Misconceptions about millennials debunked

A SUSTAINABILITY specialist from Ayala Corporation has debunked misconceptions about the millennial workforce in the country.

“Maybe some of you would say that we are impatient. Our answer to that--maybe we are just harnessing technology,” sustainablility expert Crystal Joy Vistal, a millennial, said during the joint meeting of the Management Association of the Philippines and People Management Association of the Philippines in Makati City on Tuesday.

Vistal explained that technology allows today’s workers to do their tasks more efficiently and quickly. The millennial workforce should be viewed in a different light, she added.

Enumerating more common misconceptions towards millennials, Vistal said her generation was also perceived as “title-hungry” employees seeking immediate promotions. But she explained they were just usually “driven to succeed.”Such drive, she said, stems from pressure imposed on millennials by family members and society. The pressure causes anxiety to young professionals.”

According to Vistal, it is also unfair for millennials who resign from work every two years to be labeled as “disloyal.” “What if we are just trying to

Can you blame us?” she said. Vistal said millennials value relationships, whether they are personal or professional. “We want to have fun. We want to enjoy life,” she said.

On the other hand, Ronaldo Batisan, associate vice president for Customer Experience Group of Union Bank of the Philippines, said millennials do not appreciate being micromanaged.

“Let them be. Don’t microman

Batisan, who is currently working with millennials, said. Sixty- five percent of UnionBank’s employees are millennials, he added.

Dae Lee, managing partner of The Fourth Wall, a company engaged in company design, said understanding the behavior of employees is key to working with people coming from different generations.

“Make them know why they’re there to work,” he said. There is a difference between wanting to work and just being obliged to do a job, and the employees should feel the former, Lee added. Stephanie Sy, founder and chief

- ing Machines, a data science startup, said millennials respond to outcomes-based management. She said objectives, key results and key performance indicators should be

Known for being tech-savvy, mil

the technological tools to aid them in their jobs including project management, code management and integrated communication, among others, she added.

Meanwhile, Paulo Campos 3rd, co- founder and CEO of Zalora Philippines, said the Philippines is fortunate to have a millennial workforce that is “globally competitive.”