Break rooms outfitted with video games. Unlimited cafeteria food. Onsite dry cleaning. These trendy perks aren’t something you’d find inside of a truck cab. With Technology startups, engineering firms and financial planning companies clamoring for millennial workers, how can the transportation industry attract the next wave of drivers?

A recent study conducted by Aon Hewitt found 43 perfect of Millennials plan to look for a job in 2015. With the American Trucking Association reporting a shortage of around 25,000 drivers, it’s important to home in on what young workers want early in their careers—and bait the recruiting hook with what matters most.

1. Technology in the workplace. Having grown up with technology in every aspect of their lives, millennials crave access to techie tools that make their jobs better and easier. During the interview process, emphasize any innovations in safety systems, upgraded cab comforts, or telematics to feed into the millennial mindset. As social media natives, mobile communication tools and staying seamlessly connected to the company and other drivers is also key.
2. Work-life balance. Survey after survey tells us a healthy work-life balance is the defining factor in job satisfaction for millennials, but that’s a challenge, especially for the trucking industry. Flexibility in scheduling time off and wellness programs can help turn the focus to caring for drivers’ mental and physical health, and could, in turn, lead to improved performance.
3. Opportunity for development. In industries where Baby Boomers have set the tenured standard of climbing a corporate ladder, millennials put more importance on ways to develop and be fulfilled on a personal level. According to Deloitte’s 2015 Millennial Survey, six out of 10 millennials say a sense of purpose is one of the reasons they chose to work with their current employer, and only 28 percent of millennials feel their current organization is making full use of their skills. If there’s an investment in programs for recognition, and clear performance-based career progression, chances are millennials will opt-in to your culture.

In FleetOwner.com, manager-operations for Fleet Advantage Sandy Rosenfeld says of millennials, “We need to make them understand you’ve got the latest equipment, the latest technology, and that you care.”

When rethinking ways to appeal to millennials, you may just convince a few to look at the trucking industry differently. It takes time to develop the instincts that make a true pro, but technology will be the table stakes for attracting millennial drivers.

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