As a student, you’re probably dreaming about entering the workforce. You can’t wait to graduate. You can’t wait to start working. You can’t wait to start earning money. But the reality is, the workplace has changed dramatically in recent years.

The traditional Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, chained-to-the-desk work week is becoming a thing of the past with more and more companies realising their employees need to have more freedom.

Millennials calling the shots

And you, as a millennial, born somewhere between 1980 and 2000, are part of a new group who are calling the shots of what a workplace should look like. According to PwC’s millennials at work study, millennials will shape the world of work for years to come.

“Attracting the best of these millennial workers is critical to the future of your business. Their career aspirations, attitudes about work, and knowledge of new technologies will define the culture of the 21^st century workplace.”

In just five years, millennials will form 50% of the global workforce. Talented young workers are in high demand and CEOs are scratching their heads, trying to find ways to attract these individuals. The study found one trait which sets millennials apart from previous generations.

“This generation place much more emphasis on their personal needs than on those of the organisation. Millennials tend to be uncomfortable with rigid corporate structures and turned off by information silos.

“They expect rapid progression, a varied and interesting career and constant feedback. In other words, millennials want a management style and corporate culture that is markedly different from anything that has gone before – one that meets their needs.”

Work will be something we do, not somewhere we go

Another study, the Johnson Controls Global WorkPlace Solutions’ Smart Workplace 2040, found the traditional constraints of location and time will soon no longer dictate our work schedule. They imagined the life of Nina – “a digirati, an entrepreneur, a working parent, an artist, living and working in 2040”.

She works from home, sometimes from the office and often at working hubs. She doesn’t commute unless she has a meeting. She is able to disconnect from technology at the touch of a finger. She has a flexi contract – there is no limit to how long or little she can work.
As a millennial, it is up to you to decide how you are going to fit into this new paradigm. Are you going to be a worker, on the hunt for a job opportunity which offers these advantages and options? Or are you going to become an employer, apply for business finance and start to create a space where working like this is possible? Any way you look at it, this is an exciting time to be a young person entering the workforce.