How are creative leaders managing the growing sense of entitlement among juniors? We’ve done a good job of weeding out in the hiring process, but still have some problem areas.

The entitlement is mind boggling. Trying to produce for the inexperienced, unqualified but arrogant and entitled is like trying to keep a toddler from burning the house down and killing themselves. Ive never worked with the number of adult brats as I have the past 5yrs. Agencies seem to tolerate it because they are cheap. The result of them being prematurely promoted is they drive out all the competent A-level talent that are forced to work with them.

OP nailed it. IMO the entitlement we are seeing has less to do with age/generation and more to do with class. This industry used to be made up of working class and lower middle class talent but has shifted in the past 10yrs and is now increasingly become an industry of upper middle class and upper class graduates that can afford to take low paying internships and $40k/yr entry level jobs in NYC. So we are no longer getting the most talented just the most wealthy. With that wealth often comes entitlement and a lack of understanding that with every right comes a responsibility.

Still have problems with leaders too.

This is a tough one and I’ve been on both sides. I think my main frustration as a Jr/intermediate was the lack of acknowledgment for how hard I was working. I would kill myself on a project, not nail it because they were trying to squeeze Sr. Level work out of Jrs, and be treated like it was because I wasn’t committed or wasn’t trying hard enough. The CDs clearly assumed the worst of me and my “entitlement” when I was working 100 hour weeks and they treated me with obvious distain.

Now that I’m on the other side I struggle to remember how hard things are when you’re new to them and overwhelmed. It’s hard not to want to just take over and quickly do the work rather than do the harder work of guiding them through it.

And it’s hard to know where to draw the line. When to stop sympathizing with jr. creatives and when to realize they really are toxic and entitled.

I had a young male creative yell at me and bang his fists on the table aggressively when I was calmly giving him the same (clear) feedback for the fourth time that he had ignored. I’m a woman and this guy was known to have issues listening to women. I had been fighting behind the scenes to save his job because I recognized he was given work he couldn’t handle and was working very hard to try to keep up. But that was the last straw for me and he was let go soon after. I am fine with people showing emotion but not aggression and disrespect.

The unhealthy ageism doesn't help. It depends how you mean entitled because all the best talent your complaining about are going to startups.

Don’t hire millennials.

ACD OP, you were so close to fully listening to the junior. By the way, they are right. Enough with the time and place bull. Either you want to teach or you want to complain. Most want to complain. My boss does that to me now. From my point of view, unless you have a great manager, this problem never goes away. Managers think their employees are spoiled and employees think their managers are micromanaging assholes. If you can't talk to each other openly, forget it.

I would like to think of myself as someone who isn’t entitled.. but I don’t really know. And just saying that makes me seem like I am haha but I’m the type of person who would love to stay a junior forever to learn and grow from people around me. I’ve only been working for a year so I don’t feel like I’ve reached the point where I would be saying “I deserve to be a senior already and I deserve this much money because I’m so great” or whatever haha but one thing I do know is I don’t understand why other levels of leadership treat juniors the way they do. Instead of getting frustrated with the way they handle situation or work or their lack of knowledge and look down upon them, why not take them under your wing and truely teach them how to navigate day to day. For example, show them the shit you have to do on a daily basis. As you know when you move up the line the more problem solving and people skills become important. The biggest thing I’ve learned from my CD is how much they have to put out fires and their attitude about it. It’s not the art skills or how to use the programs because that will come with time and I will get faster the more I work on them. The most vital thing someone can teach me is how to treat others.. so take them and show them. Exposure is another thing, show them the production process take them to the frontlines of printing/editing bays etc. let them see the entire scope of ideas come to life. That is where I as a junior have learned the most by having people show me rather than just speak to me. Also I’m rambling now..but surround them with talented people. The more I’m around people who are faster, smarter, hard working people the more it pushes me to be better and realize I’m not quite at their level yet and for a good reason. Hope this helps!

