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her responsibilities grew to where she makes the decisions on all things social media," he said. "In a large company, that probably wouldn't have been a possibility. That's what operators need to focus on when trying to recruit Mil- lennials — advertising opportunities for growth will be a great selling point." McCall says each new hire/intern gets a few weeks of training, goes on a route and then is given responsibility almost immediately. The opportunity for growth and responsibility is one main reason Morales of 365 Retail Markets joined the industry a year ago. "I saw the potential for growth in the industry and recognized that 365 would not only give me the proper training but let me run with ideas, too." "Millennials support collabora- tion," said McCall. "They are results based and it's important for them to see and know that the work they are doing matters." Work-life balance remains a draw Another important aspect about get- ting to know the Millennial workforce is recognizing their need for work-life balance. "This means that companies may need to offer fexibility outside of the 'traditional' 9 to 5 work sched- ule," said Joe Hessling, CEO of 365 Retail Markets. Hessling notes that his employees aren't held to a strict sched- ule. "They are expected to do work and be professional but the who, when and where is up to the employee." Giving the Millennial workforce the freedom to have a work-life balance can help retain top performing employ- ees. Millennials tend to be very loyal to companies able to meet this need. Allahyar-Steiner acknowledges that Millennials have changed the workplace dynamic and will continue to do so; it's important that operators foster an environment where the employees want to come to work. "Make your company attractive by having fun with it," she said. A healthy and energetic work environment is the real draw for Mil- lennials, said Hessling. The company offers incentives for their employees to engage and participate at work; for example, at the company's holiday party in December, employees were prompted to either write a blog post or karaoke for their chance to win a trip to NAMA's Executive Forum held in California in February. Hessling does warn, however, that in some instances Millennials may think they know more than they do, so employers need to work with and be able to respond by expanding that mindset. Overall, employers should be mindful of the new workforce and their expectations. "Their work has to be both fun and meaningful," he said. "They want to be able to answer 'does what I do matter' and if they can say 'yes' then retaining them won't be too much of a problem." New ideas to a traditional practice With the economy on the upswing, McCall of Five Star notes that it has recently been harder to gain the atten- tion of young professionals than it was just a few years ago, but the company will continue to adjust its message to attract students to the vending indus- try. "We changed our marketing and are positioning ourselves as a retail company," he said. "We want to be able to hire and train the next genera- tion of employees to take over once we in mid and senior level management retire in the next 10 to 15 years." Every operator and industry player has the opportunity to inte- grate younger professionals into their company, and should make a point to do so (see Tips To Attracting & Retaining Millennials). Millennials can bring a fresh perspective and new ideas to a service with long standing and established practices, said Hessling. Millennials bring new energy and technology know-how to the vending industry. They are an important part of today's workforce and will keep our industry successful for decades to come. Emerging Leaders Network (ELN) When NAMA created the Emerging Leaders Network in 2013, it encour- aged young industry professionals to have a voice in the industry, advance in their careers and make a difference in the association and the future. "I believe that this group is trying to foster the same type of strategy of training the next generation, to ensure that the vending industry has a pool of leaders to draw from in the future," said Greg McCall, senior vice president of Five Star Food Service. "It's a great opportunity for young professionals/Millennials in the industry. In fact, our senior marketing manager was just named to this program's board and we are proud to support his involvement." ELN Vice Chair Allahyar-Steiner believes the group has helped younger professionals gain their confdence and voice in the industry. One of the challenges coming right out of college and entering the industry, said Allahyar-Steiner, was gaining connections in a relationship-driven industry. "There are a lot of people who have been in it for decades and are all friends and who have experience in the industry together. As a new person you can't compete with that, and it was hard to fnd credibility at frst." The ELN has connected many young professionals from different facets and industry roles. "Involvement in the ELN also shows that we are interested in helping to move the industry forward." 22 Automatic Merchandiser VendingMarketWatch.com April 2016 W O R K F O R C E T R E N D S