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Millennials Wanted: Attracting the Next Generation

As a recent PEW Research Center study showed, one in three American workers today are millennials. With that many millennials in the workforce, Whiteash’s philosophy is to adapt her recruiting tactics to engage them, and try to attract them to elements of the LBM industry that naturally appeal to their tendencies.

“We used to discount their input because they don’t have the legacy in the industry, but we’re in a different environment now,” Whiteash said. “We have different tools and different needs and we need to embrace that.”

Whiteash said that US LBM looks foremost for recruits who are innovative thinkers, who embrace change and who want to help change the industry for the good. “A lot of what millennials say they want—to be engaged, make a difference, be involved in projects—we should embrace that,” she said. “We should allow them to come in and do those things.”

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New Ballgame
As the millennial generation will make up 46% of the workforce by 2020, LBM dealers hesitant to hand roles off to millennials may fall behind. When placing candidates for roles within the industry, Misura said that millennials often have skills that more than make up for what they might lack in specific industry experience.

In fact, there have been enough changes in the industry in recent years that as companies are investing in new technologies and processes as the economy improves, often times millennials can catch on just as quickly as the experienced lumberman. “My rule is this: Whatever you did prior to 2007 doesn’t count,” Misura said. “It’s a completely new ballgame.”

Brandon Natale, vice president of purchasing at J.P. Hart Lumber in San Antonio has put his millennial upbringing to good use in the LBM industry, but he understands why some millennials have received a bad reputation. Formerly with ProBuild, then placed by Misura at J.P. Hart, Natale has been in the business since 2004.

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Natale has been able to leverage his experience in technology and proficiency with computers and various applications to look for efficiencies in the way things were being done. He has helped others avoid repeating processes and has been able to expedite work.

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