But are they inherently different from previous generations? Jane Kennelly, director of Frog Recruitment, doesn't think so.
"When assessed, millennials' behavioural or axiological (value) patterns show them to be much the same as earlier generations," she says.
"What is different is that the era that they have been born in is vastly different to those of both baby boomers and Gen X."
Unsurprisingly, millennials appear to have specific expectations about how technology is used in the workplace.
PwC's report Millennials at Work: Reshaping the Workplace, finds 41 per cent of millennials prefer to communicate at work electronically rather than face-to-face or even over the phone.
They routinely use their own technology at work, and three-quarters of them believe access to technology makes them moreeffective at work.
They expect workplace technology to include social networking, instant messaging, video-on-demand, blogs and wikis.
"These social tools will enable this generation to instantly connect, engage, and collaborate with cohorts and managers in ways that are natural to them and - here's the great news - this will lead to increased productivity across the enterprise," says Kennelly.
And on managing millennials, "If you are the boss, it's much easier to get the best out of your workforce if you understand what motivates them.
"Some employers are already adapting their IT policy to appeal more directly to millennials, such as offering a choice of smartphones as an employee benefit and actively encouraging business-focused use of social media at work."
According to Frog's latestresearch, by 2015 the majority of the workforce will be in their twenties, and Kennelly says creating engagement strategies for millennials should be one of management's biggest goals.
"Managers who have developed successful strategies for retaining boomers are going to have to relegate these to the corporate archives. Creating strategies toengage millennials requires a whole different approach."
Engagement tactics should include leadership training, career development, creativity and innovation.
"Millennials are very aware they need leadership skills, so organisations must give millennials new,exciting leadership assignments as well as the training and coaching needed."
They also expect to grow rapidly in their career. "They want to move rapidly and to have global assignments. They are willing to work on short-term assignments. They want development.
"Millennials don't expect to work for a single employer for decades, so they will go wherever they can find the growth they need. What this means is that larger, older organisations will have to create a more dynamic, 'assignment-based' career model to develop young high-potentials."
Millennials are attracted toemployer brands they admire as consumers, and they look to work for an organisation whose values align with their own.
PwC's report found that more than half of millennials would consider leaving an employer whose values no longer met their expectations, which shows, says Kennelly, that employers need to create new ways to find and keep key millennial talent.
"As well as being socially minded, millennials have thedesire to be creative. They have grown up in a time where information has become availableinstantly.
"Using Google or Wikipedia search, answers to even quite complicated questions can be found, so millennials have developed into a group that wants to work on new and tough problems, and ones that require creative solutions.
"And it goes without saying that millennials enjoy working in organisations that are innovative, changing, and dynamic."
As it's now possible to have a workplace with four generations co-existing, a major challenge for employers is that different generations can have utterly different mindsets, motivations, aspirations and leadership styles.
"Bringing them together can lead to strife if it isn't handled properly," says Kennelly.
"A productive intergenerational workplace requires everyone to participate. Older staff need to understand that what leadership looks like to them isn't necessarily what it looks like to a youngerperson."
Kennelly notes that technology is often a catalyst for intergenerational conflict in the workplace and many millennials feel held back by rigid or outdated working styles.
However, Frog's research reveals that 75 per cent of millennials want coaching or mentoring by older staff to assist them in achieving their career goals.
"We need to discover that we're actually not so strange when we sit down and talk about our thoughts on business, projects, and vision for the organisation," says Kennelly.
"Tried and tested, mentoring is a great tool to help young people identify gaps in their knowledge and understanding."
She suggests older executives make themselves available andapproachable; younger employees should not be afraid to knock on doors and ask for advice.
Fortunately, Kennelly says, many business owners and executives will come to see this youngenergy in their workforce as opportunity for their organisations.
"More generations bring more knowledge, more ideas, and more, well, everything.
"Companies are increasingly realising that millennials are people to learn from, not just train."
