What Happens When Millennials Run the Workplace?

[summer]

I really feel like the first photo says everything.


NY Times



Joel Pavelski, 27, isn’t the first person who has lied to his boss to scam some time off work.



But inventing a friend’s funeral, when in fact he was building a treehouse — then blogging and tweeting about it to be sure everyone at the office noticed? That feels new.



Such was a recent management challenge at Mic, a five-year-old website in New York that is vying to become a leading news source created by and for millennials. Recent headlines include “Don’t Ban Muslims, Ban Hoverboards” and “When Men Draw Vaginas.”



“There’s 80 million millennials; we focus on the 40 that went to college,” said Chris Altchek, Mic’s 28-year-old chief executive.



But he is still working out how to manage many of the traits associated with his fellow millennials: a sense of entitlement, a tendency to overshare on social media, and frankness verging on insubordination.



Mic’s staff of 106 looks a lot like its target demographic: trim 20-somethings, with beards on the men and cute outfits on the women, who end every sentence with an exclamation point and use the word “literally” a lot.



Their crowded newsroom on Hudson Street has an aggressively playful vibe, like a middle-school fraternity house. Some ride hoverboards into the kitchen for the free snacks. Others wield Nerf dart guns or use a megaphone for ad hoc announcements. Dino, a white Maltese terrier owned by the lead designer, snuffles between desks.



Mr. Altchek is proud of the freewheeling office culture. “It helps us to have everyone speak out and best ideas rise to the top,” he said. “What that can feel like or sound like is rudeness. But I’d rather have a lot of people speaking their minds than a very controlled environment.”



Continue reading the main story



But running an office made up exclusively of millennials, it turns out, is not without its snags. His philosophy was tested when Mr. Pavelski, Mic’s director of programming, requested a week off, ostensibly to attend a wake back home in Wisconsin. “I went to talk to Joel and said, ‘So sorry about your loss, take as much time as you need,’” Mr. Altchek said.

Then, several days later, he noticed Mr. Pavelski tweet a link to Medium, a popular blog for cathartic, personal essays. In a post titled, “How to Lose Your Mind and Build a Treehouse,” Mr. Pavelski wrote about feeling burned out at work and wanting to rebuild a childhood treehouse as therapy. The first line read, “I said that I was leaving town for a funeral, but I lied.”



“I was sort of taken aback,” Mr. Altchek said. “It’s not acceptable to be lied to.”



In a disciplinary meeting the next day, Mr. Pavelski’s supervisor acknowledged that he had been working grueling hours, so he was given another chance. Still, Mr. Altchek wanted to send a message. “Our feedback to him was, ‘This is not a three-strike policy, it’s a two-strike policy,’” he said.



Mr. Pavelski is still on his first strike. But even in an office that is tolerant of youthful boundary pushing, some millennial behavior can cross the line.



Mr. Altchek recalled a companywide meeting last September that coincided with the religious holidays Yom Kippur and Eid al-Adha. An Anglo-Pakistani employee asked why management had announced a flexible time off policy for the Jewish holiday, but not for its Muslim counterpart.



“So I told her, ‘Great point, being inclusive and respectful of all religious affiliations is incredibly important to Mic,’” Mr. Altchek said.



Afterward, in front of a smaller group, he was approached by a younger, entry-level employee who said that there were two words missing from his reply. “I was a bit confused and said, ‘O.K., what were those?’” he recalled. “And she said: ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t hear an apology.’”



Mr. Altchek did not think such a comment belonged in a workplace, especially his.



“I was a little taken aback by the tone, but I told her I would address it and make sure the person who asked the question wasn’t offended by the answer,” he said. “You have to control your temper. It was in front of a bunch of people, which was probably better, because I was forced to be calm.”



That employee is no longer with the company. (Mr. Altchek said she was let go for “performance-related issues.”)



A sense of entitlement is not the only stereotype attached to millennials in the workplace.



“Entitled, lazy, narcissistic and addicted to social media,” according to CNBC. “They Don’t Need Trophies but They Want Reinforcement,” Forbes wrote. “Many millennials want to make the world a better place, and the future of work lies in inspiring them,” Fast Company proclaimed.




