I recently read this article by Dan Schwabel. He is the founder of Millennial Branding, a Gen-Y research and management consulting firm. Dan’s research and predictions about the Millennials are changing the workplace can also be applied to the church. Using his predictions, here are some ways that Millennials will change the church in the future.
- Millennials will force churches to be transparent. Authenticity is a high value for Millennials. There is a need for honesty in all activities. If a church asks for money, then describe the needs. If someone leaves the staff or community, then tell them the reasons why. Attempts to cover-up the truth display inauthenticity, and will cause Millennials to flee.
- Millennials will choose meaningful work above everything else. Allow Millennials to do meaningful work. They don’t want to be relegated to tasks because they are young. Find out what they love to do, and remove the roadblocks. Don’t make them fit into your pre-planned program. Listen to who they are before you ask them to volunteer.
- Millennials will build a collaborative church. I think that this has ramifications for how a church does small groups. Some groups connect better through collaboration, and sharing a common project. Churches need to move beyond small groups simply doing “Bible Study.”
- Millennials will make worshipping from home the norm. Millennials will continue to attend church, but they will also want to watch on-line when they are not available. Many millennials have jobs that force them to work weekends; therefore a church that wants to appeal to this demographic must have a variety of attendance options, including on-line services.
- Millennials will recruit based on results over degrees. They have been told since they entered education that they had to have a degree. They have seen the positive and negatives of education, and realize that often education is just a useless gate that keeps capable people from work and leadership. Millennials will look beyond the degree.
- Millennials will change the meaning of “face-time”. Virtual church was once mocked by the Christian community as being unrealistic, and not real church. Innovations in technology have made it a reality. Although I believe in the importance of human-interaction, technology is changing how this is accomplished.
- Millennials will encourage generosity and community support. A church that wants to engage EA’s will go to the community rather than ask the community to come to them. Emerging adults are very generous when it comes to the greater community. They are not usually interested in supporting a larger church staff or programming.
- Millennials will eliminate the annual performance review. Churches don’t do annual reviews, but Millennials want their voice to be heard in the direction of the church. A church will attract EA’s when they ask them questions and respond to their answers.
- Millennials will turn work into a game instead of a chore. The Gaming Industry is huge. Instead of mocking gamers as immature men and women, a church should engage gamers by building community around them. The church has embraced men’s sports activities for years, so why do churches frown upon one leisure activity, and yet spend money on the other?
- Millennials will level corporate hierarchies. Already many churches are dropping the title “Senior” Pastor, and instead turning to “Lead” Pastor. However, the changes have yet to begin. Hierarchies will disappear within the church (especially those dominated by rich, male babyboomers). This will only be done by conscious deliberate action.
I welcome the changes – as part of God’s refining process to the Bride of Christ, and the furtherance of His Kingdom.
