Once we identified the perceptions managers had of working with Millennials, we listened to how the managers responded to each of the orientations. Our aim was to understand just what separated managers who were successful in working with Millennials from those who struggled. We discovered that successful managers practiced a set of core competencies that are essential to effectively managing Millennial employees. The competencies fall within three behavioral categories: (1) adapting, (2) communicating, and (3) envisioning.

Adapting is the willingness to accept that a Millennial employee does not have the same experiences, values, or frame of reference that you had when you were the same age. We refer to this as suspending the bias of your own experience. Adapting successfully may require adjustments to yourmanagement style. In some cases, it may require changes to your organization’s policies and procedures. Several major corporations found that they were better able to remain true to their mission by making their policies more accommodating to the expressed values of Millennial employees. The adapting competencies are ‘‘Flexing with the Autonomous,’’ ‘‘Incenting the Entitled,’’ and ‘‘Cultivating the Imaginative.’’

Communicating refers to the ability to make a connection at a relational level. It is the primary area where tension can escalate into emotional conflict. In the saddest cases, professional relationships deteriorated so much that we observed personal attacks. For the manager who is committed to succeeding despite relational tension, communicating is essential. It is about staying engaged even when both parties are frustrated. The communicating competencies are ‘‘Engaging the Self-Absorbed,’’ ‘‘Disarming the Defensive,’’ and ‘‘Self-Differentiating from the Abrasive.’’

Envisioning is about lifting the horizons among the unmotivated and myopic. It incorporates management practices that create both meaning and accountability for the Millennial employee. In practice, envisioning entails connecting employees’ personal goals and aspirations with the organization’s objectives. Without the Adapting and Communicating skills, it is highly unlikely that envisioning can take place. The envisioning competencies are ‘‘Broadening the Myopic,’’ ‘‘Directing the Unfocused,’’ and ‘‘Motivating the Indifferent.’’

The real power of our model is—the competencies are measurable! While conducting our research, we noticed that all of the managers in our study were doing at least one thing right. However, many were not sure about what they were doing right or wrong. The uncertainty caused them to be inconsistent in the way they managed. We thought that if managers could know what they were doing right and wrong, they could more easily and readily adapt their management style. Knowing what to do and not do with respect to successful performance leads to self-efficacy. A key indicator of a person’s future success is self-efficacy. Managerial leaders who achieve self-efficacy lead to Millennials who achieve self-efficacy!