Older managers confused by why millennials like to Snapchat with co-workers, or don’t want to pay their dues with grunt work, had better get used to it. Last year, millennials edged out Generation X (35 to 50 years old in 2015) as the largest share of the labor force, according to the Pew Research Center. What’s more, millennials have also surpassed baby boomers.



Joan Kuhl, 36, who founded Why Millennials Matter, a consulting firm that advises employers like Goldman Sachs on hiring and retaining recent college graduates, said that what is needed is more familiarity.



“We tend to publicize these outrageous acts of defiance, versus emphasizing the majority that I run into and work with, who are very mission focused and value based,” she said.



Ms. Kuhl educates her clients on the quirks of millennials, and why a 21-year-old sees nothing wrong with oversharing. Millennials are pushed to create a “strong personal brand” to land a job, Ms. Kuhl said, so asking them to tone it down once they are employed sends “a lot of mixed messages.”



Still, even Ms. Kuhl has been taken aback by some of the millennials in her office. She remembered an intern who ate a tuna fish sandwich during a 10 a.m. meeting with very senior colleagues. When mildly rebuked afterward, the intern replied, “Well, you said to be myself, and I was hungry.”



So imagine a workplace where all are in their 20s.



Mr. Altchek founded Mic in 2011 (then operating as PolicyMic) with Jake Horowitz, now 28, his former classmate from the Horace Mann School in New York.



Today, Mr. Horowitz reports from the field (such as the Syrian migrant crisis from the beaches of Greece, and interviewing President Obama in the White House), while Mr. Altchek runs the business out of a 15,000-square-foot converted warehouse in the Hudson Square neighborhood.



Millennial news has significant competition for eyeballs. According to the data provider comScore, Mic had about 19 million unique visitors in January, compared with 79.7 million for BuzzFeed, with five other competitors falling in between. (A Mic spokeswoman pointed out that rivals like Vice Media operate multiple branded sites that roll into their comScore number, whereas Mic relies on just one site.)



At Mic, part of the growth strategy is not just airing, but blaring, its business on social media.



Hence there are office conversations held on Twitter, and the blurring of personal and professional boundaries, such as when Mr. Altchek broadcast his dental examination on Periscope, a live streaming video app.

Indeed, several Mic staffers cited the “say anything” office culture as one of the things they loved most about working there.



“People are here from morning to night, and we don’t want to leave,” said Elizabeth Plank, 28, a high-energy reporter who lives in the East Village and hosted a video series called “Flip the Script,” which seeks to challenge assumptions like, “What Happens When a Lady ‘Manspreads.’”



Ms. Plank contrasted her freedoms at Mic to her previous job at a feminist nonprofit organization, which she regarded as exemplifying the outdated work practices of older people.



“We called people on phones and we — I don’t know — we faxed people,” Ms. Plank said, sounding exasperated. “And we had to mail things. And no one really took my opinion into consideration.”



At Mic, she was able to dabble in different jobs and negotiate grandiose titles like “executive social editor.” Often, she prefers the theater of tweeting back and forth with the editor she sits next to rather than speaking face to face.



“If you can be young at heart, I think it makes your personal, and not only your work life, better,” added Ms. Plank, who left for Vox last month after two and a half years at Mic.



Mic apparently isn’t a good fit for everyone. Madhulika Sikka, who left NPR last year to join Mic as executive editor, announced earlier this week that she was leaving the website, saying on Twitter that she was “ready to take on something new.”



Perhaps because of this very culture of workplace-as-reality-show, Mr. Pavelski, the prevaricating treehouse builder, remains notably unchastened.



“Maybe this is because I’m young, but, like, I don’t think that there is a lot about my personal life that I wouldn’t want to incorporate into what I’m doing professionally,” he said. “The reason I wrote that essay in the first place was about catharsis, and I wanted to walk through my thought process and figure out what was going on with me.”



The logic of that may be more apparent to his age group.



“The one thing I don’t want people to mistake is that we’re serious about this,” he added. “And that we’re taking over. That is all.”

