With all the talk about selling to millennials, and how the interpersonal dynamics are changing as salespeople engage with this rising generation of buyers, there is probably not enough attention being paid to the ways millennials are transforming sales teams themselves. 

As sales leaders, we need to stop talking (and thinking) about some strange, avocado toast-munching sub-culture that exists in Hoxton, Williamsburg and a few other trendy enclaves. Millennials today represent 46% of the global workforce. The oldest members of this demographic will celebrate their 39th birthdays this coming year. Millennials simply means professionals, including the key decision-makers for your team’s next few sales – and leading members of the team you depend on to close those deals.

Make no mistake, though: millennials have changed sales. Their mindset, mastery of technology, and mission to find information for themselves have huge implications for the buyer journey. Building a high-performing sales organisation for 2020 and beyond has to involve getting the most from the millennials in your team – and meeting the changing expectations of your millennial buyers.

That’s why we wanted to kick off the New Year with four ideas for managing and selling more effectively in a Millennial World:

Idea 1: Build the tech-enabled sales organisation that millennials expect

59% of millennials say that state-of-the-art technology is important to them when considering a job. That makes it difficult to build competitive sales teams and attract the best talent if your tech investment is lagging behind. LinkedIn’s VP Sales for Sales Solutions in EMEA and LATAM explains the impact that being tech-enabled can make:

Idea 2: Leverage millennials’ curious mindset

Millennials’ innate curiosity demands a different approach to management, explains Joe DeHaai, Business Development Leader and Consultant at RSM. Here’s how to leverage the mindset of a generation that have grown up with the idea of continuous change in their careers:

Idea 3: Encourage your generations to learn from one another

You’ll get more value from the millennials in your sales team if you can promote a two-way dialogue between these and other generations. More experienced sellers have much to share about the power of in-person and the dynamics of building stronger relationships. Millennials have a great deal to teach about how tech levels the playing field. Nichole Jordan, National Managing Partner of Markets, Clients & Industry at Grant Thornton LLP, explains:

Idea 4: Embrace new ideas

As Linda Brunner of Siemens Healthineers explains, it’s impossible to manage and motivate millennials without being open to fresh perspectives and new ways of doing things:

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a powerful tool for building the tech-driven, fast-moving sales environment that the most talented sales professionals in this generation expect.