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Digital employee experience crucial to meeting Millennial workforce needs

 960 640 Stuart O'Brien
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Delivering a great digital employee experience is key to recruiting and retaining the Millennial frontline workforce, according to a new report, with associated implications for cyber security requirements as a result.

With job vacancies advertised across the UK increasing by 88,000 in April to hit a post-pandemic high of 747,000, with the biggest demand in accommodation and food service, a new report says frontline employers must address the specific digital and motivational needs of Millennial workers – who now make up more than three quarters of the frontline workforce.

However, the study of 1,000 frontline workers in YOOBIC’s latest ‘Frontline Employee Workplace Survey 2021’ report, reveals employers are falling behind expectations when it comes to providing an engaging work environment and fulfilling career options.

28% of Millennial frontline workers report not feeling empowered on the job, compared to 17% of other age groups.  Additionally, just 28% of Millennials find it easy to understand whether their work meets company expectations, in comparison to 41% of workers aged over 54.  Over a third (34%) of frontline employees in this demographic reported a lack of career as opposed to 17% for other age groups.

Key to meeting millennial workers’ desire for career progression and workplace engagement is understanding the importance of their digital world – both personally and professionally – which is reflected by Walmart’s decision tooffer new smartphones to more than 740,000 of its almost 1.6 million U.S. workers by the end of the year, free of charge. Staff can then use Walmart’s new workplace app tool while working but will be able to use the device for personal use.

Fabrice Haiat, CEO of YOOBIC, said: “Millennials are digital natives and accordingly see mobile technology as a crucial part of daily life.  Therefore, mobile workplace tools are essential as they deliver the information and communications frontline staff need to perform their best on the job.  These devices, and the format of the information they deliver, must be modern and user-friendly to meet Millennial workers’ high expectations of technology and content.  Providing outdated or ineffective technology will only have a negative impact on staff retention and engagement.”

Almost three quarters (72%) of frontline workers surveyed indicated they would feel more connected if communications were delivered via their smartphone or tablet, while a further 76% felt digital formats would increase their productivity and simplify their workload.

Haiat concluded: “There is no denying the significant impact Millennial workers play as part of the UK’s frontline workforce.  Recognising their needs and specific talents, and responding accordingly, is key to engaging, motivating and retaining staff in this demographic.  As they do in their day-to-day life, millennials expect a digital employee experience that allows them to use mobile devices to communicate with their peers and managers and access training information and documentation easily.  Providing this information in a gamified, digital format empowers the Millennial frontline workforce and meeting their needs in this way ensures businesses can build with them into the future.”

For further information on how employers can engage the UK’s frontline workers download the latest YOOBIC report.

Millennials ‘most vulnerable’ to phishing attacks

 960 640 Stuart O'Brien
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‘Digital savvy’ millennials are more likely to fall victim to cyber threats than baby boomers and older generations, demonstrating a concerning lack of knowledge on cyber threats such as phishing and ransomware.

New research, commissioned by cybersecurity and compliance company Proofpoint for their fifth annual ‘State of the Phish’ report, also revealed that 83 percent of global respondents experienced phishing attacks in 2018, compared to just 10 percent of respondents reporting experiencing a ransomware attack.

Also amongst the standout findings was the revelation that despite popular belief, older generations were actually less likely to fall victim to cyber attacks than their younger counterparts. 58% of those aged 22-27 knew correctly what phishing was, compared to 73% of those aged 54+ who knew correctly what phishing was. In addition, 52% of those aged 54+ knew correctly what ransomware was, whereas only 40% of those aged 22-37 knew correctly what ransomware was.

“Email is the top cyberattack vector, and today’s cybercriminals are persistently targeting high-value individuals who have privileged access or handle sensitive data within an organisation,” said Joe Ferrara, general manager of Security Awareness Training for Proofpoint.

“As these threats grow in scope and sophistication, it is critical that organisations prioritise security awareness training to educate employees about cybersecurity best practices and establish a people-centric strategy to defend against threat actors’ unwavering focus on compromising end users.”

“Lack of cybersecurity awareness, in particular amongst the millennial/Generation Z demographic, presents a greater threat than many businesses expect,” added Adenike Cosgrove, strategist, EMEA, Proofpoint.

“Our latest research shows that surprisingly, older generational groups can more accurately identify threats such as phishing and ransomware than digitally-savvy millennials. This tells us that millennials, despite being much more comfortable and at ease with digital platforms, display greater complacency towards threats and perceived risks.

“With the percentage of millennials in the workforce set to reach 50 percent globally by 2020, it’s imperative that businesses focus on developing a people-centric approach to security and deploy cybersecurity awareness training programs that aim to change employee behaviour. The bottom line is that organisations that do not consider the human factor as a key pillar to their cyber defence strategy will continue to be prime targets for cybercriminals, putting their businesses at risk of potentially crippling attacks.”

A copy of the report can be downloaded here: https://www.proofpoint.com/us/resources/threat-reports/state-of-phish