---

[ttt]

OMG I would fire all of these people.

[summer]

Mar 20, 2016 8:14:55 GMT -5 ttt said:

OMG I would fire all of these people.

The tuna sandwich part made me LOL

[ttt]

Mar 20, 2016 7:59:28 GMT -5 summer said:

“We called people on phones and we — I don’t know — we faxed people,” Ms. Plank said, sounding exasperated. “And we had to mail things. And no one really took my opinion into consideration.”

---

And why should anyone take your opinion into consideration?

This article is making my head explode. 

[One Girl In All The World]

I hate that my age (33) associates me with this generation.

[loira]

I work in marketing/pr, where you often see agencies that try to create a similar 'fun, young, hip' atmosphere. Honestly, though, it can get really distracting and I find it actually hinders my creativity. I would hate working in that office.

I think part of the problem with the blurred lines is that employees are now told to be 'brand ambassadors'. You're rewarded for bigging up your company on your personal social media. Not only is it harder to keep your work life and home life separate, but companies are encouraging you to bring work into your social sphere. If you grew up in an age of oversharing in the first place, you probably have a harder time understanding that you shouldn't then bring your social life into your work sphere. Kind of goes along with this: "Millennials are pushed to create a “strong personal brand” to land a job, Ms. Kuhl said, so asking them to tone it down once they are employed sends “a lot of mixed messages.”

ETA: I'm not excusing the idiocy, just pointing out that many companies are enablers of this type of behaviour.

[sfy]

My friend's husband just interviewed with an innovative and phenomenal company out west. At 38, he'd be the oldest person in that location . Wtf! In fairness, he was actually really impressed how dedicated and bright they all were, and he received an offer, which it sounds like he will accept. But he's used to being one of the youngest people in his office and now he's going to be the office geezer lol--I actually think the bigger divide is going to be that his coworkers don't mind practically living on the office and he is going to want to work more normal, although still long, hours.

[sfy]

Mar 20, 2016 8:37:27 GMT -5 loira said:

I work in marketing/pr, where you often see agencies that try to create a similar 'fun, young, hip' atmosphere.

I was thinking that much of this reminded me of ad agency life--beanbag chairs, gaming systems, foosball tables in the office. I couldn't deal with that either.

[blink]

Omg, that sounds like my worst nightmare.

And yay another article that paints Millennials as a completely different breed of worker who is lazy and narcissistic, and who needs a unique work environment to function.

[loira]

Mar 20, 2016 8:39:13 GMT -5 sfy said:

My friend's husband just interviewed with an innovative and phenomenal company out west. At 38, he'd be the oldest person in that location . Wtf! In fairness, he was actually really impressed how dedicated and bright they all were, and he received an offer, which it sounds like he will accept. But he's used to being one of the youngest people in his office and now he's going to be the office geezer lol--I actually think the bigger divide is going to be that his coworkers don't mind practically living on the office and he is going to want to work more normal, although still long, hours.

I feel for your H. I once worked in an agency where I was at least 5 years older than most of the employees, and I was only 30 at the time. My title was 'Senior Marketing Executive' and I always secretly wondered if the 'Senior' referred to 'senior citizen'. It was actually a great place to work, until I lost my DD and they proved they didn't give a shit about me by making me redundant shortly thereafter.

[sfy]

Mar 20, 2016 8:53:27 GMT -5 loira said:

Mar 20, 2016 8:39:13 GMT -5 sfy said:

My friend's husband just interviewed with an innovative and phenomenal company out west. At 38, he'd be the oldest person in that location . Wtf! In fairness, he was actually really impressed how dedicated and bright they all were, and he received an offer, which it sounds like he will accept. But he's used to being one of the youngest people in his office and now he's going to be the office geezer lol--I actually think the bigger divide is going to be that his coworkers don't mind practically living on the office and he is going to want to work more normal, although still long, hours.

I feel for your H. I once worked in an agency where I was at least 5 years older than most of the employees, and I was only 30 at the time. My title was 'Senior Marketing Executive' and I always secretly wondered if the 'Senior' referred to 'senior citizen'. It was actually a great place to work, until I lost my DD and they proved they didn't give a shit about me by making me redundant shortly thereafter.

