Richard Branson, the owner of Virgin, one of the biggest superpowers in the world, said “train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don’t want to”.

You’ve probably read thousands of articles, news headlines and Tweets about Millennials, or the ‘digital natives’. There’s a good chance you already employ some, but have you ever thought about how to make them stay? It’s not as easy as you think, but these tips could help everyone in your company not just the iPhone whippersnappers.

1 – Customisable benefits – Millennials will ‘shop’ around for the benefits, salaries and more importantly the culture of a company for the best fit for them. So make sure you have strong employee culture and values with benefits like Perkbox or Sodexo.

2 – Less formality day to day – More relaxed, weekly check-ins are far more effective than stuffy corporate meetings. They foster independence and allow them to speak about their lives, creating honesty and loyalty to the company.

3 – Surprise! Millennials like working with other Millennials – they thrive in an environment with like-minded people, and who better but other youths? With 200+ Facebook friends, they’d be happy to share your culture and hiring needs across their digital native database.

4 – One third want their questions answered in real-time – Updating your databases and intranet regularly will help them get on with the work now, not next week. Invest in some social tools as well like Slack or Zoho.

5 – Collaborating is a must – In a generation that loves building lasting relationships in every aspect of their lives, working alone isn’t effective all of the time, so promote group tasks.

6 – 68% of Millennials love to be publically rewarded – Recognition and value in a company is arguably more integral than their salary, they need validation even if it’s from the smallest of things.

7 – Financially savvy – This generation invest and save far more than their sister generations, the baby boomers and Gen X. So a good pension pack is key to keeping them.

8 – Ultimate flexibility – One of the biggest points to remember is flexibility, flexible work hours, work days and work locations. Allowing them to work from a coworking space in Budapest may be the best thing you ever did! There are companies that offer spaces worldwide, so give them the option of following their dreams while also sending those contracts.

9 – Techy is the future – Being ‘digital natives’ they rejoice when there’s a tech solution at their fingertips. Get future-proof, from your website design to essentials like Google Drive, Trello, or Signable.

10 – Personality is everything – Creating a positive environment with happy employees is what a manager strives for (we hope). So don’t just do it for the youngins, do it for everyone – you can thank us Millennials later.

About the author

Sophie Cook is the in-house writer and creator for the eSignature company Signable. She is a self-confessed workaholic Millennial and strives to break the ‘lazy’ youth stereotype.