Millennial Motivation and Engagement

Millennials, also referred to as Generation Y compose the largest proportion of the global workforce today and would form over 50% of the working population by as soon as 2020. Millennials are accused of being casual, individualistic, consumeristic, and materialistic, while they are also appreciated for being the most well-educated generation in history, technologically advanced, loyal, and socially responsible. This dissertation aims to understand their behaviours, points of view, and the values they believe in, to gauge what they are like at work. A review of the literature on motivation theories and generation theories reveals that there exists a gap in the theories, and that further research needs to be carried out to upgrade them to incorporate the value systems, contexts, and mindsets of the younger generations. Interpretive qualitative research was carried out for this dissertation, through interviewing 9 millennials from different parts of the world, to provide an in-depth understanding of millennial motivation and engagement. The findings revealed that millennials are intrinsically motivated individuals, who believe in flexibility and autonomy at work. They strive to meet challenges and aspire to live a purposeful life. Work-life balance and quality of life are more important to them than monetary rewards. They seek independence, are open to options, and don’t always have clearly defined career plans. It was concluded that despite being supportive of the existing literature, the data suggests that the implementation of the modern theories of motivation is still partial. Organisations continue to operate in the conventional ways, even in the more developed western economies. This dissertation builds a case for a more robust theory for motivation in organisational context, that focuses on the millennial generation, and its effective implementation for improved management of the otherwise deemed “unmanageable” generation Y