I'm so sorry.

[loira]

Mar 20, 2016 9:06:19 GMT -5 sfy said:

Mar 20, 2016 8:53:27 GMT -5 loira said:

I feel for your H. I once worked in an agency where I was at least 5 years older than most of the employees, and I was only 30 at the time. My title was 'Senior Marketing Executive' and I always secretly wondered if the 'Senior' referred to 'senior citizen'. It was actually a great place to work, until I lost my DD and they proved they didn't give a shit about me by making me redundant shortly thereafter.

I'm so sorry.

Thanks, at least their behaviour taught me to only look out for myself and not bother so much with company loyalty. I hope you didn't think I was trying to suggest this type of treatment would be your H's experience, though (rereading my post, I thought this is what it might have sounded like). The company I worked for was a 20 person startup, and it sounds like the company your H is scouting out is bigger and likely to have better policies in place for actual human employees with lives outside of work.

[sfy]

Mar 20, 2016 9:12:49 GMT -5 loira said:

Mar 20, 2016 9:06:19 GMT -5 sfy said:

I'm so sorry.

Thanks, at least their behaviour taught me to only look out for myself and not bother so much with company loyalty. I hope you didn't think I was trying to suggest this type of treatment would be your H's experience, though (rereading my post, I thought this is what it might have sounded like). The company I worked for was a 20 person startup, and it sounds like the company your H is scouting out is bigger and likely to have better policies in place for actual human employees with lives outside of work.

No, not at all. It's my friend's H and yes, it's a large company, it just happens that at this particular location, everyone is young. So true about looking out for yourself. Companies today are not the companies of old--they don't give a damn.

[Deleted]

Attracting Millenials to a community is an interesting gig. I'm in the Oregon Trail generation, so flexible between Gen Y and Millenials. My H and most of our friends are solidly gen X/Y, while many of the volunteers I work with are Millenials.

We interviewed for a new position on Friday and the generational divide was interesting. The older folks on the selection committee wanted someone "dynamic" while I wanted someone less intense and who I wouldn't have to babysit.

[Deleted]

It just sounds so exhausting to be one of this type of millenial. I am too lazy.
Why hover board to the kitchen to get a coffee? I have to get out my hover board, stand on it, figure out how to balance. Then take a picture and tweet all about it.
Pretentious is not creative.

[wackadoo]

I can't imagine not firing the treehouse guy. There is no generational difference in what it means to lie and what you can infer from a person when they would do that. If their culture was so open and understanding of those kinds of things, why would he even need the elaborate lie? Why instead set the precedent that it is OK to be unethical if you work a bunch of hours?

I find it amazing that there is this movement toward blurring the lines between personal and work in social media *at the same time* that companies, products and employee's jobs can be publicly destroyed in 24 hours if an employee linked to a company does or says something stupid in social media.

[litebright]

I wonder what's going to happen when their workforce starts having kids en masse. If they're not going to fire someone for lying about taking time off to "explore what's going on with himself," would they actually NOT penalize moms and dads who need more flexible schedules, perhaps? Or will they be like most other businesses over the generations and when they're actually faced with people wanting more balance in their lives consistently once they have a family (not just a week one time because you're burned out by how many hours you've been putting in), they tell you to suck it up and/or they hire someone younger.

[pixy0stix]

He didn't fire the guy with the treehouse, but they fired the girl who approached him about saying "I'm sorry." That speaks volumes to me.

Also, if anyone hit me with a nerf dart at work, I'd end them.

[AAM2012]

I hope they have an emergency evacuation plan for when the hover board catches on fire....but I doubt those "kids" even remember what it is. *shakes cane*

But seriously, our company is doing all it can to be more flexible and attract the younger generation this includes change of our dress code, generous PTO, allowing people to make up 1-2 hours if they need to run an errand during the work week, etc. There is no way we could allow animals (other than service animals) into the workplace due to allergies, interactions with other co-workers (liability?), etc

We are unable to fire someone based on ther social media posts because it could easily be argued that the post/pic was an old one. Also, we're not allowed to ask for additional documentation (ie. proof of a funeral/death) if we didn't ask other employees in the past.

