Transcript Customer Service for the Millennial Generation

Living in a “Millennial
Friendly” Campus
Northwest Nazarene University
Office of Retention
Portions are adapted from “Millennials Go to College” by Neil Howe and William Strauss,
published by the American Association of College Registrars and Admission Officers, 2003
Who are The Millennials?
All Americans born since 1982
76 Million Strong
Better educated
Well behaved
Modest
Perfectionists
America’s next great generation of heroes
Who are The Millennials?
The internet is better than TV
Reality is no longer real
Multitasking is a way of life
Typing is preferred to handwriting
Spelling and Math are aided by a
computer
Don’t read directions
Zero tolerance for delays
Since Millennials have been born:
Until the most recent election, somebody named
George Bush had been on every presidential ticket
except one
The Kennedy tragedy was a plane crash, not an
assassination
A “45” is a handgun, not a record with a large hole in
the center
There have always been ATM machines
There has always been a holiday celebrating Martin
Luther King Jr.
Since Millennials have been born:
They have never heard a phone “ring”
“Spam” and “cookies” are not necessarily food
They feel it is more dangerous to have sex or go
to school than have a nuclear war
The Osmond's are only obscure talk show hosts
Watergate has the same relevance to them as
the Teapot Dome Scandal
The have never referred to Russia or China as
“The Reds”
Millennials as a group are:
Close to their parents
Extremely focused on grades and performance
Very busy in extra-curricular activities
Eager to participate in community activities
Respectful of norms and traditions
Ethnically diverse, but less interested in issues
of racial identity
Majority female, but less interested in gender
identity
Seven Core Traits of Millennials
Special
Sheltered
Confident
Team-Oriented
Conventional
Pressured
Achieving
Specialness
Campus Life- Emphasize positively the role of
the parent in the “team” concept. Invite parents
to campus at least once per semester.
Classroom- Regularly congratulate students for
progressing through a program/curriculum.
Provide many opportunities for feedback and
structure. Several small assignments and
projects vs. one or two large projects or exams.
Sheltered
Campus Life- Emphasize safe living conditions,
health center, and counseling services. Stick to
traditional rules and enforce them consistently.
Classroom- Expect more scrutiny from parents
on content, grading procedures, and
philosophies. Be open to discussing policies.
Confident
Campus Life- Emphasize activities that instill
school spirit. More interested in civic duty than
free expression.
Classroom- Understand that the challenge of
taking intellectual risk is a new concept. Most
students are used to being “taught to the test.”
Acknowledge and reward academic risk taking.
Team Oriented
Campus Life- Emphasize and create many
opportunities for mobilization of campus toward
a common goal of service.
Classroom- Team projects are good, team
teaching, and team grading are even better.
The use of technology in the classroom is a
must.
Conventional
Campus Life- Consistency in rules and
enforcement for all areas of campus are a
necessity.
Classroom- Don’t tolerate mediocrity in
teaching content and personnel… they won’t.
Whenever possible, emphasize relevance of
curriculum to their success.
Pressured
Campus Life- Create lots of areas as “chill
zones” where students can relax. Offer new
experiences like intramurals and involvement in
the arts that require no commitment or
expectations (Enrichment).
Classroom- Understand their concept of
cheating is different from faculty. Collaboration
has always been part of their education. If
expectations are clear, students will comply.
Achieving
Campus Life- Provide many different, small
types of venues for students to gather.
Galleries, theaters, studios, meeting rooms, etc.
Classroom- Technology is a foregone
conclusion, not an occasional convenience.
Internet research is the norm, libraries foreign.
Customer Service
“Don’t make me wait”- ANY lines are completely
unnecessary, in their estimation
“Let me fix it”- Have procedures available with
steps listed on what they need to do to make
changes to items as needed. Avoid requiring
them to come in to your office to take care of a
problem.
“Keep us wired”- Students who are completely
comfortable with technology don’t understand
when it doesn’t work. They are used to fixing it
themselves and hate waiting on someone else
to do what they see as an easy fix.
Customer Service
“Tell me how”- Personal problem solving is not
their strength. Be specific with procedures,
deadlines, steps to completion, etc.
“Give me access”- Millennials operate in a
twenty four hour world, everything they need to
do and access should not require a person in an
office for help.
“Hurry Up”- Millennials have grown up in a world
where patience isn’t necessary. If it can’t be
delivered quickly, they’ll come back when it can.
Customer Service
“Let me join”- Opportunities for students to feel a
part of a greater group are highly valued. Create
environments where this happens naturally.
“Respect my parents”- As opposed to previous
generations, these students don’t mind when
parents intervene on their behalf. Make special
effort to connect positively with “helicopter
parents” when they make contact.