SMPS Marketer feature article in which I explore some of the needs and expectations of the Millennial workforce and provides practical tools for meeting those needs in strategic, thoughtful and constructive ways. ©Marketer, The Journal of the Society for Marketing Professional Services, February 2015

1. THE JOURNAL OFTHE SOCIETY FOR MARKETING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES VOLUME 34, ISSUE 1, FEBRUARY 2015
COMPETITION vs. ETHICS
14 BLURRING THE LINES
24 EINSTEIN WAS RIGHT
38 MENTORING A/E/C MILLENNIALS

2. Global trend reports such as The Millennial
Compass1
describe Millennials—people born
between 1980 and 1995—as ambitious, highly-
educated, and digital media-savvy individuals
looking for the fast track to success.While
senior-level marketers need to understand
and adapt to their expectations, they also
need to foster Millennial marketers as they
adjust to the protocols of the business world.
This type of mentorship will better prepare
Millennials for positions of leadership, while
creating a mutually rewarding environment
for professional and personal growth.
No Shortcuts to Success
Millennial marketers are inspired, if not driven, to make
contributions and be rewarded for them. Unfortunately, any vision
of a superhighway to success will usually run into unanticipated
speed bumps. For example, Millennials may interpret 24/7 online
access to virtually any information as a great equalizer when it
comes to authority.The reality, however, still stands that every
company has its organization chart, with levels of hierarchy and
responsibility. As experienced marketers, we are being called to
communicate how business works, including the power structure
of the firm and the goals and processes of the marketing function.
No matter how immediate the digital universe presents the world
of business, advancement—like trust—is earned. Senior marketers
earned the trust of their firms’ leadership through success and
failure, and by proving their ability to assume responsibility and
generate positive results. A Millennial may expect that career
advancement or opportunities for project management will echo
the speed of information, but most A/E/C firms continue to chart a
process that values results demonstrated over time.
A Realistic Roadmap to Success
By Maribel Castillo
Mentoring A/E/C Marketing Millennials
38 SOCIETY FOR MARKETING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

3. 110 Freeway, Los Angeles, CA.
Paul Turang photographer,
paulturang.com.
Camille Majors, senior corporate communications manager at
Environmental Science Associates (ESA), is a Millennial who has
participated as a mentor in a mentoring program. For Majors, the
key is to nurture Millennials’ enthusiasm by encouraging their ideas
about improving existing processes and using new technologies,
discussing why these ideas may or may not work, and cultivating a
professional understanding of the workplace.
“Millennials often approach senior leadership as more of a partner-
ship than the traditional hierarchy.This approach can inspire a team
environment in some settings, but it can also be very frustrating in
more traditional organizations, or for leaders with a more hierarchi-
cal preference,” says Majors. “Many of ESA’s committees, including
sustainability and employee-ownership, are fueled by Millennials
and their fresh ideas, while still guided by senior leadership who
bring a solid understanding of the firm’s culture.”
Mapping the Process
When it comes to the Internet as an information resource,
Millennials demonstrate tremendous ease with current
technologies.These skills—like running a blog or juggling multiple
social media channels at one time—do not necessarily equate
to critical marketing skills developed through years of experience,
such as brand positioning, strategic analysis, or business
development. No seasoned manager would hand leadership
responsibility for a multi-billion-dollar project to an architect or
engineer who has only been out of college for a few years. Similar
logic applies to giving a Millennial with limited real-world marketing
experience the responsibility for overseeing your firm’s digital
marketing or social media initiatives.
Millennials benefit greatly from understanding why certain
strategies, tactics, and communication channels are essential to a
firm’s marketing efforts, and which key messages hold the greatest
value. Conveying this knowledge can be an informal process that
launches each new project or initiative. By involving Millennials in
project planning, they will see how they can help develop strategies
that lead to positive results.
Kirsten Sibilia, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, and principal at Dattner
Architects, believes in exposing her coordinators to as much of
the marketing cycle as possible. In addition, when time is taken to
frame an initiative in its broader, strategic context, the results are
not only more effective, but the task can also be more rewarding.
Sibilia uses this approach for the development of new print
collateral for her firm. After sharing her vision with her team,
she engages them in an exploratory, participatory process: looking
together at pieces developed by peer firms, larger firms with bigger
budgets, and even firms outside the A/E/C industry.
“We look at print pieces and digital counterparts, talk about our
audience, and discuss the various scenarios in which we’d be using
the collateral,” says Sibilia. “I also share my belief that business
development is like dating, and that each ‘touch’ needs to make the
potential client want to learn more.The ideas that come back from
my team are thoughtful and creative, and I can tell that when we
are done, the results will surpass my expectations.”
MARKETER FEBRUARY 2015 39

