Once I was asked by a Baby Boomer how they could get hired by a millennial hiring manager. Since hiring discrimination based on age is illegal in the United States, the question struck me with curiosity. Interestingly enough, workers over the age of 40 are protected from discrimination, but not workers under the age of 40.
Knowing the basis created by law, I dug in to determine if there were certain qualities that a Baby Boomer or member of Gen X may have that would make them a less desirable candidate to a millennial who is hiring.
Credit: Picjumbo.com.
As a bit of a spoiler alert, it was reassuring to find that the millennial hiring managers I spoke to do not factor age into their hiring, but rather evaluate primarily for quality and character. However, there were interesting evaluations that may lend an explanation to why some older workers find it difficult to be hired at certain companies.
Experience
The most obvious difference between millennial and Boomer or Gen X workers is the number of years of experience in the particular field. What was telling about the topic of experience is that there are mixed reviews on how it plays into candidate consideration.
“The key difference between Gen X and Boomers compared with millennials is usually related to cost,” said Jake Rozmaryn, CEO of Eco Branding, a full service cleantech marketing agency. “You don’t need 20 years of experience to be productive at my company and we have no incentive to pay someone more because they’ve been doing something for longer. I can understand why it would be harder to get hired when you’re asking for 50% more money.”
At some companies like Rozmaryn’s, decades of experience could be a disadvantage, simply because they could be unwilling to pay a premium for the same results they could get at half the price. The key here is understanding what type of individuals the company is in search of and honing in on the qualities you have.
On the flip side, experience can be a positive for a Baby Boomer or Gen X candidate, if they know how to craft the quality to their benefit. If a candidate with a lot of experience can articulate how it helps them move quickly, rather than slowing them down due to added complexity, they stand to make a great case.
“Job seekers with 10 to 20 years of experience should have plenty of context to draw on and should be able to assess a situation and propose a solution much more quickly,” said Chris Cardinal, Principal at Synapse Studios, a custom software development firm. “Instead of seeing age as a problem, think of it as a valuable asset that simply can’t be matched by a millennial counterpart.”
Type Of Employer
“Being at a startup changes the way we hire slightly in that the position is better suited for someone that can take more risk,” shared Rozmaryn. “It’s harder for Gen X and Boomers to bootstrap, get little to no benefits, take equity over higher base salary, etc. We don’t give preference to a candidate based on that risk tolerance but it’s certainly a logical trend. Millennial candidates often feel that now is the time to do the start-up thing and take risk. They are right in that their opportunity cost is usually much lower.”
Gen X and Boomers ought to consider the type of company they are seeking employment at. There is a big difference in hiring between startups and large corporations.
“For startups, we look for candidates whose risk tolerance is a bit higher than the average employee,” said Marissa Peretz, Founder at Silicon Beach Talent, Los Angeles tech headhunting firm. “We want to make sure that people feel comfortable working for a stealth mode, pre-revenue company in exchange for the possibility of a higher future payout. They could be a younger candidate without a lot of family or monetary commitments, or they could be a more experienced candidate with stable finances and the desire for a change of pace.”
Startups, by nature, are best suited to those who can handle risk, flexibility, and uncertainty. Millennials generally trend towards these traits, creating what we could believe to be a trend based on age. In fact, when we look at the qualities of employees, it’s clear that it has little to do with age and everything to do with personality and approach.
“I am a startup founder who came from a large company,” said Michael Rangel, Co-Founder and CEO at CLEAR Financial, an AI-powered small business bank. “Does it change the way I hire? Absolutely. I need people who can pivot on a dime. I need people to pivot in their thinking, build off of their weaknesses and operate with extreme uncertainty at times and potentially little direction.”
For those candidates with more traditional qualities that don’t align with startup needs, they may be best suited pursuing roles at more traditional, larger companies.
Flexibility
One area that stands out when millennials are looking to hire is the ability to be flexible in the role. As companies have evolved and changed with the addition of technological advances, roles have developed to where there is a need to be flexible, adapt to changes, and wear many hats. This was often not the case for many who grew up knowing they would go work for a large corporation in a particular industry. Social media, automation and the necessity for online business have made it such that businesses in almost any industry cannot ignore emerging trends, specifically those that millennials have been accustomed to from youth.
“Millennials have grown up in the age of technology,” said Rangel. “They have become accustomed to intuitive products and processes that have applications beyond their initially intended formats. However, job descriptions, titles, and salaries have stayed pretty constant throughout the years. Someone with the role of ‘Finance Manager’ from yesteryear, may have only felt comfortable operating within that silo, but if you were to fast forward to today, that same individual would not have the luxury of residing within a single silo.”
Tips For Gen X And Baby Boomer Candidates
There are a few tips that can come in handy for people who are being interviewed by a millennial hiring manager. I’ve summarized the best advice here.
- Appreciate Diversity: “Be super open-minded and sensitive to the millions of political, cultural, social, environmental, racial, gender and other sensitivities that millennials hold dear,” shared Rozmaryn.
- Be Flexible: “Even if you have experience doing something in a specific way it’s important to be open to new ways of doing things. I’ve had to fight with employees in the past on doing things in a specific way because it’s more efficient long term. Now I keep an eye out for interviewees that seem like they know it all and don’t seem to be open to change,” said Brandon Howard, Owner of All My Web Needs, a web design agency.
- Be Authentic: “Pairing raw depth and variety of experience with the qualities of a millennial the hiring manager is seeking, such as authenticity and enthusiasm, makes for an invaluable combination that would be hard to say ‘no’ to,” shared Cardinal.
- Reflect Yourself Honestly: “Be yourself. Don’t try to be the millennial manager hiring you. Use your own jargon, speak to your experience and use language comfortable to you. Use the qualities that make you different to your advantage rather than the other way around,” said Rafael Ilishayev, Co-Founder of goPuff, an On-Demand Delivery company.
After everything is said and done, we know it’s illegal to discriminate in hiring practices based on age. With that said, knowing how to craft your personal brand around your experience, flexibility, and potential employer pursuit can help you find a perfect fit for your new job. Knowing the qualities millennials look for in a candidate will help set you up for success.
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