Challenges Millennials Face in the Workplace and What They Can Do About Them

166 Pages·2016·2.3 MB·English

Antioch University
AURA - Antioch University Repository and Archive
Student & Alumni Scholarship, including
Dissertations & Theses
Dissertations & Theses
2012
Millennial Integration: Challenges Millennials Face
in the Workplace and What They Can Do About
Them
Chip Espinoza
Antioch University - PhD Program in Leadership and Change
Follow this and additional works at:http://aura.antioch.edu/etds
Part of theBusiness Administration, Management, and Operations Commons,Demography,
Population, and Ecology Commons,Leadership Studies Commons,Organizational Behavior and
Theory Commons, and theSocial Psychology Commons
Recommended Citation
Espinoza, Chip, "Millennial Integration: Challenges Millennials Face in the Workplace and What They Can Do About Them" (2012).
Dissertations & Theses. 118.
http://aura.antioch.edu/etds/118
This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Student & Alumni Scholarship, including Dissertations & Theses at AURA - Antioch
University Repository and Archive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations & Theses by an authorized administrator of AURA - Antioch
University Repository and Archive. For more information, please [email protected], [email protected].
MILLENNIAL INTEGRATION:
CHALLENGES MILLENNIALS FACE IN THE WORKPLACE AND WHAT THEY CAN DO
ABOUT THEM

CHIP ESPINOZA

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to the Ph.D. in Leadership and Change Program
of Antioch University
in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

November, 2012
This is to certify that the Dissertation entitled:

MILLENNIAL INTEGRATION: CHALLENGES MILLENNIALS FACE IN THE
WORKPLACE AND WHAT THEY CAN DO ABOUT THEM
prepared by
Chip Espinoza
is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in
Leadership and Change.
Approved by:
_________________________________________________________________________
Alan Guskin, Ph.D., Chair date

_________________________________________________________________________
Carol Baron, Ph.D., Committee Member date

_________________________________________________________________________
Roger Heuser, Ph.D., Committee Member date

_________________________________________________________________________
Luis Calingo, Ph.D., External Reader date
Copyright 2012 Chip Espinoza
All rights reserved
Acknowledgements
I want to thank my wife (Lisa) and children (Chase, Chance, Chandler, and Charlize) for
their patience with me. They made the bigger part of the sacrifice for me to pursue a dream.
Thank you to Cholene Espinoza and Ellen Ratner for their encouragement, support, and
desire to see me get my Ph.D. I know they are as excited as I am.
I am grateful for my late Grandmother Trinnie Espinoza. She saved up a $1,000 to give to
me to attend college. She was an incredible educator in her own right. I am also grateful to my
Mother Shari Johnson for making me do Word Power in the Reader’s Digest when I was
growing up. It gave me a love for putting words together.
Thank you to my dissertation committee. I am indebted to Dr. Al Guskin for believing in
the value of my work. I could not have had a better Advisor or Dissertation Chair. I am proud to
have my name in print with his! Thank you to Dr. Carol Baron for her insight and for being a
great teacher. Thank you to Dr. Roger Heuser who believed in me before I believed in myself. I
will always be grateful to Dr. Norman Shawchuck who inspired me to pursue a Ph.D. (1935-
2012). I am indebted to the entire Antioch Ph.D. in Leadership and Change faculty for my
personal transformation.
Thank you to my friend and colleague Dr. Mick Ukleja for his enthusiasm for my pursuit
of a Ph.D. I am saddened that my Individual Learning Achievement mentor, Dr. Craig Rusch
(1964-2012), will not get to see me finish my program. In addition to being a friend, he was
instrumental in helping me understand research design. Thank you to Peter Miller for helping me
to better understand training design. Finally, thank you to the organizations and Millennials who
gave of their time to make this study possible.