4. Along with their preference for this kind of collaborative, team-
based approach, Millennials also have a deep desire to learn2
.
Encourage them to attend job-related seminars, Webinars, and
industry conferences, with the expectation that they will report
back in detail on key learnings. From there, the next step is to
discuss which insights relate not only to their professional growth,
but also to how such information can support the firm’s current
and future marketing efforts.
Mentoring is a Two-Way Street
Modern-day mentoring offers more of an information exchange,
where mentees—whether on staff or in regional offices around the
world—can offer value in exchange for the guidance they receive.
A common example of “reverse mentoring” is when a Millennial
coaches an executive about social media in return for wisdom
about how to get ahead in the company3
. Another best practice
involves asking Millennials what they are reading, which can open
doors to great discussion and provide meaningful insights into
their mindset.
Millennials also benefit from separating from the screen in order
to hone genuine interpersonal skills. As basic as these soft skills
may seem to veteran marketers, they are not always second nature
to the younger generations they lead4
. Face-to-face time is to be
encouraged. Advise an entry-level marketer to send a thank-you
email (or better yet, a handwritten card) to the finance manager
who provided much-needed information for a proposal, or to call
their peers in other firms and meet for lunch. While everyone is
busy, senior staff can demonstrate that it takes little time to stop in
the hall to congratulate a colleague for a project win or promotion.
Moving Forward Together
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Millennials will
make up close to 50 percent of the world’s workforce by 20205
.
Marketing leaders can help groom this generation to become more
successful, sophisticated channels for communicating with others
about themselves and the company.This includes specifying what
their job entails as far as responsibilities and expectations of their
performance. Doing so sets the groundwork for enhancing and
elevating the marketing function and forwarding the business goals
of our respective firms.
The topic of “mentoring Millennials” is too large and complex a
subject for one brief article, so consider this the start of a longer
conversation. It is a topic worth delving into because Millennials
expect to stay in any one job for less than three years6
.This job-
hopping is not only costly to our firms, but also to the individuals
who invest time and effort in the mentoring role. By sharing
experiences from having spent considerable time on the path to
marketing leadership, senior marketers can better train, sustain,
and retain the Millennials who work alongside them. n
ENDNOTES:
1. www.mslgroup.com/insights/2014/the-millennial-compass.aspx
2. www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/executive-development/custom-programs/~/media/
DF1C11C056874DDA8097271A1ED48662.ashx
3. www.management-mentors.com/about/corporate-mentoring-matters-blog/
bid/89821/Reverse-Mentoring-Managing-Generational-Diversity-in-the-Workplace
4. www.trainingindustry.com/blog/blog-entries/millennials-need-soft-skills-training.aspx
5. www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/executive-development/custom-programs/~/media/
DF1C11C056874DDA8097271A1ED48662.ashx
6. www.millennialbranding.com/2013/cost-millennial-retention-study
By involving Millennials in project
planning, they will see how they
can help develop strategies that
lead to positive results.
I-105/I-110 Interchange,
Los Angeles, CA.
Paul Turang photographer,
paulturang.com.
40 SOCIETY FOR MARKETING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES