Veronica Tagebrand works as a Business Analyst at DXC Technology. Already at the age of 25, she reports to one of Sweden's leading IT managers, Vahid Zohali. You've had a fantastic start to your career, what has attracted you to your choice of employer? What strategic decisions have you made along the way?
For me, it is important to work at a company that I believe in and where I see a long-term strategy. My first choice of employer was based on the fact that I wanted to work in the IT industry. Despite my background in economics, I felt that IT is the fastest growing industry and will have the biggest impact in the future, both for the individual and for society as a whole. Working in an IT company means a daily life of change, which is a sign of prosperity and a great opportunity for development. The company I work for must be able to adapt to changes in the world around us, and the fact that my employer DXC follows a business model based on moving from people doing the operational work to technology working for us feels right for the times.
In addition to strategy, development opportunities and the right leadership are what attract me most, I want to be sure that my employer believes in me as an individual as much as I believe in the company I work for. Having a supportive leader who allows a high degree of autonomy and challenges me by gradually taking me into deeper waters with even greater responsibility is fantastic. I have learned that if I am interested in making a career, I should always be where the fire is burning the most and that has been my guiding principle in the decisions I have made so far.

What advice would you give us slightly more "senior" leaders who need to "think new" when it comes to creating the conditions for your generation to develop and thrive in a workplace?
Millennials are a generation with a completely different view of working life and leadership compared to previous generations. We have grown up in circumstances where technology has influenced our way of life, which means that we have different expectations of how a workplace should operate to be attractive. Effective communication tools, high social media activity that gives an insight into the company culture and social responsibility that gives employees an opportunity to contribute to society are three examples of activities that every company can work on to attract millennials.
To create the right conditions, my first tip for you as a leader is to read up on how different generations behave, of course, the characteristics of the generations are generalizing and it is not possible to apply to all individuals, but it gives an indication of how a group behaves and how you should think in your leadership.
For example, we millennials are attracted to a workplace where there is work-life balance. For us, it is not the colleague who stays in the office the longest when others have gone home who is considered the most ambitious, but the one who has developed an efficient way of working and gets a lot of work done in a short time with high quality. We prefer employers and leaders who encourage flexibility and freedom with responsibility, where we are high performers at work while having a social life on the side.
One noticeable difference between my generation and the older one that is of significant factor for leaders is the average tenure with an employer. Being a job hopper is more common than uncommon among millennials today, which means it's more important than ever for you as a leader to work on how to retain talent. Millennials come from an upbringing where our parents have curated us and we have received large doses of confirmation, not least from "likes" on social media. To get loyal employees and succeed in retaining talent, my last tip for you is therefore to work actively with confirmation and feedback. Millennials expect an open dialog with their leader and require more confirmation than previous generations to feel satisfied with their employer. I therefore believe that recognition and the feeling of being seen are significant factors that affect how long a millennial stays with an employer and this is something that all leaders should work on.

What will you be doing in 5 years?
If I may wish, I will work on simplifying and improving processes for companies with the help of technology in a role where I also get to exercise leadership that motivates and inspires my colleagues.