Today, Millennials are one of the largest and most powerful marketing groups in existence.

In addition to making up 40% of workers in the U.S., Millennials are also the most diverse generation in the current U.S. population.

Millennials currently wield a significant weight in the workforce. Moreover, they’re projected to make up 75% of it by 2025, and they’re changing the face of the traditional office as they take over. While generations before them adapted to their workspaces as they existed, millennials expect their workspace to adjust to them. And thanks to the sheer size and power of the generation at hand, these spaces are being forced to do just that.

Who Is The Millennial Generation?

The Millennial generation is commonly defined as the group of Americans born between the years 1980 and the mid-2000s.

They currently represent more than a third of the U.S. population and are the first generation in history to have had ample access to technology and the internet during their coming-of-age.

In addition to being tech-natives, Millennials are also the generation that came of age during a recession. This financial disaster led to many millennials struggling to locate jobs. The economic climate has shaped their views about the labor market and the nature of work according to the uncertainty they saw around them.

What Millennials Want From The Modern Office Space

While Millennials may work in some of the same industries as the generations before them, the things they want from their workspaces are entirely different. Here are a few of the main preferences of the Millennial generation:

• Open-concept spaces that encourage healthy competition. While Millennials are often regarded as being collaboration-focused (and they are), Cushman & Wakefield reports that they also want a healthy level of competition. This is encouraged through open-concept workspaces that allow the team to see and communicate with one another freely. Despite the fact that many Millennials enjoy this work environment, 50% of Millennials working in an open-concept environment complain about the noise. This presents yet another challenge for employers and office designers.
• Alternative work areas. Instead of a stuffy cubical or a dim office, Millennials want alternative work environments that offer them a variety of options for productivity. Favorite spaces include cafes, community workstations, and standing desks.
• Healthy food options in the workspace. Millennials expect their workspace to feel like a home or a community rather than just an office. Because of this, the demand for healthy food options in the workspace has increased in recent years.
• Collaborative sections of the office. Millennials aren’t altogether interested in board rooms. Instead, they want comfortable environments for spontaneous collaboration, such as lounge areas and outdoor spaces.

As you can see, these requirements aren’t in-line with what many standard offices currently offer. As a result, retail and office spaces around the country are being forced to re-think their construction plans. Many are pivoting in favor of more modern and Millennial-friendly spaces.

Nationwide Construction: Your Source For All Commercial Design & Construction Services

While the office of the future continues to evolve, Nationwide Construction is the ideal partner to help you adapt accordingly.

Whether you’re trying to attract Millennial workers to your office or encourage the ones you already have to stay, our team can work with you to create an award-winning commercial design that will fulfill the needs of your company and your modern workforce.

Contact us today to enquire about a new project, or to start your free design today!