By 2030, Gen Z will make up 30% of the workforce which means businesses cannot afford to leave engaging and retaining this demographic to chance. And this generation does things differently. Last month, our Head of People and Culture, Elly Tzouvanni, joined the folks at HiBob and Eight Roads to talk about exactly how to engage and retain Gen Z.
With their early careers forged in both a global pandemic and a major financial crisis (not to mention the intense global political tensions of the past several years), this generation of employees is looking for a new model of work based on transparency and a culture of mutual respect and loyalty.
Here’s what makes Gen Z different and how you can work with your team to craft an environment that makes work better for everyone:
Constant crises = disengagement
The first thing to understand about Gen Z is that they are coming into the working world during a truly unique time in history. Not only have they had to create their early careers based on the ‘unprecedented times’ of the pandemic, but they’ve also had to navigate a global financial crisis that, especially in the tech and startup world, conservatively saw hundreds of thousands of people being made redundant at the same time.
They’re also digital natives who started their careers in virtual and remote setups. While that can be a great way to add flexibility, most businesses made this shift out of necessity and didn’t have the opportunity to flesh out what a successful, engaged remote team would need.
These factors have inexorably altered their sense of what role work plays in their lives and their relationship with it.
Unfortunately, this presents itself in the fact that Gen Z consistently represents one of the most disengaged demographics in a business. Around 54% are reporting as disengaged according to The Eight Roads and HiBob Young Generation in Tech Report. But it’s up to organisations to better understand them and develop an environment that encourages engagement.
Security in a turbulent world
This sense of constant crisis that Gen Z workers have gone through in the early stages of their careers has greatly diminished their sense of security. There is no blind faith in ‘job security’ and Gen Z are looking to their employers for open and transparent reassurance during times of turbulence.
There is no longer loyalty purely for the sake of being employed by a company. Instead, this needs to be a two-way street where there is mutual respect and care.
They want to understand how their employers are responding to the chaotic factors surrounding them and how they are taking care of them from a financial and well-being perspective. This theme of transparency is one that both carries weight with Gen Z and will improve relations with the rest of your workforce.
"For Gen Z, fostering a sense of community is a critical part of increasing engagement. Since many businesses are unlikely to return full-time to the office, there are still ways to craft that sense of connection within your team."
Gen Z are connection-first
Having started their careers in the pandemic, Gen Z are more concerned than most with creating genuine connections with the people they work with. They want to connect, collaborate and form strong bonds. Many have even expressed a wish to return to the office as their primary place of work.
For Gen Z, fostering a sense of community is a critical part of increasing engagement. Since many businesses are unlikely to return full-time to the office, there are still ways to craft that sense of connection within your team. Perhaps you have regular team offsites or away days where your employees can gather and see one another face-to-face.
Or you could take a leaf out of Silver Cloud’s book and create virtual opportunities for connection. For example, we have weekly virtual fikas. (A Swedish tradition of taking a break and spending time together in a non-work capacity. Typically, this would involve a little cake or pastry, but we haven’t worked out how to send cake in a meeting invite yet.) These are a great way for us to stop, get to know people we don’t usually get a chance to talk to and talk about our lives outside of work.
We also have an enthusiastic book club and a Culture Club dedicated to managing and enhancing our team culture. Which goes to show that there are a lot of ways to create connection, even in a completely remote business.
The art of (managing) the side hustle
The fear around security partially manifests in the increased presence of the side hustle. Now, it’s almost more common than not to have another revenue stream. Having seen so viscerally how quickly a seemingly steady role can disappear, your Gen Z team members are more likely than most to seek out stability through multiple income streams. They want to be assured that, should anything unfortunate happen, they'll be able to keep paying rent.
But it’s not just fear that has contributed to the rise of side hustles, it’s also a matter of passion. Work is, for many Gen Zers, just work. It’s not how they find creative or passionate fulfillment. It’s a means to being able to do that elsewhere.
According to Elly here at Silver Cloud, it can help to spend some time with them, getting to know what it is they’re working on and being passionate about.
Not only does that improve relationships, it also gives you insights that can help you identify ways for them to find similar satisfaction within the business. Maybe they have a passion for social issues and equality – a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion working group could provide them a good outlet for that energy while also enhancing company culture.
Mission-led recruitment & engagement
To get Gen Z on side, you need to be able to talk about your business’s values and its impact on the world. This generation is very driven by their values – they want to know more than just what you do to make money. In fact, according to the HiBob & Eight Roads report, 42% of Gen Z employees chose their role based on their employer’s impact and mission.
This generation want to see what you value, how you back that up and how you improve your community. To do this well, the first thing businesses need to do is showcase their values. If you don’t have them clearly defined yet, start there. From that point, examine your values and identify opportunities for your company to act on them and embody them.
Most importantly, be transparent. This extremely passionate and curious group will have questions and will be able to identify insincerity in your actions quite adeptly.
Ultimately, putting effort into activity that will help attract and retain Gen Z employees will also improve relationships with the rest of your team. Lead with respect and clear communication, develop ways to create internal connections regardless of location, get to know and understand their passions (and their fears) and be transparent and authentic in your values. Doing these will help your business stand out for the Gen Z workforce.
