Millennials and Older Workers More Alike Than You Think

To hear some management consultants tell it, the millennial generation (aged 21 to 34) thinks completely differently from their predecessors. However, a study conducted by IBM of 1,784 employees from organizations across 12 countries and in six industries finds that Millennials are much like everyone else when it comes to their desires and aspirations. "While there are some distinctions among the generations, Millennials' attitudes are not poles apart from [those of] other employees," the report said. Not surprisingly, the main distinction between millennials and older employees is their digital proficiency; Millennials are the "first generation to grow up immersed in a digital world," the report noted. From a channel perspective, two of the most striking takeaways from the study are how much customer experience plays into the inability to adopt technology innovations, and that more than half of employees don't actually understand, or 'get,' their organization's business strategy. Naturally, those issues might make marketing IT solutions designed to advance those two goals a tougher sell than most solution providers might think. Channel Insider examines key findings from the study.