Jones College of Business hosts sold-out event at Embassy Suites
MURFREESBORO
— MTSU wrapped up a successful conference focused on the Millennial
Generation Friday (Oct. 31) with a panel of experts offering their insights
about how the Midstate can capitalize on the unique skills and talents of this
hyper-connected group of up-and-comers.
Hosted by the Jennings A. Jones Chair of Excellence in Private
Enterprise as well as the Jennings A. Jones College of Business, the sold-out conference
— titled “2020 Millennial Game Plan: Maximizing Millennial Entrepreneurship and
Innovation” — was held at Embassy Suites Murfreesboro and drew a variety of
business leaders — primarily Gen X’ers and Boomers — from the public and
private sectors.
“Nashville’s Millennial growth rate is among the nation’s highest.
Consequently, it is vital that business leaders understand the special
characteristics of Millennials, how they are shaping companies, and how they
are driving entrepreneurship and innovation,” said David Urban, dean of the
Jones College of Business.
The conference title harkens to the fact that by 2020, the so-called
‘Millennial’ generation — young adults raised in a digital age and motivated by
a different set of values from generations past — will make up 40 percent of
the workforce.
MTSU held the half-day conference to help these older business and
community leaders explore what the influx of Millennials means to the regional
and national economy and how to maximize the entry of this new generation of
workers into the job market.
Urban added that the conference’s “deep dive into what makes
Millennials tick” also offered practical action steps for companies “wanting to
build the type of culture that will allow them to attract, retain, and get the
most out of their Millennial employees.”
Featured speakers included Matt Thornhill and John Martin of
Virginia-based marketing research company GenerationsMatter and John Boyens of The Boyens Group, a Nashville-based
sales, management and training firm.
Martin facilitated the wrap-up panel that included Beth Duffield,
vice president of workforce development for the Rutherford County Chamber of
Commerce; Michael Burrows, owner of a local H3O Aquatics franchise and an MTSU
alumnus; Dr. William McDowell, Wright Travel Chair in Entrepreneurship in the
Jones College; and Brittany Macklin, an MTSU entrepreneurship major from
Madison, Tennessee.
Among suggestions by the panel: employers should look to install
“creative spaces” within the workplace where Millennials can unwind while
collaborating with co-workers; employers should offer to pay for extended
education opportunities for Millennials looking to advance in their careers;
managers should make it a priority to match Millennials with mentors so that
there is a mutual exchange of knowledge.
Martin noted that among the dozen U.S. cities his company has
researched, Nashville had the highest score — called a net promoter score
— related to how positively Millennials felt about their city and how much
they referred their hometown to others as a great place to live.
“This market has a unique attribute of everybody being so hyperfriendly
and supportive,” Martin said. “This whole conference was about entrepreneurship
and innovation. If you think about what it takes to be a successful
entrepreneur, one of them is having a supportive environment, having people
that will help you and pitch in. I think ‘friendly’ is the word for all of
that.”
Among the younger faces amongst attendees were MTSU seniors Lance
Lee of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and Glen Johnson of Nashville. The two
Millennials attended the conference in part to get some extra class credit but
left with a better feeling about how some negative stereotypes about
Millennials — selfish, entitled — are being reevaluated by older generations.
“There are still a lot of us out there that are ambitious and
willing to make something of ourselves,” said Lee, a finance major.
Added fellow finance major Johnson: “There’s definitely an awareness
(of) Millennials. Any relationship is a two-way street, and it’s good to see
all the other generations … how they’ve lived their lives and their trends, and
how we can meet across the board and communicate with them.”
Kim Sokoya, associate dean of Graduate and Executive Education in
the Jones College, said the conference will benefit MTSU faculty and staff
attendees both administratively and academically when it comes to interacting
with Millennials.
“It helps us to understand how we can change some of the things we
do so that we can meet their expectations,” Sokoya said. “At the same time it
will help us to deliver more effectively the knowledge that we need to share
with our students. … The reality is that the Millennials are coming.”
Urban said the college will continue to host such events in the
future. For more information about the MTSU Jones College of Business, go to http://www.mtsu.edu/business/.
No comments:
Post a Comment