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22 FEDA News & Views alignment of these goals is where long- term employees thrive. Get to know the individual through a combination of testing and monthly progress reviews. This group of young people needs high touch. As a manager, your job is to help them achieve their personal goals. I always liked the Richard Branson quote, "Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don't want to." Furthermore, the review of company performance should not be a privilege reserved for management. As leaders, we need to learn to open the kimono a bit. I grew up in a company that shared a portion of net profi t with every employee every month. Because of this environment, we all knew about gross profi t, operating expenses and even the concept of corporate overhead. Help your newest people understand how they contribute to the whole. Feel valued, respected, and rewarded for their contributions. I am a strong proponent of creating warehouse incentive programs. Now before you brand me with a scarlet L, incentive comp programs have nothing to do with paying people more money for doing the work they should do in the fi rst place. Yep, I have heard this argument once or twice in my career. Building a warehouse incentive program based on SMART (simple, measurable, attainable, relevant and time based) prin- ciples will give newer employees a way to see how their contributions drive the success of the organization. Remember, the rewards given from these programs do not always have to be monetary. Time off or team building events can often motivate better than money. Develop social and professional rela- tionships within the organization. One of the more interesting things about this generation is that they work extremely well in teams and thrive in a collabora- tive setting. This seems so ironic when the preferred method of communication still seems to be electronic and isolated in nature. Regardless, knowing that they work well with others, you might want Millennials continued Contact Salvajor today to learn more. salvajor.com • (800) SALVAJOR It makes sense to save water and energy while the operator is away from the work area. That's why Salvajor Scrap and Pot/Pan Collectors ™ come standard with Patented Operator Sensor Technology. Two modes of water and energy saving operation. Auto Start Mode - Puts the Collector into stand-by while the operator is away. Water Saver Mode - Allows the Collector to run at a reduced fl ow rate while the operator is away. Smarter controls. Smarter water and energy use. Because it just makes sense U.S. Pat. No. 7,815,134 to steer them toward group projects. For example, give them an opportunity to work on a holiday party or some summer activity. Have them plan a cus- tomer appreciation event. With all the dead stock I see in most distribution warehouses, planning a clearance event wouldn't be the worst thing to promote. Many organizations want to be more civic-minded or charitably-conscious. This is where millennials thrive. Have them plan a work day with habitat for humanity or get involved with a chari- table organization. Activities like this will help them integrate with the more sea- soned members of your staff. You might think that these young folks are gunning for your job but what they are really seeking is some mentoring. Consider pairing them up with a more senior member of the staff and create an opportunity for this pairing to work on a problem or create a promotion. By embracing the differences between the generations, creativity will fl ourish. I encourage you to continue to study the dynamics of generational differences. Learn what makes them tick and get really comfortable with the new para- digm. The newest generation is not here to serve you. If you want to get off the turnover train, it's your responsibility to be of service to them. As I mentioned earlier in the article, check out the work being done by Claire Raines at her website www.gen- erationsatwork.com. She has some great material on managing the generational communication challenges we all seem to face. As a little bonus, she takes a stab at predicting the characteristics we will see in those entering the workforce next. Yep, in a couple years, we get a whole new crop to adapt to. Now if that doesn't drive the baby boomers into retirement, I don't know what will. Good luck. About the Author Jason Bader is the managing part- ner of The Distribution Team, a fi rm that specializes in helping distributors become more profi table through stra- tegic planning and operating effi cien- cies. For more information, call (503) 282-2333, or contact him by e-mail at Jason@Distributionteam.com