Telematics and Informatics 35 (2018) 954–963

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Telematics and Informatics

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/tele

The social impact of technology on millennials and consequences

T
for higher education and leadership
⁎
Manuel Au-Yong-Oliveiraa, Ramiro Gonçalvesb, , José Martinsb, Frederico Brancob
a
GOVCOPP, Department of Economics, Management, Industrial Engineering and Tourism, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
b
INESC TEC and University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal

AR TI CLE I NF O AB S T R A CT

Keywords: Millennials interact with technology like no other generation before them and this is affecting
Leadership how they want to be taught in higher education and how they want to lead and expect to be led in
Higher education organizations, after graduating. Though stating that they want to be enlightened in academia,
Information technology some qualitative comments from millennials indicate the opposite, namely that they want to be
Romanticism
prepared but also to be kept naïve as to what business really entails. This is expected to help keep
Enlightenment
Millennials
motivation levels high, as motivation is seen to be the key element to success in life. Millennials
Success expect also to be led authentically and to be treated as valued human beings. This is in contrast to
the current autocratic leadership profile found predominantly in Portuguese organizations, at the
time of writing. This study had a sample of one hundred and eleven millennial students who
answered a survey on attitudes towards leadership and their desired approach to higher edu-
cation. Three interviews with seasoned executives were also performed, to establish a contrast
and see other perspectives.
With this research, we conclude that we may be in the presence of a hard working millennial
generation, contrary to previous research findings which has indicated that they are lazy. Finally,
information technology (IT) is a precious partner in class, in particular Padlet.com, Moodle, and
online News Forums, as well as the challenge to create original videos about course content.
Future research should focus on how technology has made society more transparent with em-
ployees wanting more democratic leaders in times when hierarchies are seen to hinder rather
than aid productivity levels.

1. Introduction

The invention, discovery, and widespread adoption of the Internet brought about profound change in society (Martins et al.,
2016). People in different continents became, practically overnight, just a click away from continuous and economical commu-
nication. Though some countries do still have room to improve, as concerns their access to the Internet, for example in Africa,
advances in technology have permitted ever newer software and applications to revolutionize the aforementioned relationships.
Using technology in class is seen to be essential in getting messages across to students. Millennials are at home with technology
and disregarding this preference is not advisable. Lecturers compete for students’ attention with Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat,
WhatsApp, Twitter, and other online platforms, and so need to entice them into the academic discussion by using the same digital-
based tools.
Online social networks, such as the most successful case, in 2017, Facebook (founded in 2004, and with close to two billion users

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: mao@ua.pt (M. Au-Yong-Oliveira), ramiro@utad.pt (R. Gonçalves), jmartins@utad.pt (J. Martins), fbranco@utad.pt (F. Branco).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tele.2017.10.007
Received 31 May 2017; Received in revised form 1 October 2017; Accepted 14 October 2017
Available online 17 October 2017
0736-5853/ © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
M. Au-Yong-Oliveira et al. Telematics and Informatics 35 (2018) 954–963

in 2017), brought a new reality and form of interaction. The pace of change has not slowed down and other online networks have
appeared – two of which the giant Facebook acquired – Instagram (acquired in 2012, for 1 billion USD) and WhatsApp (acquired in
2014, for approximately 19 billion USD) – which threatened the very core of Facebook with their new approaches to mobile com-
munication. A relatively small amount of companies has dictated and led change in society, including Apple, which launched its
iPhone 1 in 2007 (the iPhone 7 version was launched in 2016). This new product launch dictated a new era – that of the smartphone –
which endures into 2017. Apple has revolutionized a number of industries, including the online music industry, with iTunes; it also
reinvented the tablet industry with its famous iPad, now available in a variety of formats. Its line of Macintosh personal computers is
also tremendously popular. The more recent Apple iWatch is gaining in popularity though its future remains uncertain, as to its sales
on a large scale.
So, in the new mobile and connected world technology has dictated how we communicate, socialize, and in many cases how we
learn and evolve as human beings, in particular the younger generation, or the so-called millennials (Gonçalves et al., 2016; Moreira
et al., 2016). This younger adult generation is of interest, for example, to marketing professionals who want to know what the future
holds for us, and how consumption will possibly change, over the next ten years or so, as this group gains in purchasing power
(Lantos, 2014). This younger group is “currently the youngest generation of independent consumers […] born in or after 1982 […]
comfortable with disrupting the norm. Being the first generation to have grown up in the era of ‘internet everywhere’, millennials are highly
connected, technologically advanced and globally conscious and far more open to trying out new products and concepts than their parents or
grandparents ever were.” (Jordan, 2016). This orientation leads to a welcomed use of information technology (IT) in class, for better
knowledge management – using, for instance, Padlet.com (a digital wall, for collaboration and knowledge sharing in class), Moodle
(for the posting of class content and material), and the available online News Forum (to challenge students and give them home-
work). By resorting to technology, distance learning is possible, and students’ attention is better captured in class (Fonseca et al.,
2014). Furthermore, by requiring that students deliver professionally edited videos as course assignments, interest is heightened and
the challenge embraced.
According to Safer (2008), “the workplace has become a psychological battlefield and the millennials have the upper hand,
because they are tech savvy, with every gadget imaginable almost becoming an extension of their bodies. They multitask, talk, walk,
listen and type, and text. And their priorities are simple: they come first.” Knowing that millennials communicate in different ways
(using the Internet and online social media and networks), have different opinion leaders (popular bloggers, or people like them, not
necessarily rich and famous people), and tend to read less text while focusing more on images, photos and videos, in the age of
YouTube (Au-Yong-Oliveira et al., 2015), how should we teach them in the classroom? Furthermore, and drawing on Barbuto and
Gottfredson (2016), after graduating, how do millennials want to lead and be led? This article seeks to shed light on these issues and
to contribute to the literature on the subject.

