My Open Letter to Gen Xers and Baby Boomers generated a lot of great discussion. There was some predictable pushback on the idea that Gen Ys/Millennials are as different as I suggested, as well as a lot of support for the idea that it’s time to stop ignoring the problem and face it head on.

This week’s post tackles how to adapt your career and your company so you can succeed in a Millennial world. We’ve spent time with a lot of experts on the topic, from Karie Willyerd to Tammy Erikson to Don Tapscott to Karyn Gordon (and everyone in-between). This is adapted from their thoughts and writings.

A quick recap of the numbers:

So, Boomers and Gen Xers: the time to adapt is now, if you want to win. Here are 3 things you should do today.

1. Make feedback constant

If you do nothing else, do this. The most consistent and important thing we’ve heard from Gen Ys directly (and we have a bunch of them working with us!), and from the experts we’ve spoken to: Millennials need feedback. In a study of 2,200 professionals, Karie Willyerd and Jeanne Meister found that: “The Millennials, we saw, did want a constant stream of feedback.”

Try microfeedback: quick, brief, focused feedback that satisfies this immediate need for continuous learning, growth and gratification. Here’s a great example of how Camilion Solutions does it: “For instance, after an all-hands meeting, an employee could send requests for feedback to five people. “Was it relevant?” they might ask. “Did it cover the content you needed?”

2. Embrace Meritocracy

That’s what HubSpot does. According to CEO Brian Halligan, there has never been an official org chart at HubSpot because rigid hierarchies optimize around collecting people to manage. HubSpot has a big whiteboard that tracks people’s ‘official’ reporting relationships in black lines and your ‘unofficial’ influence lines in blue. The most successful people at HubSpot have the most blue lines.

What matters is what you do, not your title. People collaborate based on shared interests and projects and they work faster than ever. Hierarchies and organizational politics get in the way. To adapt effectively, you need to leave your perception of yourself at the door and realize there’s an opportunity to learn from Millennials too. Watch how they work and participate. Once you open yourself to the fact that this is a tw0-way street, you’re setting yourself up for serious success.

3. Embrace technology

Start by embracing the social stuff. Stop ignoring those LinkedIn and Facebook invitations.

I know you’re busy but believe it or not recognition by email can be just as valuable as a pat on the back. Millennials are used to it – they know virtual rewards. These days lots of people are bringing technologies to work anyway: they publish their info on LinkedIn, collaborate with Google Docs and Basecamp, participate in online communities like Brazen Careerist, organize their email with Xobni, stay organized with Evernote, share big files via YouSendIt, and share their ideas and experiences on Slideshare, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube.

Check out Yammer and Jive which are two awesome technologies to help you and your team collaborate. But beware: they make things more ad hoc and fluid – ideas, decisions and support flow freely and are not mandated top-down. That’s OK.

So there you have it Boomers and my fellow Gen X’ers: 3 quick ways to adapt yourself to the new era of work.

Generational categorizations and generalizations aside, the key here really is to simply be aware that we’re all motivated by different things and have different learning styles. Work is changing too. Being aware of all this is a start.

There’s light at the end of the tunnel but only if you’re on the train.

Looking for more? Here’s a great summary from Karie Willyerd and Jeanne Meister’s recent HBR article:

Photo of Opportunity by MVI. Licensed under CC.