The 5 types of Millennials you need to know about

With plenty of sweeping generalisations made about Millennials, Sage Asia’s new report, Walk With Me, endeavoured to identify five personality types Millennials represent at the workplace.

Based on their key characteristics, attitudes and behaviours, these are the five types of Millennial personalities highlighted:

• The Principled Planners – Extremely methodical in their approach to work, they enjoy carefully planning for success. With an ambitious streak, they never take anything at face value and always ask a lot of questions.
• The Driven Techies – Love their work and can’t bear the thought of sitting around twiddling their thumbs, they trust in the power and efficiency of innovative technology to keep them one step ahead of the competition. They have a strong belief in its ability to accurately target their existing and future customers.
• The Instinctive Explorers – Cavalier, they love the unknown, as well as exploring uncharted territory. They trust their gut instincts and stick to their guns. A modern image is extremely important to them, as is leaving a legacy behind to be remembered by.
• The Real Worlders - Resourceful, but likely to say they rely on technology in order to succeed. When it comes to their approach to work and making decisions, they tend to alternate between going on gut instinct and taking a more methodical approach.
• The Thrill-Seekers - Easily bored and always on the lookout for the next challenge, they couldn’t care less about appearances. They work best around others and believe that making a social impact is overrated.

In addition to these personalities, Sage Asia’s research identified priorities of this generation at work – with 72% of Millennials in Singapore willing to sacrifice profit to stay true to their values. This rose to 78% in South Africa, while there was a slight dip in the US at 70%.

When it comes to the work life balance, two in three globally (66%) value life over work. For respondents in Brazil (71%), Australia (70%), Belgium (70%), Singapore (73%) and Switzerland (70%), reducing the amount of hours they spend working and retiring early is a key focus.

More general trends from the study include 62% globally wanting to start more than one business of their own, and 34% starting their own business to be the master of their own destiny.

Image: 123RF