2. A Look at the literature – Setting the scene

Times have changed, in large part due to new technologies which have appeared, changing how we relate to each other and
communicate. This has changed how the most recent generation to enter the job market – the millennials – wants to be treated while
at work, as compared to the baby boomers who are now exiting the job market (Downing, 2006). What distinguishes the millennial
generation from other generations in the workplace is how they are “enthusiastic about technological advances” (Eastman et al.,
2014).
Not much research has been performed about how to teach millennials, what they expect from higher education, and what they
think of leadership and ingredients to success (Barron and Novak, 2017; Lourenco and Cronan, 2017; McGlynn, 2005). On the other
hand, this is an important group to study, as literature considers them the generation who poses more “they are the most threatening
and exciting generation since the baby boomers brought about social revolution […]. The Industrial Revolution made individuals far more
powerful – they could move to a city, start a business, read and form organizations. The information revolution has further empowered
individuals by handing them the technology to compete against huge organizations: hackers vs. corporations, bloggers vs. newspapers, terrorists
vs. nation-states, YouTube directors vs. studios, app-makers vs. entire industries. Millennials don’t need us. That’s why we’re scared of them.”
(Stein, 2013). It is in this context that using technology in class is so successful (with tools such as Google searches in class, plus the
viewing of videos, and the use of online digital walls on which to register students’ contributions – such as with Padlet.com).
A number of research studies have dedicated time and resources to the analysis of millennials at work, albeit not many have
focused on how they want to be led and how they want to follow (Chou, 2012). On a positive note, millennials are good team players,
they have the desire to have a good impact on their organizations, they prefer to communicate openly and frequently with their
superiors, while being at ease with new ways of communicating with technology (Myers and Sadaghiani, 2010). The opposite side of
the coin shows millennials as being selfish, lazy and lacking motivation, while revealing themselves to also be disrespectful and
lacking in loyalty (Myers and Sadaghiani, 2010).
According to Goodman (Goodman et al., 2015), despite millennials in the USA having superior education levels as compared to
previous generations, they have less competences, when compared to other countries (literacy and when dealing with numbers) as
well as less capacity to solve problems in rich technological environments. Italy and Spain are the countries with the worst results in
the aforementioned ranking. Of note is that Portugal was not included in this study.
Despite millennials having grown up with information and communication technologies, and them being natural users of these,
they lack soft skills to be used in numerous situations. Organizational development programs should emphasize, in a creative way,
soft skills development, speaking in the same language as this generation. Only thus will there be effective learning. Mentors,
bridging gaps between trainers and employees in organizations, are a viable approach. However, virtual technological environments