i
Abstract
There is a monumental changing of the guard that is currently taking place in organizations due
to demographic metabolism. One of the largest birth cohorts or generations in history (Baby
Boomer) is beginning to retire while their predecessor (Builder) is almost completely out of the
workforce. Gen X is hitting stride and on the cusp of inheriting the proverbial organizational
mantle. The three aforementioned age cohorts have learned to play in the organizational sandbox
together. However, a new age cohort (Millennial, a.k.a. Gen Y), equal or greater in size to the
Baby Boomer cohort started entering the playground approximately ten years ago and they are
kicking up sand. The etymology of the Millennial story began with a discussion “about”
Millennials. The conversation quickly moved to strategies for recruiting them. Talk then shifted
to on-boarding and managing Millennials. I desire to broaden the dialogue by inviting a
discussion with Millennials about how they are experiencing work life. As is the case with any
transition, there is great potential for conflict and angst. The purpose of this qualitative study is
to identify the challenges Millennials experience while trying to integrate into organizations and
the skills that will help them make a successful transition into the workforce. The electronic
version of this Dissertation is at Ohiolink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd.
ii
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................... i
List of Tables ...................................................................................................................................x
List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ xi
Chapter I: Introduction .....................................................................................................................1
Background of the Problem .......................................................................................................1
Significance of the Study ...........................................................................................................2
Gaps in the Research Pertaining to Millennials in the Workplace ..................................................3
Theoretical Framework ....................................................................................................................5
Methodology ....................................................................................................................................7
Limitations .......................................................................................................................................9
Terms Important to the Study ........................................................................................................10
Conclusion: Purpose of the Study ..................................................................................................13
Situating the Researcher ................................................................................................................13
Summary ........................................................................................................................................15
Chapter II: Review of the Literature ..............................................................................................16
Thinking About Generations..........................................................................................................16
The Concept of Generational Theory ................................................................................16
Life Course Theory ............................................................................................................19
Collective Memory and Cohort Effect ...............................................................................20
A Description of Age Cohorts in the Workplace ...............................................................21
When Gen X Entered the Workforce .................................................................................22
A Popular Media Narrative on Millennials ........................................................................23
iii
Age Norm Theory ..............................................................................................................28
Ageism ...............................................................................................................................30
Generational Tension and Social Change ..........................................................................34
Managerial Leader Perspectives That Focus on Followers’ Needs ...............................................36
Managerial Leadership Preferences of Millennials ...........................................................37
Suspending One’s Own Bias .............................................................................................39
Participative Management .................................................................................................41
Empowering Leadership ....................................................................................................43
Closing Remarks ............................................................................................................................43
Chapter III: Prior Research ............................................................................................................45
Managing Millennials ....................................................................................................................46
The Research Design .....................................................................................................................46
Findings..........................................................................................................................................47
The Effective Perspective ..................................................................................................47
The Core Competencies Needed for Managing Millennials ..............................................50
Managers Are Key .............................................................................................................53
Case Study .........................................................................................................................54
Closing Remarks ............................................................................................................................57
Chapter IV: Methodology ..............................................................................................................58
Participatory Action Research .......................................................................................................59
Creating A Partnership .......................................................................................................60
Developing A Means for Studying Matters of Importance ...............................................61
Gathering the Data .............................................................................................................61
iv
Large Group Intervention ..................................................................................................62
Web-based Survey .................................................................................................65
Interviewing ...........................................................................................................66
Analyzing the Data ............................................................................................................72
Taking Action ....................................................................................................................74
Methodological Fit .............................................................................................................76
Informed Consent...............................................................................................................76
Summary ............................................................................................................................76
Chapter V: Results of Participatory Action Research ........................................................77
Purpose of the Study ..........................................................................................................77
Process of the Study ...........................................................................................................78
One-on-One Interviews ......................................................................................................80
Large Group Interventions .................................................................................................80
Web-based Survey .................................................................................................80
Small PAR Team ...................................................................................................81
Large PAR Team ...................................................................................................82
Taking Action ........................................................................................................83
The Role of the Researcher ............................................................................................................84
PAR Findings .................................................................................................................................84
Interviews .......................................................................................................................................84
Interview Group Question One ......................................................................................................85
Interview Group Question Two .....................................................................................................85
Interview Group Question Three ...................................................................................................86
v
Large Group Intervention Findings ...............................................................................................86
LGI Question One ..........................................................................................................................86
LGI Question Two .........................................................................................................................87
LGI Question Three .......................................................................................................................87
Web-based Survey Results ............................................................................................................89
Web-based Survey Question One ..................................................................................................89
Web-based Survey Question Two .................................................................................................89
Web-based Survey Question Three ...............................................................................................90
Explanation of Themes ..................................................................................................................91
A Lack of Experience ....................................................................................................................91
Not Being Taken Seriously ............................................................................................................91
Not Getting Respect .......................................................................................................................91
Being Perceived as Entitled ...........................................................................................................91
A Lack of Patience .........................................................................................................................91
Getting Helpful Feedback ..............................................................................................................91
Understanding Expectations ..........................................................................................................91
Miscommunication with Older Workers .......................................................................................92
Rigid Processes ..............................................................................................................................92
Proving My Value ..........................................................................................................................92
Understanding Corporate Culture ..................................................................................................92
Comparison of Results of Interviews, LGIs, and Web-based
Survey by Question ................................................................................................92

Web-based Survey Question Four “Skills for Overcoming
Challenges in the Workplace” ...............................................................................96

vi