Training Millennials: a practical and theoretical approach

Purpose - For student reference supervisors and trainers, it is crucial to understand the characteristics of the millennial worker and how we can effectively train student reference employees in virtual reference. The purpose of this paper is to present best practices for training the millennial generation of reference workers on virtual reference. Design/methodology/approach - This paper is a combination of a case study and theoretical approach including a literature review of "computer mediated communication" (CMC) theory as well as Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) best practices. This paper describes the creation of a training manual for the millennial student who works in reference and are the primary respondents to instant messaging. Findings - This project describes why it is necessary to train millennial student reference employees differently than librarians or paraprofessionals when dealing with virtual reference. Practical implications - This paper presents practical training techniques that are grounded in two major communication theories: politeness theory and CMC theory and applies these theories to the practical training of the millennial student. Social implications - The library atmosphere is a very social one with several different types of communication methods. Many academic libraries use student employees to staff some of the high traffic public service points. In order to better treat our patrons and maintain a professional atmosphere, it is critical that we train students to leave behind their student mentality when working and to become more professional. It is a question of re-conditioning the student employee from their more comfortable social methods of communication to that of what patrons expect. Originality/value - This paper presents the benefits of having a specific training approach when supervising the millennial student reference worker, particularly when it comes to training for instant messaging/chat reference services.