With baby boomers retiring and senior members of Generation X not far behind, now is the moment for millennials and Gen Z to consider a career in facility management. Business leaders must equip their workplaces to welcome future generations in order to remain competitive. Whether they are just graduating or looking for their next career move, here are ways to attract young people to facility management jobs.
1. Create a successful career path with quality training
Millennials seek a professional path with clear advancement milestones and defined progression opportunities. When job searching, they will look for companies that offer benefits that are linked to their professional success and career growth. This can include:
- On-demand education during working hours
- Company-paid travel to conferences relevant to facilities management
- Opportunities to try out a variety of roles inside the company
- Apprenticeship programs to prepare for their next role.
Organizations should provide ongoing educational initiatives about the different facets of facility management. This will also benefit employers, as it will increase employee engagement and productivity.
2. Make your workplace a collaborative space
Millennials and Gen Z value collaboration above everything else, with the majority preferring face-to-face meetings. However, facility management work is often done alone for long periods of time, such as when doing on-site inspections. As a result, building a collaborative work environment is critical. Develop team-building activities and set up meetings that include celebrating successes. Provide personnel with collaboration-focused technology like instant messaging tools and group communication apps that allow facility managers to connect online with one another and with their staff.
3. Promote diversity in the workplace
Engaging a varied talent pool will help to extend the facility management industry’s potential workforce and position it for a stronger future. According to a survey by Glassdoor, 76% of job searchers are interested in working for a company that has a diverse workforce.
Millennials and Gen Z desire to interact with a variety of clients and coworkers and they’ll often turn down or leave a job if they experience or witness discrimination at work. Job seekers and employees simply expect companies to be transparent and proactive about diversity and inclusion policies, and facility management is no exception. Employers who aren’t inclusive risk losing out on a wide talent pool.
4. Invest in the right technology and equipment
Younger generations have grown up with technology as an integral part of their life, and they expect to use it in the workplace as well. To attract Millennials and Gen Z to your organization, invest in cutting-edge facility management technologies that allow for efficiency and productivity. Automation technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning tools should be prioritized for daily work tasks such as hiring contractors and work order administration.
5. Make work-life balance a priority
Studies show that taking time off work is beneficial to one’s health and productivity, and millennials and Gen Z are highly aware of this. Prioritizing work-life balance for your employees is critical. This includes being flexible with employee hours and where work is completed, and de-stigmatizing using allotted sick time and vacations.
Millennial and Gen Z workers are dedicated to their jobs, but work is not the only thing that matters in their lives. Emphasize to potential employees that emergencies should be dealt with immediately, but non-urgent matters should be handled during work hours so that everyone has the opportunity to unplug while they are away from work.
Is your company prepared to welcome millennials and Gen Z workers?
To successfully draw millennial and Gen Z talent to facility management, your entire organization must be committed. Be prepared to make some changes, including adopting training programs, implementing technology advancements, and establishing work-life balance initiatives.
Younger workers, with their fearless technology adoption and thirst for innovation, have the potential to excel in facility management roles. Is your organization ready to welcome them?