I agree with other posters that this company is taking flexibility to the extreme and I expect they will need to create "rules" in the future to limit employees from abusing their "whatever goes" attitude.

[5kcandlesinthewind]

I just went to a training at work on managing millenials, and it was really interesting. Generally speaking, their parents are their best friends and role models, so it translates to being much more casual with their employers/managers/authority-figures, and feeling like they can share everything more freelywith them than we ever would. He also said they have been praised to the hilt for every little thing, so they expect to be recognized for everything (not necessarily praises, just recognition, like "hey, I see you putting a lot of work into that spreadsheet to get it right"), and they have always had a parent/coach/teacher guiding them, so they really don't mind being micromanaged. Whereas we, as gen Xers, are much more independent and want to be given free reign over projects and lose our minds over being micromanaged, they crave it. He said you can definitely get them on the more independent track, but you have to get them there gradually - more specific instructions in the beginning, more check-ins along the way, etc. And I see it with the people who work for me - they constantly need guidance around things that seem common sense ("should i double side these copies?" "what order do you want these packets in?" etc.) and want to be told they're appreciated and that we know they're working hard, despite the fact that we are working right alongside them. Some days, it takes everything in me to not channel my inner Don Draper and yell "THAT'S WHAT THE MONEY'S FOR!" when they complain about feeling underappreciated for simply doing their job.

[isabel]

Mar 20, 2016 8:39:13 GMT -5 sfy said:

My friend's husband just interviewed with an innovative and phenomenal company out west. At 38, he'd be the oldest person in that location . Wtf! In fairness, he was actually really impressed how dedicated and bright they all were, and he received an offer, which it sounds like he will accept. But he's used to being one of the youngest people in his office and now he's going to be the office geezer lol--I actually think the bigger divide is going to be that his coworkers don't mind practically living on the office and he is going to want to work more normal, although still long, hours.

The article basically stated this as well.

I find it a fascinating note because I am deep in the millennial generation at 27. I put in my time at the office, but I very rarely stay late or go in early. I will work from home if I need to get work done outside of normal work hours. I work hard and received the best review in my office this year, but I refuse to spend more time at the office than necessary. Balance is hugely important to me and I really thought that was a characteristic of millennials. This makes it seem as though millennials don't necessarily care about balance as long as they are enjoying themselves. It's pretty interesting.

I guess it sort of makes sense if you intertwine your personal and professional lives like this though. I suspect the biggest difference for me is that I am married and have a child, which is no longer typical of someone my age.

[laterbloomer]

The millennials that have this attitude have no fear of going hungry. You only have the nerve to be that demanding if don't feel you need a job.

Older managers confused by why millennials like to Snapchat with co-workers, or don’t want to pay their dues with grunt work, had better get used to it. Last year, millennials edged out Generation X (35 to 50 years old in 2015) as the largest share of the labor force, according to the Pew Research Center. What’s more, millennials have also surpassed baby boomers.

That's only a factor if you don't have enough other people to fill available jobs. That's not true these days. A company does not have to hire millennials.

[sfy]

Mar 20, 2016 12:50:01 GMT -5 laterbloomer said:

The millennials that have this attitude have no fear of going hungry. You only have the nerve to be that demanding if don't feel you need a job.

Sadly, this reminds me of something my own DS (20) has said, when we talking about the kind of job he might secure after finishing school if he doesn't go to grad school. This millennial fool told me that he wants to do something really "interesting" and "different" and that it would be worth it to him to make next to nothing at first because he wasn't going to settle for doing something he didn't want to do and making $50k/year indefinitely. I just laughed and shook my head and went back to eating my dinner because the real world has a better way of making a believer out of someone than a mother does. He was also saying typical things like "fortune favors the bold." Tbh, because he is an AA male, a part of me is glad that he has some sense of entitlement. But a bigger part of me is mortified by his arrogance and how out of touch he is. He knows that we're never going to let him starve, so I guess that's where it comes from--at least this is what DH, who lept at the chance to make $30k out of school, thinks. Anyway, ultimately, the market will dictate to these millennials what is what, whether with regard to salary or supply and demand.

