With a new decade upon us, it is only fitting to welcome the newest generation to join the workforce – Gen Z, people born after 1997. With Gen Z in the mix along with Millennials, Gen Xers, Baby Boomers, and the youngest of the Traditionalists/Silent Generation, there are now five generations represented in today’s workforce, as depicted by the graphic below from HR Technologist:
With Millennials and Gen Xers dominating the playing field, and Baby Boomers still very much in the picture, the workforce is already full of diverse perceptions, work styles, and preferences. It might be hard to imagine accommodating yet another generation into an already generationally diverse organization.
Creating opportunities for different generations to work together and learn from each other leads to better working relationships while enhancing engagement and retention. Fortunately, there are many ways that organizations can lay the groundwork for successful collaboration between generations at work. For example, a SHRM briefing reports that PNC Financial Services has developed an innovative employee resource group, IGen, specifically devoted to intergenerational issues. This program helps employees from all generations come together to navigate corporate culture, network, learn, and increase engagement.
Like the generations that came before it, the way Gen Z prefers to work and interact with others sets the stage for a new workplace dynamic. Let’s take a look at what this new crop of employees prioritize, what they can offer, and ways that organizations can integrate Gen Z into the fold in a way that benefits everyone.
Gen Z Priority: Frequent Feedback
Employer advantage: Gen Z employees welcome frequent feedback and they’re definitely onto something. It is advantageous for both parties when managers deliver “real-time” constructive feedback. Instead of spending hours scrambling to put together a formal performance review, with feedback that may already be outdated, managers can spend just a few minutes a week delivering informal feedback on a regular basis. This allows employees to have the opportunity to modify work behaviors and work quality on an ongoing basis, as opposed to only a few times a year.
Putting it into action: Managers equate the word “feedback” with putting in a whole lot of time and effort which does not have to be the case. Having a five minute conversation on a weekly basis will satisfy both the employee’s need for feedback and fit into a manager’s busy schedule.
Schedule it as a recurring meeting on both calendars on the same day and time every week to ensure it happens. Not only does it put the employee at ease and on the right path, but it helps the manager connect with employees by staying in touch with the day-to-day challenges they face at work.
Gen Z Priority: Face-to-face communication
Employer advantage: Gen Z’s desire for more face time is a welcome change for most employers as it offers many benefits. According to Chron, face-to-face communication is best for persuasion, leadership, engagement, inspiration, decision-making, accountability, candor, focus and reaching a consensus. It also builds stronger, more meaningful business relationships while allowing better social opportunities to bond with clients and coworkers.
Putting it into action: ln today’s flexible workplace where telecommuting and digital communication are commonplace, many employers are grappling with how to increase face time at their organizations while still preserving the flexibility employees crave.
Many employers successfully utilize virtual face-to-face communications, such as Skype, Go-to-Meeting or Zoom, when conducting remote meetings to help employees of all generations feel the connection with their coworkers. Managers can make small changes, such as stopping by their employees’ desks to have in-person discussions instead of sending emails. Arranging casual social events such as regular team happy hours or lunches help coworkers get to know each other on a personal level which in turn makes them more comfortable interacting with each other in-person at work as well.
Gen Z Priority: Independence, competition, and ambition
Employer advantage: According to staffing firm Robert Half, Gen Z works hard, expects a lot of themselves, and wants to advance quickly in their career. Gen Z is a driven bunch, and they want to learn and grow to prove themselves in an organization.
Putting it into action: By developing comprehensive job descriptions along with clear career paths, all employees, not just Gen Z, can have a thorough understanding of the roles, skills, competencies, and paths for advancement available to them. This, along with solid training and development programs, guides employees along the right path to achieve their career goals.
According to staffing firm Kelly, another idea for growing employees’ skill sets is to create mutually beneficial, cross-generational mentorships, by pairing up Boomers and Gen Z colleagues. Boomers possess a wealth of valuable information about their profession, the organization, and their industry that they can pass on to Gen Z, while Gen Z workers can help Boomers keep up with important work and industry trends as technology advances. In addition to sharing knowledge, they also learn how to effectively communicate and collaborate with each other as well.
Gen Z Priority: Diversity
Employer advantage: As the most diverse generation yet, Gen Z highly values diversity. This is very good news, as many organizations have already established diversity and inclusion programs and dedicated outreach to help draw and retain a diverse workforce.
It has long been known that diversity enhances an organization’s performance, productivity, and innovation in a number of ways. Not only does diversity give your business a boost, but it impacts recruitment and retention as well. A Glassdoor survey found that two-thirds of people consider diversity important when deciding where to work. Yet another reason to champion diversity in your organization!
Putting it into action: There are many ways to integrate diversity into your business. See our November blog for some recommendations on how to achieve this.
Gen Z has a lot to offer the workforce. Now is the time for employers to get ready for this talented and driven new generation of employees!
