Professional and volunteer Scouters of all ages can rejoice because this year Top Hands delivered a clear message for all generations involved in Scouting: Let’s enjoy working together!

If you didn’t attend the conference this year, fear not. We have the scoop on generational synergy recapped for you below. Check it out and take notes, whether that’s on the standby pen and paper (baby boomers) or dictated to your notes app (millennials).

Valued, Challenged, Included: Engaging Millennials

Forget about minding the gap. Working with the youngest adults in the work force gives you the chance to bridge the gap – the generation gap, that is. For many Scouters, Top Hands ushered in the notion that distinct cultural and familial experiences shape generational differences.

For example, the experiences Baby Boomers have had influence how they parent their millennial children, often seeking to make life easier for their kids. Therefore, a unique generation of professionals was born and have likely begun to trickle into your council’s professional and volunteer positions.

Curt Steinhorst addressed attendees at the Top Hands’ General Session on the topic. As an expert who works to make the most of generational differences for professionals, Curt shared what millennials in the workplace want from their jobs. That’s to feel valued, challenged, and included.

How can you make this happen with your professional and volunteer teams?

Steinhorst shared these three characteristics of millennials that you can leverage into success for your council, district, and unit:

1. Millennials want to make a difference their very first day in the workplace. Make the first day and first impression count. Don’t sit your new team members at a table or desk for hours of onboarding or un-engaging training. Let them see right away how they will be making a difference in the lives of kids and young adults.
2. Millennials disrupt the status quo. Actually, millennials don’t even know what the status quo is. They’ll question everything (at least internally). That means needlessly clunky processes can become efficient (at last). Listen to your team’s fresh perspectives and don’t dismiss their suggestions without considering possible gains.
3. Millennials will take a pay cut to work somewhere they believe in. Don’t let your budget limit your goals. Young professionals want to make a difference – so much so, in fact, they’ll get behind worthy movements (like Scouting) just because they know how much these programs influences kids’ lives. The experience of working with the BSA looks great on a résumé too, so don’t undervalue volunteer roles within your team.

Do these takeaways ring true to what you’ve experienced with the generations in your workforce? Are there any tips for generational synergy you’d like to add to the list? Share them with us in the comments.