Are the next generation ready to lead?

A recent survey, conducted by recruitment giants Hays, found that 40% of Australians plan to look for a new job in the next 12 months and 33% of organisations have witnessed their turnover rates increase this year (2019).

21% of millennials switched jobs in 2016 and a further 60% said they would be open to change. Deloitte's 2019 Global Millennial survey found that more millennials than ever (49%), would quit their current jobs in the next two years, if they had a choice. But why?

Technology at fault

For better or worse, technology has changed the way we see the world. Whilst social platforms provide a great structure for building and growing networks, they can also paint a very unrealistic picture of an organisations culture, increasing employee expectations.

Emerging technologies have also made services much more accessible;

pay now - click!

eat now- click!

date now - swipe!

Technology has undoubtedly made life easier, but surely creates a society which is more demanding and less patient, at least for the generation who have not known any different.

The question is, how does our impatience transcend to the workplace?

Millennial’s in Leadership roles

‘Promoting talented young managers too quickly prevents them from developing key emotional competencies’, HBRs 'The Young and Clueless'

We now widely accept that great enabling Leaders are not born, but developed through knowledge, experience and emotional intelligence. For emerging Leaders, there are no magic buttons or shortcuts to these attributes, only patience and perseverance.

Leading a team whilst lacking in key emotional competencies can hinder confidence, enhance disengagement, and lead to employees leaving roles. We are already seeing the numbers which support this:

40.6% turnover rate for entry-level positions and 22.5% for middle management.

40% of organisations said they experienced an increase in workplace absences in 2017.

50% of millennials and 75% of Generation Z'ers have left a job for mental health reasons.

If turnover rates continue to rise, workforce managers will be forced to look internally to hire (which is the much cheaper option). Yet, if that person is not yet ready to lead a team, then the cycle surely continues.

Additionally, demand for top talent is outweighing supply, which will lead to unprecedented changes to the workplace in the next decade. We are already seeing flexible working hours becoming a right and not a perk, but where do we draw the line?

In 2030, will there be no offices at all? What would that do for workplace culture? What effect does that have on communication skills?

These are all questions for the decade ahead.