One focus of our research program is understanding the way companies are planning for and responding to Millennials entering the workforce—and identifying gaps in thinking between Millennial employees and executives.

In November 2013, SAP co-CEO Bill McDermott gave a keynote speech on the Millennial workforce at the Northern Virginia Technology Council.  As reported in this post from Lindsey LaManna, McDermott explored some shared characteristics of Millennials—including their focus on digital technology and desire for meaningful careers— and outlined the ways companies can create a culture that appeals to them.

As proven by the wealth of articles arguing over what Millennials really want and how they compare to generations that preceded them, assessing the characteristics and capabilities of an entire generation is no simple task. But as difficult as it is for companies to plan for these new employees, they are already thinking about Post-Millennials—those born around the late 1990s and early 2000s. It’s nearly impossible to assign characteristics to a generation of which the oldest members are currently only 14, but companies are beginning to speculate on what will matter to this group when they enter the workforce, and how they will contribute.