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will have to be created where employees may pose questions and ask for advice – answers in turn being provided by those who have
the specific necessary knowledge, encouraging the interchange of ideas and permanent online sharing (Gibson and Sodeman, 2014).
From an economistic point of view, organizations must understand how different generations interact at work. Transitions occur,
and not necessarily abruptly, actually being more gradual. At a given point in time firms must adjust profiles for job offers so as to not
exclude valid and desirable (e.g. talented) candidates. Currently sufficient evidence is still lacking between this generation and
previous generations as regards different life cycle stages and what they involve (Levenson, 2010).
How are we training and developing our students [mostly currently millennials] in higher education? How candid should we be
about what awaits them in the marketplace? Should we try and maintain a certain naivety for as long as possible, and postpone the
harsh reality of professional markets? Or should we, in alternative, supply information about the “real world”? In business, in
particular, the aim is to take market share away from competitors, and this may even mean sending competitors out of business –
much as Apple’s iPhone success spelled disaster for Nokia and BlackBerry, market leaders in the cell phone market before the first
iPhone [smartphone] was launched, in 2007. Do students want to be made very aware of this reality?
A lot has been written on emotional intelligence, which includes the concept of motivation: “abilities such as being able to
motivate oneself and persist in the face of frustrations; to control impulse and delay gratification; to regulate one’s moods and keep
distress from swamping the ability to think; to empathize and to hope” (Goleman, 1995). The importance of these themes is un-
deniable. (Caruso and Salovey, 2004) also contend that “successfully managing emotions means that our conduct is guided by both
our thought and our feelings […] decision making cannot succeed in the absence of emotion”. This is very relevant, the emphasis on
emotions, but perhaps it is still not tackled as it should be, in academia, though studies and courses on the development of soft skills
do now abound. (Gardner, 2006a), on the other hand, is very direct in stating that “for the most part, education has been quite
conservative.” (Gardner, 2006b) continues, “I discern two legitimate reasons for undertaking new educational practices. The first
reason is that current practices are not actually working […]. The second reason is that conditions in the world are changing
significantly. Consequent upon these changes, certain goals, capacities, and practices might no longer be indicated, or might even
come to be seen as counterproductive”. In the age of Google, for example, online access in class means that Google queries should be
used quite often, as students can relate to these, more so than reading from a textbook, with an excess of text.
Competition is at its highest, in many industries, and though we may accept that competition has always existed, the Internet and
connectedness between consumers and firms has seen a surge in rivalry in a number of sectors. What used to hold true as being
acceptable has changed and firms are willing to make new rules of competition which students should be aware of – before going into
“battle”. However, the battle for students’ attention also warrants new approaches in class.
A lot has been written about how leaders must communicate, for example. How much do leaders really communicate though? At
Apple, currently one of the most valuable brands worldwide, renowned for its innovation, communication is kept to a minimum, on a
“need-to-know” basis (Oliveira and Moreira, 2015). This is not, however, what we are teaching young graduates, who oftentimes
come to work, for the first time, expecting training and aid in their tasks, only to become disillusioned soon after, when they realize
the drudgery of their daily work routines, with an almost total absence of “virtuous leadership” (Oliveira et al., 2013), in some
environments.
In relationship-oriented cultures, such as Portugal, where there is less evidence of a meritocracy and where loyal relationships will
dictate business deals and promotions, a contrast or even shock will exist as the market rewards the most efficient and effective
enterprises. The approach to technology, in the classroom and in firms, will also need to change even more. Machiavelli, a number of
centuries ago, wrote a treatise about what human nature is really about, and how princes should, in view of this, govern their nations
(Machiavelli, 1994). What we can say about human nature since that treatise is that, since then, there has been a tremendous turn
towards technology which has affected how human beings view and act in society and which this article attempts to shed light on.
The article seeks to contribute to the discussion of approaches to higher education. Should education be more inclined to en-
lighten, or more inclined to romanticize? If one should choose to follow the former, perhaps more efficient and effective managers
and leaders might result (with consequences for improved quality of life ensuing). On the other hand, if the latter is followed, perhaps
the workplace may become more humane – and we all know that this is of paramount importance. Romanticizing means to “make
(something) seem better or more appealing than it really is” (Press, 2016b). Enlightening, on the other hand, means to “give
(someone) greater knowledge and understanding about a subject or situation” (Press, 2016c). Should lecturers enlighten or ro-
manticize, in practical degrees such as management, industrial engineering and management, and tourism, and relative to the
material covered? All of these professions involve, for the most part, working in companies, surrounded by colleagues, serving
customers, and competing with rivals. Should students be told candidly – meaning truthfully and straightforwardly (Press, 2016a) –
how is the real world? Or should academics romanticize?
On the other hand, if the predominant leadership philosophy – leaders supposedly lead organizations in the right direction,
towards its objectives (Teixeira, 2013) – in Portugal, is autocratic – whereby a leader communicates to his or her employees what
they have to do and expects to be obeyed, free of issues and problems (Teixeira, 2013) – what should be taught at university? How
relevant is teaching about authentic leadership – or charismatic, transformational leadership, whereby the leader is extraordinary,
heroic even (Hoppe and Bhagat, 2012) – if one will work, in all probability, in an autocratic-type enterprise?
Intuition and “gut feel” can be as important or more important than formal planning (Isaacson, 2011). But how do you teach that?
Are there courses in higher education on how to improve your intuition? On how to improve your common sense (which may not be
so common)? Being born with certain traits, such as being more reflective before acting, will be important. Perhaps formal education
can only, to a degree, improve performance. However, being aware of what is necessary, through academic internships at firms, and
through being involved in firm decision-making, early on in one’s career, is a growing trend in education, and may have an impact.
Academia is an industry and it will need to adapt in order to keep its stakeholders happy. This may mean that success in academia

