Sidestepping the “traditional” workforce, an increasing amount of millennials are taking the entrepreneurial route and creating their own career paths by becoming business owners. According to Forbes.com, “Some of the greatest and most profitable businesses today are owned or operated by decision makers younger than 35. Millennials are launching businesses earlier than their predecessors (at an average age of 27 compared to 35 for boomers) and at nearly twice the rate.”
Overview: So why do millennials make great franchisees?
- Technologically savvy
- Creativity
- Optimism
- Flexibility
- Desire to find new solutions
- Desire to create their own path
- Ability to, and desire to work in group settings
- Natural ability to adapt to change
It is no secret that times, and technology are always changing, but where we see a significant, yet not always so obvious change, is to methods within the work place. Since the millennial generation makes up most of our current workforce and/or future workforce, the overall styles of how business is conducted are changing. The typical and traditional expectations of a 9-5, clock in clock out career, is not often a normal expectation for this generation, but instead, flexibility and balance are of great importance. This does not mean that working hard is something millennials do not understand and/or crave.
With technology being a large portion of most of, if not all of this generations’ lives, digital savviness comes easy. This natural skill can be extremely beneficial as a potential franchisee, putting them steps ahead of older generations in many important areas of business. Additionally, security breaches, spam, social media dangers, and other potential harms to your company are easy to spot for a generation so in tune with technology. Being aware of how common these threats are helps them to better prepare and train themselves, their company, and their employees on what to look for and how to defend against it.
According to a survey taken by Nationwide in an article on INC.com it states, “Millennial owners are much more likely than their older counterparts to be prepared for a cyberattack. The survey found that 42 percent of Millennials had a response plan in place, compared with 12 percent for baby boomers and 17 percent for Generation X-ers.” Also stated in the same survey, “Millennials had the highest percentage of respondents who said they were confident they could fix the problem and recover (78 percent).”
Creativity and optimism are two traits that are very common in this generation, and these traits also play a key role in their entrepreneurial desire. This creativity, coupled with an optimistic outlook of what they’re capable of, and what they can do with the technologies they have available to them, drives their desire to move away from a traditional career and pursue their own projects.
In a world where things are so easy to find and typical challenges are no longer all that challenging, this desire to be creative drives the passion to come up with new ways to challenge themselves and “stand out.” According to Ivey Business Journal, “Millennials have grown up in a time where information has become available instantly. Through a Google or Wikipedia search, answers to even quite complicated questions can be found. As such, millennials have developed into a group that wants to work on new and tough problems, and ones that require creative solutions.” This desire to create new and innovative solutions is an important trait among successful business owners.
Although debt from school loans is at an all-time high, that doesn’t seem to be distracting millennials from pursuing their careers based on their own projects and dreams. In fact, the idea of being able to create their own success is what makes entrepreneurship so appealing. It is not uncommon for older generations to look at millennials as lazy, narcissistic, or privileged. Because millennials are often stereotyped into these categories, being able to reach their full potential in a tradition job role is not always easy, and they often have to work harder to prove they are serious about their job.
Understanding just how important modern day technology platforms are to the success of your business is huge, and this idea is a “no brainer” for millennials, while it often still remains a challenging concept for older generations to grasp. As we continue to see the style of business practices change, and adapt with the times, those unwilling to adjust will ultimately be left behind. Although “typical millennials” may be stereotyped as, or believed to be lazy, because they learn and conduct business differently, different is not always a bad thing. Remember that some of the greatest successes in our history have come from change. In the near future, you may be surprised to see that “millennial behavior” is actually crucial in the success of your business and business practices.