CompTIA: A new Millennial is dawning

CompTIA urges organisations to embrace the new wave of ideas Millennials bring to work

Change is happening in the workplace and the Millennial generation is taking over, CompTIA's chief executive Todd Thibodeaux (pictured) has said.

But it is not something that should be feared by the previous generations, instead it should be embraced.

"The democratisation of technology has meant the population has been using IT to a much greater extent than ever before - it is beyond the range of the geek now, " he said.

Sporting snazzy red sneakers, the CompTIA top man advised the 1,000-plus strong audience that the Millennial generation - those born between 1980 and 1995 - are changing the way technology is used. The Millennials are 80 million strong in the US marketplace and there are more than one billion worldwide he explained.

"The playing field is expanding every day," Thibodeaux said. "It is not just about bringing the Millennials into companies, but they are going to become your customers and they are going to be demanding more things from you - such as connecting in the cloud and the use of social media.

"And if you don't have those folks on your own teams, you may end up not knowing what your customers are talking about," he said.

Thibodeaux said what makes this generation stand out is what they aspire to do with technology.

"Nearly 50 per cent of them aspire to own their own business. It is an entrepreneurial generation. They know the 2009 great recession was a real punch in the face for their generation and they are aware they have to make their own way."

And the group has been misjudged by some of the older generations, he added.

They have been misunderstood because they ask ‘what's in it for me?'" he said.

"Yes they expect more professionally, but we are not trying to understand them in a way that makes sense. They want the companies they work for to be successful, and they want a part in that success as well."

And the older workforce should bear in mind that in just a decade, 75 per cent of the workforce will be made up of Millennials, contributing $1.3tn in consumer spending, Thibodeaux said.

"They know they can't do it alone - they have aligned with other generations to ensure their visions materialise," he said. "They want mentorship, they want to ensure they have a good smooth transfer of knowledge from one generation to another."

Five ways millennials are changing IT according to CompTIA:

1. Disposable products - this generation have grown up with disposable products, whether computer, laptop, phone, another device - this going to impact types of devices that are created over time.

2. Brand loyalty - This generation is likely to adopt new brands - brand isn't king.

3. Software centric - this generation has grown up building and designing apps that work on internet. These apps are going to be what it is about.

4. Training is cool - IT training will be much different than it is today. The traditional kind of training is going to be pretty boring to them - same with generation z that is coming up. Doing exams on an iPad - getting certified any place, where, time around the world, organisations have to rethink the way they are offering training.

5. Different types of geeks - geeks in usability, user interface, content, information - we have to learn to appreciate them.