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will be linked to the employability of its members after completing courses (this is, indeed, already a metric sought out, by un-
dergraduate and graduate students alike, around the world). This brings us back to the efficiency and effectiveness issue. Do we not
need to prepare our wards for that which they will encounter?
Colleagues in companies withhold information from each other, to attain positions of power. In the workplace corridors are where
a number of promotions are often decided, not during formal evaluation processes. Firms will lie about having made a product, in an
effort to not lose market share – being and coming across as innovative are, after all, what fickle individuals want – a company able to
continuously produce new market offerings to keep them satisfied. People who are stuck in routines need constant change around
them to help them cope. Reality is often too hard a burden to carry.
In academia, we have to use IT and teach people how to cope with life’s difficulties. But we also have to teach people how to
create an atmosphere of change. In such an atmosphere, blue oceans may exist (Kim and Mauborgne, 2005). In blue oceans the
competition is irrelevant and markets are entirely new. To an extent this is also what needs to be made evident, in academia and to
students. In this way this type of outcome may also be sought out.

3. Methodology

3.1. The research project – An overview

The main research questions were: how candid should lecturers be in higher education? As well as: what is the perspective on
leadership of the millennial generation? Another research question sought to analyze views on success. To what is success owed,
according to the sample of millennials and the three executive interviewees?
The research team adopted a mixed method approach (both quantitative and qualitative) (Remenyi and Murray, 2014). A survey
(please see Annex I for the questions asked) of millennial student attitudes was performed (with 111 valid responses), which allowed
the team to gather quantitative data as well as qualitative data. The survey was pre-tested and validated with a set of five of the lead
author’s Master’s students, whose Master’s dissertations the lead author was supervising, as well as in a Strategy and Competitiveness
class, at the Master’s level, before being administered to the sample of millennial students (taking undergraduate as well as master’s
degrees). The testing of the survey involved the following being asked of students: were the questions clear enough? What did the
respondents understand as being requested of them? Were there any suggestions as to how to improve on the survey format? The
survey had eleven questions, based on the following references, including also previous work done by the lead author on success and
leadership: Oliveira, 1993; Machiavelli, 1994; Mansfield and Oliveira, 1994, 1995; Kim and Mauborgne, 2005; Isaacson, 2011;
Oliveira and Ferreira, 2012; Hoppe and Bhagat, 2012; Au-Yong-Oliveira et al., 2014. The survey thus represents the most up-to-date
perspectives of the lead author on what leads to success and what successful leadership entails – research performed over the last
25 years, a path having been initiated during the lead author’s Master’s degree, at Cardiff Business School, in 1992. Subsequent work
experience is also reflected in the survey. An objective was to apply lessons learned, and to research, new contexts, namely mil-
lennials in higher education.
Finally, the survey was administered in class, in person, and answered on paper, on four separate occasions, in late 2016 (twice)
and in early 2017 (twice). The survey was anonymous, that is, some students (taking a strategy or marketing open course, lectured by
one of the authors) chose to write their names and their degrees on the survey, while others did not. Furthermore, three interviews
were carried out with three seasoned senior executives, with an interview script using questions taken from the survey. The purpose
of the interviews was to ascertain the views of executives in the real world, individuals with a lot of work experience and in different
environments (in Portugal and abroad), versus the perspectives of students with little or no work experience.
Qualitative investigations give preference to the study starting from the individuals who underlie the investigation, in which the
investigator tries to give a sense to the studied phenomenon in the search of its wider understanding, reaching knowledge by
observation, description and interpretation, without trying to control the means. The interview method allows the researchers to be
in direct contact with the interviewees and better understand their view on a given theme in a given context.
Survey (or quantitative) data collection techniques have several advantages, including the timely and economical gathering of
significant amounts of data from a significant number of informants. Having open questions, with the possibility to explain the
response, as well as having questions of a binary type, allowed the researchers to portray tendencies in a given sample (Fortin, 2009).
Both the interviews and surveys were very rich in quantity and quality of information communicated, allowing to obtain support
for the research questions formulated. There was, thus, a data triangulation (Gibbs, 2008), comparing the data from the interviews
with those of the surveys, in order to obtain a broader view of the employees and of the employers.
The students who answered the survey were first informed of the harsh realities of business, and seven case examples were given
in class, to them, to this end (please see Annex I – situations 1–7). These real life examples showed students that the business world is
one where only the fittest survive (McKenzie and Woodruff, 2014), a reality which the three executive interviewees, having been in
business for many years, were already aware of. The process and methodology followed is described in more detail below.

