At the end of the 21st century, people began approaching the world in a more complicated manner. Traditional views on leadership, management, and corporative psychology were interchanged by the paradigms that account for the complexity of human character. The context is another crucial factor that influences the ability to lead. To enhance the performance of millennial leaders in an organization, one should know the personal and contextual factors that affect potential leaders born after 1980.
Firstly, millennium leaders are those who live in a world of rapid change. Rational thinking is significant in all spheres of life nowadays, though both adaptation and emotional intellect are becoming more and more relevant in the context of sophisticated human networks. Fielder’s Contingency model may be suitable for enhancing leaders since it focuses not on some set rules but also on the changing tasks that a leader needs to take into account (Nahavandi, 2015). Therefore, it is crucial to question the notion of the comfort zone and encourage employees to manage challenging situations, both socio-dependent, and low-context.
However, one person is not able to make decisions on a variety of tasks. Consultation is the right option for Millennials, who are socially conscious and sensitive to appraisal. Leaders should not be autocratic or too trustful with their teams. Followers are to feel confident and to know how to provide their vision to the organization. By asking for a consultation, the leader emphasizes the professionalism of employees and fosters their decision-making competence. Leaders and managers of organizations can empower their workers with the help of ethical instruments and promote the social and experience exchange among them (Hasan, Mahsud, Yukl, & Prussia, 2013). Nevertheless, consultation, delegation or group decision-making strategies are all vital for dealing with different kinds of problems. A leader should combine ethical tactics with the in-depth knowledge of employees’ talents and the proper understanding of how these talents favor the company in a particular situation.
Secondly, millennial workers are part of a generation that is dynamic and creative. Millennial workers are often accused of being needy, non-persistent, and too flexible. Although many of these assumptions are just stereotypes, the generation born between 1980 and 2000 is more creative, ambitious, and entrepreneurial than their predecessors. (Nolan, 2015). To motivate such leaders, the company should encourage creativity and pose itself as dynamic. The meaningfulness of one’s mission is another key to avid and responsible leadership. Nolan states that “Professionals must integrate internal branding in the recruitment and selection process by attracting and developing targeted individuals with respect to their personal values” (p. 72). The HR department should employ strategies to make the mission of Millennials meaningful.
Lastly, Millennials tend to pay special attention to constant training and self-development. Opportunity and luck of recognition are the drivers of Millennials’ motivation (Nahavandi, 2015). Company managers should guide their stuff, playing the role of a mentor. The managers should also undergo training to overcome stereotypes about Millennials and treat them as individuals with the unique traits. There is a link between training at workplace, workers’ satisfaction, and the tendency of employees to turnover (Ford, 2014). One of the training goals is automatizing the routines and working on the concentration of Millennials, who tend to accomplish several tasks at once. After learning, performance is always more effortless and less sensitive to stressful situations (Ford, 2014). To conclude, practice can encourage millennial leaders to become more concentrated, helpful, and satisfied.
Consequently, millennial leaders share the following traits: flexibility, social consciousness, need for self-improvement, and appraisal. To encourage such leaders, the HR department and managers of the company should engage in the training process and help the workers understand their mission. Therefore, the plan for dealing with millennial leaders includes teaching the future leaders to manage different types of situations and adapt to various contexts, as well as formulating a clear mission and trustworthy instructions for the trainees.
References
Ford, J. K. (2014) Improving training effectiveness in work organizations. (2014). New York, NY: Psychology Press.
Hassan, S., Mahsud, R., Yukl, G., & Prussia G. E. (2013). Ethical and empowering leadership and leader effectiveness. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 28(2), 133-146.
Nahavandi, A. (2015). The art and science of leadership (7th ed.). Harlow, England: Pearson Education.
Nolan, L. (2015). The roar of Millennials: Retaining top talent at the workplace. Journal of Leadership, Accountability, and Ethics, 12(5), 69-75.