There is a growing focus on the importance of millennials in the workforce and how their generation thinks differently, has different expectations and what they are looking for in terms of their jobs and their careers.

Looking at the mindset of the millennial was also one of the topics that was covered during an educational session at the recent Worldwide ERC National Relocation Conference in San Diego.

Millennials are described as those born between 1982 and 2001. They are also referred to as Gen Y.

From a hiring and retention perspective, companies are striving to understand the things that are important to millennials as differentiated from other generations of workers.

The employment benefits that attract baby boomers and Generation X employees are not the same as those that tend to attract millennials. As such, many companies are making changes in their policies and HR benefits to better reflect the wants and needs of this growing population of the workforce.

Holly Clontz, relocation generalist for Ingersol Rand and one of the panelists of the conference session, pointed out that millennials are quickly replacing baby boomers in the workforce. As a result, millennials are driving changes in workforce culture, employment benefits, working environments, employee expectations and relocation policies.

Clontz says that millennials favor going on international assignments.

"Depending on what survey you read, it's anywhere from 70 to 90 percent of the millennials that feel like an international assignment is necessary to further their career," she said. She added that "71 percent say they expect an overseas assignment, and there's really an eagerness to travel in this group, so employers should really use this to their advantage."

It is also important for the different generations represented in the workforce to be able to work together and communicate with each other in a way that is effective and appropriate for companies and organizations.

Clontz points out that millennials grew up with technology, mass connectivity, social media and widespread e-commerce, and that they expect to use technology in their jobs. They also want to be engaged and stay connected.

Some of the typical characteristics of millennials, according to Clontz, are confidence, self-expressive, liberal, upbeat, receptive to new ideas and ways of living, and they place a high value on work/life balance.

Clontz said millennials typically want transparency, to be informed, and want a clearly defined career path.

In terms of relocation, they want to know where they are in the relocation process at all times.

Clontz said that financial reward isn't necessarily their primary consideration and they typically look for a company they feel closely aligns with their own behavior and values.

Rob Johnson, senior vice president of Client Services for Altair Global Relocation, was also a session panelist. He said that millennials tend to be renters as opposed to homeowners, and single rather than married.

There is a heightened awareness surrounding employee retention issues, given the fact that millennials don't tend to stay in a job or at a company as long as previous generations of people, who might stay at the same company for 20 or more years.

Johnson said that the key for the corporations when writing policies is to remember that flexibility is important to millennials, as well as the ability to access information through the use of technology.

"Access to information, I think, is the biggest change that we are seeing in terms of relocation," he said.

From a U.S. domestic relocation perspective, Johnson said that millennials are not necessarily looking for a full relocation package. They are looking for flexibility and looking to get to the new location. As far as international relocation is concerned, Johnson said, "They aren't necessarily looking for a full expat package. They see it more as a rite of passage in their career."

There is much to know and understand in terms of relocation policies and benefits. For example, if not correctly explained, the millennial may mistake lump sums for signing bonuses, instead of a relocation benefit intended to reimburse the employee for relocation expenses. Johnson said that the job of HR, the hiring manager and the relocation company is to set expectations and fully explain such benefits.

