MANAGEMENT: Motivating younger workers

Business owners managing today’s younger workers often comment on the “sense of entitlement” many of these employees seem to bring to the workplace. But here are some tips for helping motivate these younger workers:
1) Think “internal customers.” Today’s youth have been targeted by marketers and treated like customers more than any previous generation. Try to view and treat them (and encourage them to treat their co-workers) as “internal customers” of your business.
2) Give them a specific path. This generation doesn’t like to hear general platitudes about their future (“Work hard and in a few years…”). Spell out in specific terms what it takes to earn a bonus or a promotion. Give them a specific path to higher wages and more responsibility. Make them stretch by creating tough (though not unattainable) goals.
3) Partner them with an experienced employee. This generation works well in teams, most human resource researchers say. They like to learn by doing – which is possible when there’s someone there to help them out of a jamb.