[froggy76]

My little sister (25) works for a start up in Boston and her stories fascinate me. There is beer in the office. People stroll in at all times to start their day, but stay very late and do happy hours/dinner together. She had a conflict with her 32-year-old boss and was asking me for advice. I was like... HR? Where are the grownups in charge?!?!

At 35, I've embraced the idea that I could be considered a millennial. I love how creative they are and how they think completely outside the box. However, I've always worked for large corporations and there is a lot of value in having a mix of young employees as well as those who have been around for 30 years. Plus, you really need professional and ethical standards that guide the employees and the company.

[cville]

I can't handle how they all have the workplace equivalent of male refrigerator blindness. "Hey, so that thing you asked me to research? I looked in the one place you suggested and it wasn't there. So, I'm going to lunch."

NO MOFO. KEEP LOOKING UNTIL YOU FIND THE ANSWER OR COULD RELIABLY DEFEND TO ME, OUR BOSS, AND RBG HERSELF THAT YOU HAVE LEFT NOT A SINGLE FUCKING STONE UNTURNED. Then you come back to me. With some actual work product. Also, when I say your answer doesn't feel right, I am basing that on experience and hard work. Not my chakras. So respect it and listen when I say try again.

[StrawberryBlondie]

Is it normal to need a reason to take a day off? I guess I'm just confused why he would need to tell his boss why he was taking the day off in the first place.

[laterbloomer]

I am basing that on experience and hard work. Not my chakras. So respect it and listen when I say try again

The lack of respect for experience just kills me! One millennial at our office referred to himself as the expert. Say what?!?!?! A couple of college courses does not make you an expert junior, talk to me when you have at least 5 years of experience to back it up. In the meantime, respect my 20 years of experience.

[lilibet]

Mar 20, 2016 12:50:01 GMT -5 laterbloomer said:

The millennials that have this attitude have no fear of going hungry. You only have the nerve to be that demanding if don't feel you need a job.

I think this is where you really see the difference in your "older millennials" vs the younger ones.

I'm a millennial but I graduated college in 2008 and struggled to find a job, then paid a ridiculous amount for gas to drive an hour each way to the first/only job I could find, then went through months of freaking out as the company started laying off people. I want to be treated fairly and I will speak up if I think that isn't happening but I would never throw a fit like some millennials because I enjoy being able to pay for a roof over my head and have no desire to going back to the days when dh suggesting fast food for dinner gave me a panic attack because it might break our budget.

But then I see younger people at work who are 22 ish and didn't have to deal with that, don't have to worry about student loans (a degree is not a requirement for a lot of jobs in my office), and have mommy and daddy who have their back who will literally say whatever they want to upper level people. Someone flat out refused to do something that is the sole part of their job Friday and told the person asking them (who is above them) that they were going to have to do it because they (the millennial) weren't going to. We have people who have figured out how many days they can no call, no show in a row before being fired and have now done this multiple times because they won't be fired because they always come in before they cross the line. It's insane.

[lilibet]

Mar 20, 2016 14:00:22 GMT -5 StrawberryBlondie said:

Is it normal to need a reason to take a day off? I guess I'm just confused why he would need to tell his boss why he was taking the day off in the first place.

I wonder if they were maybe out of regular time off and still wanted the day so they made up a sob story knowing the boss wouldn't say no to a funeral. A lot of the younger people (and I say this only being 30) run out of time off constantly and are always begging for special arrangements.

[gretchenindisguise]

Mar 20, 2016 14:02:47 GMT -5 laterbloomer said:

I am basing that on experience and hard work. Not my chakras. So respect it and listen when I say try again

The lack of respect for experience just kills me! One millennial at our office referred to himself as the expert. Say what?!?!?! A couple of college courses does not make you an expert junior, talk to me when you have at least 5 years of experience to back it up. In the meantime, respect my 20 years of experience.

But it helps make sense of our current political landscape thus election season. They don't value experience at work, so it makes sense why they'd buck against it for presidential candidates too.