3.2. The survey – A closer look

The survey undertaken involved students (millennials, born between 1987 and 1996) studying at a major university in Portugal.
The survey was about how candid lecturers should be in higher education, concerning issues which will affect students later on in life,
namely when they start to work. Should lecturers seek to romanticize or to enlighten students about the harsh world which awaits
them? There was a total of 111 valid answers to the survey, mainly by students studying management, tourism, and industrial

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engineering and management. The survey was anonymous, that is, the students could state their names, dates-of-birth, degrees, and
nationalities if they wished. Some students (a small minority, around 6% of the total) were on Erasmus exchanges, from Turkey,
Greece, Italy, Finland, France, the Czech Republic and Latvia. This is not seen as a problem as “each country’s millennials are
different, but because of globalization, social media, the exporting of Western culture and the speed of change, millennials worldwide
are more similar to one another than to older generations within their nations.” (Stein, 2013). Even following a pre-test of the survey,
the author explained, in class, quite extensively, the meaning of the survey questions. Still, some students asked questions for
clarification. The author is satisfied that the questions were understood. As the questions have no wrong or right answer, but instead
reveal a perspective of those answering, an absence of bias is expected, in the answers. The survey was enriched by space for
qualitative comments by the respondents.
The survey included a section, at the beginning, with seven different real-life situations, which were further explained in class
(they were explained the four times that the survey was administered in class) by one of the authors (please see the seven boxes and
situations 1–7 in Annex I). The subjects were: rivalry in global markets; how breaking into new markets where there is a very strong
and dominant player can be very difficult; planning and the competition; leadership and communication; teamwork at a major
consultancy firm; relationship cultures (Portugal) vs. task cultures (USA); and customers. The reason for the description of these
seven real-life situations was to give students a glimpse of the real world. After this introduction to real life practices, did they feel it
was beneficial (there thus being a desire for enlightenment) or detrimental (thus revealing a desire and preference for romanticizing
in class)? This was an important objective of the survey, to determine what millennial students thought was the better approach to
academia.
The survey, according to the students, was found to be very interesting. It must be noted that the students took the survey very
seriously, a number of them in particular taking a long time to answer the questions, giving lengthy comments on a number of items
(besides “yes” and “no” type-answers, space for comments was provided in the survey). The survey session thus took close to one hour
to complete.

4. Data analysis

In order to reach solid considerations on the results of the use research instruments, a data analysis stage had to be performed.
Hence, this section presents the entire analysis and discussion on the performed survey and interviews.

4.1. Survey

Table 1 shows survey comments on the need for enlightenment versus romanticizing in academia. Table 2 shows some descriptive
statistics revealed by the survey on the same topic. One might think that the objective of going to university is to simply learn about
relevant issues and to be enlightened. Though the survey revealed that the great majority of students surveyed (106 out of 111)
(Table 2) wanted to be enlightened – there were some students who opted for the romanticizing aspect of education (5 out of 111)
(Table 2). Several students made comments stating the need for romanticizing, despite having chosen the enlightenment option, to
keep motivation levels high (Table 1). So, romanticizing may be a very important part of teaching, for motivational purposes. In
essence, romanticizing was not too far from a number of students’ minds.
The students were also asked (question 11) what success is more dependent on, and had to choose one of four options (motivation
levels; higher education institution you go to; intelligence which you are born with; being “street savvy” which is acquired with
experience) (Table 3). Notably, the higher education institution you go to was only chosen once, despite studies that show the
importance of the prestige of your alma matter. The intelligence you are born with was only chosen by four students, in total, also
despite growing evidence on genetics and DNA and its impact on our lives. Motivation levels were chosen the most (82 times out of
110 possible) (Table 3). This is seen to be positive, as the perspective that transpires is that people may be successful if they try hard
enough, not being held back by their higher education institution or by their abilities received (or not) at birth. Being “street savvy”,
which is seen to be acquired with experience, was deemed the most important factor for success by a total of 23 people (Table 3).
Once more, becoming street savvy, with the proper acquired experience, is an avenue to success that at the outset does not exclude

Table 1
A collection of student comments from the survey.

On enlightenment versus romanticizing Student comment in the survey

On the desire to be enlightened in higher education
Stating the need for romanticizing in higher
education
Desire for both enlightenment and romanticizing in
academia
“To diminish the impact and consequently the difficulties upon entering the work market”; “by
enlightening, we might create capable leaders, which might lead to an unexpected romanticizing of
affairs”.
“I think that more genuine and naïve audiences should not be totally scared.”; “students should be
maintained a little naïve in order to keep a positive impression about business in real life”.
“Both [romanticize and enlighten]. Students should be inspired, but, at the same time, prepared for
what is coming. A combination is the best option.”; enlightening “makes people stronger, but there has
to be a balance with regards to the personality of people, to romanticize the world with the perceived
reality.”; “we should enlighten students but always try to make them believe that they can change the
things that are not right.”

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Table 2
A summary of survey answers – Approach to higher education - Do you prefer enlightenment or romanticizing?

Question/Option Romanticize Enlighten

Approach to higher education (choose only one – total of 111 valid answers) 5 (4.5%) 106 (95.5%)

Table 3
A summary of survey answers – What is success more dependent on?

