The challenges of cultivating and retaining millennial talent have been blown way out of proportion, if you ask Guy Fardone, the President and COO of Wayne-based Evolve IP.

Millennials have been fueling his cutting-edge cloud services company’s rise to prominence for a decade now, he said in an InformationWeek commentary. “They provide us with a heightened sense of passion, energy, and enthusiasm that moves our business forward.”

More than 60 percent of Evolve IP’s 230 nationwide associates are counted among the millennial generation, and to tap into that youthful energy, Fardone said the company takes a culture-as-strategy approach. It focuses on core values, fosters collaboration and teamwork, offers opportunities for development and thoughtful training, recognizes achievement, and encourages frequent and transparent communication.

“Quality talent is hard to find and even harder to find and retain in the tech industry,” he said. “Managers that take themselves too seriously, aren’t approachable, and don’t foster achievement, growth, and development will be at a significant disadvantage.

“We take this last point so seriously that we consistently reinforce the importance of emotional intelligence in our workplace, particularly with managers.”

Read more of Fardone’s views on managing millennials in InformationWeek here.