Leadership transition: Challenges faced by millennial leaders in leading multigenerational employees at a service company in Surabaya

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to find out what challenges are faced by millennial leaders and the efforts made in carrying out their role as new company leaders, where the employees currently working at the company are multi-generational. Method: Qualitative study approach using a phenomenological approach. Result: Generational transition in a company where the gap between generations is quite large and causes internal conflict which has an impact on the company's internal condition. A leadership transition occurred in a service company in Surabaya where the previous leader was from the baby boomer generation who was then replaced by a leader from the millennial generation. Baby boomer leaders who have a command and control leadership style cause internal conflict which has an impact on low levels of engagement and several employees decide to resign from Company X due to differences in viewpoints between generations. Company X has multi-generational employees. The new leader of Company X, the millennial leader, must start leading the company under conditions that are far from ideal. However, the millennial leader succeeded in overcoming this problem and made Company X employees more productive and positive by adopting a transformational leadership style. Conclusion: The subject tends to apply a transformational and adaptive leadership style. Not only that, the main principle possessed by the participant, where the participant always tries to serve and help his team members well, makes him can be said to be a leader who has the servant leader type.