MANAGING CHINA’S MILLENNIALS: CONSIDERATIONS FOR MULTINATIONALS

Morris A. Shapero Eckerd College

ABSTRACT

To work effectively with young, educated Chinese professionals, Western managers need to develop greater understanding of current culture and values. In 2012, twenty-five Eckerd College students examined earlier field research of Serrie (1999) and Morris Shapero (2010) and the six principles of traditional Chinese culture. Groups were formed with each assigned one principle and asked to formulate questions and topics to as the basis of discussions with managers in China. Upon completing the project, students submitted papers on the assigned principle, either supporting or challenging the previous research. Eckerd students found that Millennials (born 1982-2000) in China have similar values as their counterparts around the world. This generation knows no political boundaries. These children born under China’s one-child policy of the late 1970s now comprise a large segment of the global workforce of multinational corporations in China. These professionals are recruited and selected by the multinational businesses pouring direct investments into China today. These global firms desire, recruit, and select talent based on values that include empowerment, creativity, and soft/people skills; these tools allow this generation of managers to work successfully with others to reach organizational goals.