Question/Options Motivation Higher Education Intelligence which you are Being “street savvy” which is
Institution born with acquired with experience

Success is more dependent on (choose only one 82 (74.55%) 1 (0.9%) 4 (3.64%) 23(20.91%)
– total of 110 valid answers)

anyone who desires to be successful. Note that one student answered both motivation and being street savvy to this question (success
depends on these two factors), thus having indicated two options instead of only one (an invalid answer).
As for the teaching of leadership, the majority of students want to learn about both types – both authentic and autocratic – the
most popular answer – totaling 53 students (Table 4) – even if the predominant form of leadership in [Portuguese] society is
autocratic (the situations in the survey and evidence provided pointed in this direction). A number of students prefer to learn about
authentic leadership alone (presented as a North American type of more transformational and democratic leadership) as this is how
they envision themselves as leading (39 students out of 111) (Table 4). On the other hand, 19 students (a minority) prefer to only talk
about their domestic reality and autocratic leadership (Table 4). Some comments from the survey on this topic are to be found in
Table 5. Wanting to study both forms of leadership may also be explained by the increased mobility of workers and the possibility of,
in future, working elsewhere, outside Portugal (or your home country). There was a general understanding, however, that culture has
a strong influence on management and leadership styles (Table 5). Note that there were three invalid (ambiguous) answers to this
question.
One Portuguese student, João, studying management, stated, answering question 2 (should management students at university be
maintained somewhat naïve and unaware of what the real world is like?), that “to finish a bachelor’s degree only knowing what was
lectured is the same as knowing nothing. A great percentage of our courses in the bachelor’s degree in management are about
“memorizing and writing” and with this there is little space for learning”. Some discontent is suggested with the current curricula and
teaching methods, as (Gardner, 2006c) stated above.

4.2. Interviews – analysis

Three interviews were performed with three senior and very experienced executives. Table 6 shows a breakdown of the data
gathered.
Notably, interviewee 1 has the perspective, regarding success, that great leaders are mainly born, not made. Characteristics we are
born with have a great influence on the way we lead, more so than what we learn (brilliant negotiators, for example, are seen to be
born with this ability). This may be seen in the vast differences between one’s children, despite them having the same parents, living
in the same place, and going to the same school and having the same teachers. This perspective was seen to be quite unique, as the
other two interviewees believe in motivation as being the most important factor as regards success. Interviewee 2 did also state the
importance of being street savvy, though she saw this to be also dependent on the more important motivation level of the individual
in question.
Interviewee 1 does not believe in the importance of higher education as his current boss, for example, does not have a higher
education degree, but still reveals great ease with analytical business tasks (for example, involving financial statements) despite this
apparent education set-back. Interviewee 1 is actually confident in saying that despite not having a university diploma that his boss
CEO would fare much better at specific analyses than university graduates from the finest universities worldwide.
Interviewees 1 and 3 share the perspective that students need to be taught about the harsh realities of business markets as soon as
possible. Interviewee 2, though wanting to know as soon as possible what the real world is like (the harsh realities of business
markets, firm rivalry, and internal politics), interviewee 2, at university, would prefer that her lecturers romanticize rather than
enlighten in too much of a down-to-earth fashion. Romanticizing (on a positive note, for the better) is more important, as an approach
to higher education. Finding out about the realities of markets and human beings is very important but is an exercise which each one
has to discover for him- or herself, according to this executive.

Table 4
A summary of survey answers – Teach about the domestic type of leadership e.g. autocratic or about authentic leadership in higher education?

Question/Option Authentic Autocratic Both

Approach to higher education (choose only one – total of 111 valid answers) 39 (35.14%) 19 (17.12%) 53 (47.75%)

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Table 5
Comments in the survey regarding the teaching of leadership.

Issue
Choice of leadership taught in
academia –survey comments
Teach autocratic leadership
“what interests me is autocratic leadership
because of my country [Italy] and what I am
used to”
Teach both authentic and autocratic leadership
“learning about both types of leadership is important as that is
important knowledge to have – in the future one might work in a firm
in a different country with another view – so the more one knows, the
better.”; “Even though we are in Portugal and it is very important to
have a notion of the work market in our country, the truth is that the
big markets are abroad and even in the USA so it is also important and
even enriching to speak about their market”; “[we should study] both.
There is a need for a balance. To be honest and transparent is always
important and I think we shouldn’t change ourselves in order to keep
our job. However, we shouldn’t be “stupid” and let other people step on
us. Bottom line is: we need to stay true to our values and keep our
integrity.”; “we should understand the different visions of leadership.
What is real in one culture, is fantasy in another”.

Table 6
A summary of the interviews.

