some organizations believe that they might have to alter their rules and policies to be able to fully apply the millennials skills.

Not all things about millennials are bad, millennials are more diverse than the older employees and they will have new perspectives about work issues. The first hurdle millennials face when entering the work force is the socialization into the organization. When newcomers come into the work force, they begin to assess their relationship with co-workers, supervisors and the organization itself. If there are issues among values between coworkers that could lead to lower productivity. Once the newcomer is deemed valuable then will coworkers ask them for advice, give them new tasks, and form working relationships.

Millennials differ from more senior workers because of their beliefs and values. Senior workers pride themselves in working up the chain to where they are now, while for millennials a career is not that important to them. Baby boomers were the original workaholics and did not have a good work- life balance. Millennials are way more focused on the so-called work-life balance than the baby boomers. This could cause some doubt from baby boomers in regard to the millennial's commitment to an organization. Millennials who realize they are being judge may make an effort to show senior workers they are dedicated.

Millennials could change the organization as a whole when baby boomers see how they prioritize their lives differently. Baby boomers may even start to rethink their own lives and what they can do to change it. What could also happen is baby boomers say it is the millennials turn to make sacrifices that deadlines are now their problem. Millennials like having open communication with their supervisors unlike baby boomers.

Millennials when entering the workplace want open communication. They want to be in the know and not left out on important decisions. This may stem from them being pushed to have good relationships with their friends' parents growing up. This type of open communication may feel like a disrespect to the senior workers. Opened communication between supervisors and workers could help make problem solving easier. When millennials have a good working relationship with their boss this may help millennials from not switching jobs as often.

Millennials expect that the work they do for a company be judged on the substance of their work and not on how long they have been working there. This could create conflict with the baby boomers who think totally different. In years to come baby boomers will come realize that the millennials made substantial contributions to the workplace.

Millennials thrive in working with teams, they find it to be more productive. Millennials do not have a hard time working in groups and are always actively helping. This could be a problem because this may lead to them not being able to work independently and make decision on their own. It also takes up much more time if team work is involved and managers do not like that.

Millennials are the first generation to be born into households with computers. This could be a good thing for the workforce because they know how to use computers and other types of electronics. Millennials could help implement the use of more electronics in the organization and could even help the baby boomers learn to use them. It is perceived that millennials grew up in good times in regard to economics. They were given material possessions from their parents. And to continue to live the way they are they must get a job. So that means that millennials parents pushed them to do good at whatever they were doing.

This article relates to the topics we have discussed in class because it talks about communication. Not just communication but how the different ages of people communicate differently to one another. It also talks about the relationship's coworkers have with each and how if there are good working relationships then as a group, they could be more productive.

• Myers, K. K., & Sadaghiani, K. (2010). Millennials in the Workplace: A Communication Perspective on Millennials' Organizational Relationships and Performance. Journal of Business and Psychology,25(2), 225-238. doi:10.1007/s10869-010-9172-7

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