February 2, 2016 | Marti Bowman
Attracting millennial talent to the senior care industry should be a top priority for providers amid a significant caregiver shortage. Tapping this generation can prove challenging, though, and there’s no doubt that industry leaders have their work cut out for them in doing so.
More than one in every three American workers today are part of the millennial population, which encompasses those born after 1980. The millennial generation is the first generation to come of age in the new millennium, according to the Pew Research Center. The number of millennials in the U.S. labor force has surpassed that of Gen Xers, now representing the largest segment of the workforce as a whole. As such, the industry’s reliance on millennials will only grow in the years ahead.
These four tips for recruiting millennials can help senior care providers get ahead of the curve and bolster a strong millennial workforce.
To attract a millennial, providers must think like millennials, and that largely means turning to technology and social networking to advertise job listings and promote the senior care industry, along with lauding technology adoption within the communities themselves.
Millennials are part of the first generation to have grown up with the Internet and smartphones, and three-quarters of millennials have an account on a social networking site, according to a White House report on millennials. In fact, millennials spend an average of 18 hours a day consuming media across multiple platforms, including browsing the Web, texting and using social media, according to data from Crowdtrap and Ipsos MediaCT.
“Millennials are attached to their mobile devices,” OnShift CEO Mark Woodka says. “If you’re actively using technology in your communities, you can gain a competitive edge in attracting workers to your organization and keeping them, too.”
It’s no secret that caregiving and working with seniors in general can be very rewarding and meaningful. But for millennials, a company’s overall purpose and values must reflect that.
In fact, 44% of millennials have turned down a job because of an organization’s values, according to findings from The Deloitte Millennial Survey 2016, and 56% ruled out ever working for a specific organization because of its values. The findings stem from the consulting firm’s fifth annual global survey, which consists of responses from nearly 7,700 millennials from 29 countries, all of whom were born after 1982, have a college or university degree, are employed full-time and mostly work in large, private-sector organizations.
“Millennials want to contribute to the positive impact they believe business has on society,” the report states.
Providers should therefore make their sense of purpose known to prospective millennial employees in order to draw millennial talent.
Nearly two-thirds of millennials surveyed believe their leadership skills are not being fully developed, according to the Deloitte survey, but the ability to progress and eventually take on a leadership role is among the most important factors for millennials when they consider job opportunities.
In the senior living industry, this means ensuring that new hires understand that just because they’re hired as caregivers, for example, they won’t necessarily remain caregivers forever.
To relay this message, make sure that prospective employees are aware of how other workers have moved through the ranks to prove that forging career paths is possible. Someone at the company may have started as a caregiver, for example, and later took on an activities director role, followed by an executive director position and finally rose in the ranks of corporate management. Having defined career paths can go a long way in supporting development goals.
Making certain changes to recruitment strategies only goes so far. The real key to attracting millennial talent is making the effort to understand this generation—how they think, ways they act, what they want.
Aside from reliance on technology, millennials are also marked by their need for constant feedback and their desire for flexibility, says Irene Fleshner, a principal with health care consulting firm Reno, Davis & Associates.
“[Millennials] are our workforce, and we need to understand what they want, how they find a job,” she says. “The best way to understand is to meet with them, understand their desires and conform the workplace to meet their expectations.”
Fleshner suggests arranging a focus group of millennials in order for companies to form solid recruitment strategies specific to their individual businesses.
These strategies might center around:
Building branding: Use social media such as LinkedIn and Facebook as well as job sites like Glassdoor and Indeed to promote the benefits your organization offers. Highlight events, community outreach and other appealing aspects in your messaging. Also, encourage your current employees to post about their positive experiences on the job to give credibility to your organization as a great place to work.
Simplifying applications: Across health care, millenials reportedly use at least a dozen resources on average before applying to a job. Make the application process simple and to the point.
Becoming more transparent: Millenials are busy and they’re job-seeking on mobile devices. Be transparent in what you are offering and set their expectations upfront.
In 2016 and the years to come, the senior care industry will depend more and more heavily on a millennial workforce, meaning that attracting millennial talent now is increasingly important, albeit difficult at times.
The key is fundamentally understanding how to effectively connect with millennials and providing the type of work environment this generation craves.
See for yourself why thousands of providers rely on OnShift’s innovative software for recruitment, hiring, workforce management, pay and engagement. Request your personalized demo today.