Interviewee 1 Interviewee 2 Interviewee 3

Years of professional experience 26 years 25 years 15 years

Academic undergraduate degree
Job title
International experience
Academic degree and its importance
Success – most important factor
Approach in academia
Leadership in academia
Mechanical Engineering Computer Science Economics
Former CEO, current plant manager CEO and Co-Owner CEO and Owner
South America, Europe South America, Africa, Europe Europe
Not very important Important Important
Great leaders are mainly born, not made Motivation to succeed Motivation to succeed
Should be practical and enlighten Should romanticize Should be practical and enlighten
Teach about authentic leadership Teach about autocratic leadership Teach about authentic leadership

Finally, as concerns leadership style, executive 2 is a firm believer in autocratic leadership, especially in Portugal, where it works
to perfection. Interviewees 1 and 3 believe in, and have received training in, authentic leadership, a more liberal style based on
inspiring subordinates to perform better.

5. The survey and interview data analysed in view of the literature

Examples in the literature, of very successful Portuguese business people, especially from older generations in the 20th century
(Coelho, 2012), speak of autocratic and paternalistic leadership styles as being preferred – being too close to employees is always bad
(Fernandes, 2014). Is the leadership example of some of the richest men in Portugal an answer as to what should be taught at
university, in terms of leadership? Some students would perhaps think so, but not the majority of them. According to Hofstede
(Hofstede, 2001b) high power distance means “employees being afraid to express disagreement with their managers” and this may
occur with both paternalistic and autocratic leaders. Portugal does in fact score above average on power distance (Hofstede, 2001a).
Carl et al. (2004) classify Portugal as having “as is” power distance society practice amongst the highest group in the world. Oliveira
and Ferreira (2012) found Portugal to have predominantly autocratic or paternalistic leadership. This Portuguese trait of bosses
disliking being challenged or disagreed with might be the case in most organizations but perhaps in communicating this to students
some care may be advisable (e.g., some romanticizing), to keep motivation levels high when entering industry, as some survey
respondents, as well as interviewee 2, stated.
Indeed, some romanticizing may be beneficial – one student stated that “it is good to prepare in time for business life. But it is also
important to show positive sides of business markets, so we can motivate students in to the working life in business. A good mix of
both [is needed]” – but the great majority of students (95.5%) want to be enlightened and well-prepared for that which they will
encounter in business markets. “In order to act effectively and make the best decisions for our company, we need to know about the
harsh reality of the world that surrounds us […] University should prepare us to face the real world” was the perspective shared by
one student. Yet another stated that “in my humble opinion, romanticism creates dreamers; enlightenment creates doers, people who
get to it, who start things”. Much as in firms, where “employees require and desire training that will make them competitive in this
highly demanding market” (Truitt, 2011), so do the millennial students in our study desire training that will prepare them for the job
market.
Some leadership studies tend to romanticize the topic (Teixeira, 2013) despite the most popular leadership type in Portugal being
autocratic. In our survey we found that close to 48% or almost half of the respondents want to be taught about both authentic and
autocratic leadership. 35% of the students surveyed would prefer to learn about authentic leadership (even though they may not
encounter it in Portugal) and only 17% want to learn about “real-life” autocratic leadership. This result is seen to be on the one hand
due to students travelling more and more during their careers – so they may encounter different types of leadership throughout their
life-times; but on the other hand the result is also due to students wanting to learn about what is seen to be right and more welcomed

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by employees – who should be treated humanely and not autocratically.

One must also consider the change brought about in society due to technology. Social media and social networks in particular
have transformed how we communicate and relate to each other, including with our parents, colleagues, teachers and bosses. The
younger millennial generation, according to the survey, expects to be treated more equally and less hierarchically, also due to the
approximation afforded by technology. We are now able to follow our bosses as never before, both professionally and personally, and
elicit answers to questions via WhatsApp, Facebook, SMS or by voice communication on a cell phone. Distances have shortened, and
time has taken on another meaning. We live in the age of “now” rather than “later”. Everything appears to happen much faster and
with less barriers.
We need emotionally intelligent leaders (including being highly motivated), but also market savvy ones (as interviewee 2 stated),
leaders who know what to expect from competitors, and who have workable solutions to specific problems, while maintaining an
ethical approach, despite rivals (internal and external) perhaps not doing so. What we envision is that this may require exceptional
training and development, in higher education (which needs to be as practical as possible, according to interviewees 1 and 3). Never
before have visionary, ethical leaders, concerned with corporate social responsibility issues, been in such high demand. What aca-
demia has to do is to churn out more leaders aware of corporate social responsibility, while also being “street savvy” and “street-
wise”, and prepared for competition as it presents itself to us, on a daily basis.
To become a great corporate leader may in fact be dependent on your DNA and personality make-up, as some research shows (De
Neve et al., 2013; Duttagupta, 2013), and according to interviewee 1, but this is not what is thought to be true, by the majority of the
millennial respondents in the survey. Motivation took the most votes (around 75% or three quarters of the total) as being funda-
mental for success (the views also of interviewees 2 and 3). One survey respondent stated that “without motivation we will never be
successful”. Another survey respondent stated that “people over-achieve when they feel motivated”. This is seen to be positive and
will hopefully signal a hard-working generation, the millennial generation – contrary to previous studies which portray them as being
lazy (Stein, 2013).

