Technology savvy, environmentally conscious and always on the move, millennials and their younger cohorts in Generation Z are the future of today’s workforce and estimates suggest they will account for around 30% of all employees by 2020.
But how can the fleet management sector entice more of these young minds in to the industry?
It is a difficult task for ours and other sectors. The demand for top young talent is always competitive and as digital-focused businesses have expanded over the years, convincing millennials to swap tech for trucking is not easy.
But with the industry rapidly developing and technological advances taking hold, millennials are increasingly moving into the fleet management sector.
The baby boomer generation of the 1950s and 1960s are winding down and set to retire and as a result employers are seeking out younger staff, Experts believe that millennials – those born between 1981 and 1996 – and the post-1997 Generation Z will represent 35% and 24% of the global workforce by 2020.
This should be seen as a great opportunity for all of us in the fleet management sector but only if priorities and working methods tally with those of millennials.
Delivery service companies – be it Uber, Deliveroo or Amazon – are ubiquitous across the world and are on a upward trajectory. Fleet management fits into this and while it may not be the first thought of millennials looking at career options, there are several factors which help the sector stand out in the crowd.
Tech-savvy
The advantages of the millennial generation always being ‘connected’ – plugged into smartphones, and applications, and more widely interested in software and programming – is that they can quickly get to grips with new technology.
This skill-set should be of real interest to fleet management bosses.
Remote scheduling, automated expense reporting and the adoption of new telematics software are becoming commonplace across the industry and having young tech-savvy staff who can learn quickly could have a big impact on firm efficiency.
In addition, as analytics programmes and big data sweep across the industry, if your company is at the forefront of such innovations and systems then looking to the younger generation to fill technical roles could also chip away at efficiency and improve company-wide performance.
Thinking green
Alongside keeping abreast of new technology coming to the fleet industry, switching to greener, sustainable solutions may well prove another draw when trying to hire young talent.
Our waterless vehicle washing service here at Dropless is non-hazardous and eco-friendly. Moving to such a solution will not only translate to cost and time savings for the business, but demonstrate to potential employees that you are thinking about a bigger picture, and green.
What’s more, our partnership with WATERisLIFE is helping them work towards their goal of providing clean drinking water to one billion people by 2020 in countries around the world. This would be another tick in the box for many millennials (59% say they feel accountable for protecting the environment) when considering a career in fleet management.
Business benefits
If businesses are able to look at creating jobs for millennials across departments and roles which hit on their interests, then benefits could be felt far and wide.
Adopting more effective technology systems will help drive time and expenses down, having millennials form part of your driving fleet can lead to more productive performance, while ethical waterless solutions like Dropless can also help create savings which can be passed onto customers.
Ultimately, such things work to create a strong company culture; one of an innovative organisation with a clear eye on the future. All of which will be attractive to your future millennial colleagues!