Yes that makes sense but I think you’re looking at it in a negative light. It’s not that we feel we should be allowed to go on shoots and see production things, etc. Its the gesture of you letting us be a part of the process let’s us see the bigger picture and the reason behind why we need experience in order be at the next level. When I see all the work it takes to solve those fire drills and adapt to things I have yet to know how to solve it let’s me know that I’m not ready and therefore helps me be less entitled? If that makes sense. Maybe the first step is to stop comparing your experience as a junior to our experience and allow us to see behind the curtain so we can better understand how/why we are in different playing fields. Just a thought

I love my juniors. Their hungry, hard working and great to work with. Maybe it’s something else?

Honestly OP, change starts with your attitude (and it sounds like those juniors might not be the only entitled people lol). Definitely helps to weed out toads in the hiring process, but don’t forget to be a good leader. 🗣

It’s less about the school, more about their character traits. Driven people can come from many places.

I try to see the entitlement as gumption and assign something challenging, with a clear goal, and see how they do. Be an ally. Bold characters are good to have on your side.

I find this an increasingly difficult topic. As a millennial (early 20s), I have seen this behavior first hand. My parents worked their asses off for everything, my dad built a business from nothing. We just weren’t allowed to be entitled.

I’ve been fortunate enough to be relatively high in the ranks at a young age, without asking for a single raise or promotion. They came to me, said they appreciated me busting my ass, and promoted me. And even now, I’m not sitting here waiting around for the next one or counting down some invisible timeline to either get one or threaten to walk. I have great supervisors who are paying attention, teaching me, and making sure that, when earned, I get a pat on the back.

But it’s not why I do it. And I’ve seen other people my age exhibit these behaviors, but can we generalize an entire group of people like that? All millennials are entitled? Most millennials have crappy helicopter parents that made them entitled? I’m just not sure.

I’d like to point out that I never said the word millennial.

When I was coming up, I brought a dozen plus new ideas during every concepting round. I listened to the feedback from my CDs, asked questions, made a case for work I was passionate about, but ultimately left following their feedback. I did the same thing with my ECD and GCD today. I never expected to attend a production for something i didn’t sell through myself and never expected to shadow.

I’m just not seeing that same attitude from juniors today, and that’s the reality. I want to be a good leader moving forward, so the truth is I need to work with this new reality, which is why I asked the question.

Absolutely appreciate the input and feedback. It’s helpful and I’ll strive to be more empathetic in my approach. 🤘🙏🙌

Agree with John Hancock above. Had an intern who thought he was ready to lead digital strategy, so I gave him the framework for a deck and asked for a platform overview, audit and his insights. He struggled, and came away from the experience understanding where he’s lacking. Felt like his degree schooled him to stunts and marketing theory, but nothing about execution. That has its benefits because he had an idea for what might be cool, but needed perspective on how it’s presented, sold and actually executed. That comes with experience, and that’s what juniors need. It’s not the cure-all for entitlement but it’s effective in figuring out who really wants to work and grow. They’re often enamored with the job title and not the work.

We “Creative Leaders" says the person in senior management. 😂

This honestly goes both ways and it isn’t new whatsoever. What I’ve come across that’s more detrimental are leaders/upper management who lack basic management skills and who also completely ignore career growth opportunities for those young employees who will be shaping the future of the industry.

^^^^^^

I just give them really challenging assignments where if they do complete it in a more than satisfactory manner, then it’s obvious they should be promoted. If they fail, hopefully they have the self awareness to see where they can make improvements.

@VP1 so here’s my conundrum. Any time a really challenging project comes in, I still have to provide that tutoring and mentoring. I pioneered a few techniques for the company, so I can’t exactly afford to let them flounder or fail, as it’s always tight deadlines, so I tend to give them very clear direction and it’s continuous feedback. That doesn’t make them realize the complexities and ways of thinking. If they fail certain portions, I need them to re-do it which we don’t have time and resources for.

Any other ideas how to make that come to life?