You may have heard about Gen Z. They’re the ambitious digital natives, set to dominate your youthful workforce very soon.
But what does that mean for you and your business in a business landscape that’s already changing rapidly?
This blog post shines the spotlight on this next generation of workers, and with Gen Z set to represent 27% workforce in OECD countries by 2025, shrewd HR leaders will want to take note.
Gen Z: What does it mean?
As we may use the terms; Baby Boomers, Gen X, or Millennials, every day in the workplace, it’s time to acknowledge Gen Z as part of the commonplace vocabulary. That’s if you haven’t already.
In short, Gen Z is the term for the generation born between the mid-1990s and the early 2010s. Dubbed entitled, lazy, and also coined as ‘the TikTok’ Generation, this younger generation has fallen foul of negative stereotyping.
However, businesses that choose to embrace Gen Z’s many talents will find they might just benefit from a fairer, more ethical, and healthier workforce for the long haul.
What makes Gen Z different?
Gen Z have a diverse set of values that make them stand out from the crowd.
For Gen Z, diversity is the norm, so they expect respect and fair treatment of racial and gender diversity in the workplace. Ethics is also a strong theme in other areas for Gen Z. They are shrewd consumers. When it comes to parting with their cash, they will choose brands that align with their, often environmentally conscious, values. You can expect them to do the same when it comes to choosing an employer.
Gen Z don’t buy into tradition, and therefore, they’re much less likely to tolerate archaic workplace policies and toxic or outdated norms that have gone undisputed for decades. This emerging working generation is notoriously unafraid of quitting a job in favour of better prospects elsewhere.
With Gen Z set to make up a prominent portion of the labour force in the next few years, businesses need to prepare for this digitally literate, discerning demographic.
Investing in a digital-savvy workforce
Gen Zers haven’t witnessed a world without the internet. That means they’ve grown up with information at their fingertips, and they’re accustomed to building relationships and friendships remotely and collaborating online with colleagues.
Forward-thinking businesses need to be prepared for the expectation Gen Z will have around hybrid, and remote working. It’s imperative that leaders put the infrastructure and tools in place to facilitate the flexibility their new workers anticipate.
This also means making sure your managers are up to speed. Managing teams remotely, or in a hybrid capacity, is a niche skill in itself. It’s important to support your managers with any new technology and make sure they’re confident to lead a team remotely. So whether it’s navigating a new virtual collaboration tool, or getting your workplace benefits online in one easily accessible place, make sure you put training measures in place so managers and their Gen Z direct reports can work harmoniously.
What Gen Z want from their employer
Now that we’ve broken through the stereotypes of ‘the TikTok Generation’, let’s get to the bottom of what your younger workforce wants from their employer:
Diversity and fairness
A recent US survey unveiled that Gen Z’s top priority, when it comes to choosing an employer, is the fair treatment of employees across all genders and races.
Likewise, the WEF (World Economic Forum) found that 72% of Gen Z believe that racial equality is the most pressing issue in the workplace today.
That means there’s never been a better time to review your diversity and equality goals and check any unconscious bias that could be an inherent part of your culture. If this isn’t a priority for your senior leadership team, it’s time to rectify that, because one thing’s for sure, if your business’s approach to diversity and inclusion isn’t up to the mark, Gen Z will call you out on it.
An ethical and environmentally conscious workplace
Politically astute, and environmentally conscious, Gen Z will speak up for the causes they believe in, and they expect their employers to act upon their environmental pledges, and not simply make empty promises. At a time when over 30,000 university students in France pledge to work for environmentally conscious brands, businesses need to wise up to the ecological revolution that could take place with these new, highly principled entrants to the workplace.
Strong working relationships with managers
While Gen Z is the first demographic to be born in the era of the internet, they still value face time more than you might imagine. In fact, 72% said that they prefer face-to-face conversation. As with older workers, they need regular and fair, constructive feedback, and transparency to feel valued as part of the wider organisation.
While younger workers will value face-to-face interaction, you’ll also need to make sure they have the space to work autonomously as trusted members of the team. Micromanagement or lack of autonomy was the biggest managerial gripe for 28% of Gen Z and Millennials, according to research conducted by the London School of Economics and software company Freshworks.
Flexibility and a more holistic approach to wellbeing
When choosing an employer, Gen Z talent will take your approach to flexibility and wellbeing into account. When it comes to flexibility, if you’re not offering hybrid or remote working, be prepared for these new prospective candidates to pass your business by.
As a demographic, Gen Z struggle the most with their mental health. In fact, according to a report by Mckinsey, Gen Z displayed much lower levels of emotional and social well-being than older generations.
For the most part, you can expect younger workers to prioritise mental health as well as physical wellbeing, and they expect the businesses they work for to do the same. According to a survey conducted by Peldon Rose, cited in HR News, Generation Z placed the greatest importance on their employer championing causes such as mental health and wellbeing (76%).
As a generation that observed their parents enduring; workplace presenteeism, the recession of the late 00s, and the low salaries, stress and burnout that came with it, Gen Z are a lot less likely to accept a lack of flexibility or toxic culture.
Fair salaries and competitive workplace perks
While money doesn’t seem to be a top priority for Gen Z, it’s still a crucial factor in their decision-making at the hiring stage. When it comes to setting salaries for Generation Z candidates, you’ll want to make sure you conduct benchmarking to ensure you stay competitive in the labour market. Likewise, when retaining Gen Z talent, it’s wise to make sure your salary bands remain fair and, at the very least, in line with inflation amid the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.
While workplace benefits should never be a substitute for a fair, competitive salary, your rewards portfolio should support and enhance the overall package, helping your workers feel heard, understood, and appreciated. For example, bearing in mind that your youngest generation of workers can ill afford large properties, you might consider offering a co-working allowance to offset the need for a practical and effective workspace.
Gen Z: The future of your workforce
Whether you want to embrace the multifarious talents, digital knowledge and diversity of Gen Z or you’re still stuck on those stereotypes, the future of your business depends on the population of young workers. Gen Z bring a lot to the table, and, like it or not, they will soon be working their way up to the boardroom.
So, with the influx of these digital natives already imminent, it’s time for HR leaders and managers to turn archaic constructs on their heads, and make sure they stay relevant in this increasingly youthful labour environment.
In addition to the above, one great way to appeal to, and engage Gen Z is to offer a range of customisable, competitive workplace rewards. For more information on how to future-proof your business by appealing to different generations within the workforce, check out our recent blog: How to get rewards right for different generations.