6. Conclusions and suggestions for future research

The main research questions were: how candid should lecturers be in higher education? What is the perspective on leadership of
the millennial generation? Another research question sought to analyze views on success. To what is success owed, according to the
sample of millennials and the three executive interviewees? Out of four possible options, motivation was seen to be the most im-
portant ingredient to success, followed by being street savvy (gained with experience) (Hu et al., 2017; Shepherd et al., 2016).
Surprisingly, the millennial students’ higher education institution was only chosen once as the major ingredient to success, and
intelligence (an innate trait, which you are born with) was only chosen five times (by four survey students and by an executive). This
study thus showed the prevalent perspective that anyone can be successful, with the right work ethic (82 students believed moti-
vation to be paramount to success), and the right experience (23 students believed in the importance of experience, at the time of the
survey). The authors see this as being very positive as millennials seek to take over from the baby boomers, who are now approaching
sixty years of age.
Believing one may succeed, if the motivation exists, is thus a positive outlook to have, leading to superior problem-solving and
pro-active behavior, simply because one believes that effort put in pays off. However, interviewee 1 stated that the characteristics we
are born with have a great influence on the way we lead, more so than what we learn. Believing in one’s capabilities and possibilities
may be a good thing, but to become truly great at negotiating or at leading may be an in-born trait, according to the view and
experience of interviewee 1. If one does not believe in one’s capabilities motivation will be at a sub-optimal level (Oliveira, 1993) so
believing in the power of motivation will bring better results. Teachers should thus focus on motivation and on transmitting the right
experience – be it through using real-life case studies in class, or by bringing executives to class to share their experience, or yet still
by visiting firms or by encouraging students to do internships, as soon and as much as possible.
The world is a more uncertain place and even though interviewee 2 stated that learning about autocratic leadership is the most
important – as, in Portugal, Portuguese employees are excellent, amongst the best in the world, if given clear instructions and a clear
direction for their work – authentic leadership, or both authentic and autocratic leadership, is what millennial students want to be
taught in class. This may, on the one hand, be linked to knowing that millennial individuals may have to work anywhere in the world,
and not only in Portugal, as careers become more mobile and international. On the other hand, it may show a desire to do what is
right and what millennial employees and subordinates seek – to be valued in the workplace and to have opportunities for growth and
advancement, in a friendly and accessible environment.
Finally, the perspective of interviewee 3 was that students need to be taught about the harsh realities of business markets as soon
as possible and should be taught about leadership practices in the USA and the UK, which are more liberal than in Portugal. Albeit,
whatever you are taught in higher education, the human relations approach promoted by the firm will be the biggest contributor to
the individuals’ life, not their higher education experience. In academia you may learn a lot and then simply not find it in a firm; and
young graduates will not be able to change a firm’s organizational culture. Students in the workplace will have to be able to adapt to
that which they encounter, for example the approach to relationships. As for messages communicated in academia, the approach
should be the same, always, namely that of enlightenment.
Our research results show that a degree of romanticizing is wanted, by some students, and even by executives, even though one
might have concluded that all students in higher education simply seek enlightenment. Even some respondents who chose en-
lightenment over romanticism then made some surprising comments as to the need for some romanticizing. As concerns leadership
the millennials in the survey showed a strong desire to learn about authentic leadership, wanting to lead and be led by such a leader.

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Fig. 1. A summary of the research effort – ingredients for a successful career in a technological world.

This may signify a significant change in Portuguese society in the future, as millennials get into positions of power, perhaps to
revolutionize leadership as we know it in Portugal (currently predominantly autocratic). We thus see evidence of a need for change
towards a more real and practical approach in academia, with more democratic leadership by teachers but also by executives.
As concerns suggestions for future research – is Portugal going to undergo a significant change in leadership style under millennial
managers who interact much more with technology and are thus more democratic and transparent due to this factor? Our research
indicates that students want to learn about what is seen to be right and more welcomed by employees – who should be treated
humanely and not autocratically. It would be interesting to conduct a large scale survey on this aspect in business, across national
cultures, to ascertain the effect of technology on leadership styles involving millennials.
Fig. 1 sums-up the survey and interview research effort. Motivation and the right work ethic are essential to success; as is being
street savvy. Higher education institutions should primarily enlighten, but seek to remain positive and somewhat romantic. Authentic
leadership should be preferred, which signifies an important change, brought on also by technology – which has brought people
closer, in a more transparent world.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the students of the University of Aveiro who agreed to answer the survey. The authors also thank
the interviewees for their time and availability and for having validated the material herein. Finally, we would like to thank
GOVCOPP for having provided funding for this research project.

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