The Work In Progress Report

Gen Z is the skeptical generation — and their lack of trust is reshaping everything from social interactions to the workplace.

One energy firm has appointed an advisory board of six young people to help guide the business.

Col. Mark Anarumo, the president of Norwich University, had been through suicides of students during in-room lockdown. He thought he could help by moving into the dorm.

Millennials still recovering from the Great Recession now face a downturn that’s being compared to the Great Depression.

“I’m anxious all the time. Being in school. Feeling pressure to have a social life. Politics. My friend is studying abroad in Spain and I read a story on Twitter about someone who got their kidney stolen in Spain. The coronavirus. Everyone I know has cancer.”

There was a shift last year. A groundswell of energy. A rise in fresh passion. Younger voices. More urgent demands. A tipping point was reached and breached. Millennials passed the baton as they aged up and quietened down. In 2020, the next generation — Generation Z or iGen (born 1995–2015) — is driving the agenda in the public domain and will bring change to your workplace with their rising profile and prominence.

 

Propelled into the spotlight with Parkland survivors’ demonstrations in 2018, youth activism has been growing. Greta Thunberg surfaced as a legitimate representative not a lone reactionary. A third of Hong Kong’s unknown, leaderless protestors have been under 18. For them all, their fervent advocating is not born of naïve exuberance or passionate rebelliousness. They believe they are — quite literally — fighting for their lives.

 

2019 saw Millennials’ pushes for purpose and promotions, shared experiences and flexible schedules, drowned out by the fear and frustrations of Generation Z. Taking over as the largest generational group — estimated at over 30% of the global population — they were building their presence, achieving adulthood, and entering the workforce in greater numbers.

 

For 2020, the emphasis has fully transitioned to our youngest generation of workers who are deploying their anxious energies to protest multiple major live issues. Generation Z’s perspectives and swelling labor market participation will impact your corporate culture, policies, and work environment. Here are five areas your company can address to be equipped to work productively with your company’s growing cohort of Gen Z employees as their influence rises and they set the tone for 2020:

 

1. Technology Talents: Raised in a boundary-less digital world, many Generation Zs are proficient at finding useful applications to manage their work and boost productivity. Finding email inefficient, open communication channels and project management tools help organize their efforts. Most are wary of Big Tech, realizing they are being manipulated and welcome appropriate help managing usage. With intuitive understanding of new technologies, Generation Z employees recognize they can bring fresh and valuable insights to improve client offerings and operating practices which they see as imperative to compete. This year, advancing your company’s digital transformation, embrace and benefit your Gen Zs’ digital prowess and boost retention by incorporating their contributions.

 

2. Integrated Inclusion: Generation Zs’ advocacy for social justice causes — including racism, feminism, LGBTQ+ — are not #trending ‘woke’ fads. As the most diverse generation yet, tolerance and inclusiveness are their way of life. Gen Z candidates are asking about corporate inclusion policies and cultural tenets during their job interviews as important factors impacting their decisions. Check feedback from your company’s recruiting front line. What are they hearing? How is your Diversity and Inclusion policy matching up with the work environment Generation Zs are looking for? In 2020, it is time to elevate cultural values that attract and support your whole workforce, including your youngest recruits.

 

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The youngest and most digitally literate generation— Generation Z or iGeneration, 1995 to 2015—is coming into the workforce in increasing numbers with different mindsets and expectations. Learn how to prepare for Gen Z and be able to integrate them effectively into the workforce so they can be productive and stay for the long term. Check out my new course. 

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TAKING THE FIFTH. A fifth generation is entering the workforce in increasing numbers. Born 1995-2015, Generation Z is coming of age. If you’re a parent with offspring under 24, you’re aware something’s up. You realize there’s a disconnect, a distinct gap. There’s a different facility with the tools of today and a different awareness and interpretation of reality that may elude you entirely. I get it.

 

RAISING GEN Z. I have two of my own Gen-Z kids. I observe their actions based on unprecedented access to information, the transparency of our discussions at the dinner table, and innumerable platforms and applications at their finger-tips. My pre-teen daughter wrote a powerful poem that questioned and challenged ‘acceptable norms’. My son, when 16, was ready to sell his gorgeous ceramic pots on Etsy, and started developing his branding before school obligations were re-prioritized!

 

AGENCY & ACTION. As unique and talented as I find my own Gen Zs, their concerned and self-directed behaviors are the norm rather than the anomaly. Their sense of agency and desire to contribute their opinions and be involved—whether politically, socially, economically or environmentally—is common.

 

GENERATION IN WAITING. Gen Z are mostly still waiting in the wings, preparing to come out and play their roles in the workplace. Having been acknowledged, involved, and raised with influence, they are expecting to participate fully. Furthermore, Gen Zs recognize the uncertain economic outlook and more fragmented career prospects. Is your company ready to integrate them?

 

THE MEANING OF MILLENNIALS. Many Gen Zs are keenly aware of challenging relationships between Millennials and older generations and may well be apprehensive about their reception when they start working, How have you been adapting to Millennials so far? It’s worth considering that they are often looking and pressing for the types of work conditions that Gen Z employees will expect as a given.

 

ANTICIPATING & MANAGING. Adapting your own expectations is critical in the rebalancing of the talent equation in the tech-accelerated, more complex marketplace. More responsibility is being given to front-line workers as well as those who have strong technology skills and intuitive understanding of our new realities.

 

However you end up adjusting is up to your company, business needs and openness to recognizing current and projected conditions. The more thoughtfully you do that, the easier your integration of Gen Z employees will be and the better they will perform.

 

If you are interested to understand more about Generation Z and how to prepare your organization, please contact Sophie.Wade@FlexcelNetwork.com. 

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TECHNOLOGY TENSIONS. Significant differences between personal and professional technology usage are a cause of disruption at work and between generations.

 

New technologies have been changing consumer habits at a rapid pace since smartphone platforms starting opening up just 10 years ago. A significant accelerating factor has been the tech usage of ‘digitally-integrated’ Millennials (1980-1994) and Generation Zs (1995 to 2015) for their personal lives on their personal devices.

 

Constant random discovery, playful experimentation, and intuitive vetting, emerging platforms and applications have been able to spread virally and reach tipping points rapidly, leading to wide-spread adoption and the establishment of new habits. YouTube went from nominal usage by Gen Zs to 85% in just four years. Fast-forming but also not necessarily long-lasting—a hot new app can attempt to supplement or displace.

 

CONVERSELY, in corporate environments, technology advances have been changing work practices more slowly. New technologies need to be researched, enterprise-relevant specs developed and quotes vetted before anything is tested, tweaked, and rolled out. Adoption has then often been mandated (hopefully with change management support and encouragement) to ‘enforce’ new behaviors.

 

It’s important to recognize the tensions created by this technology ADOPTION GAP. “Shadow IT” creates security risks--where frustrated employees want better tools and use unsanctioned consumer applications to support more effective work practices. Furthermore, different personal usage and new habits may confront workplace conventions as varied reactions have been highlighting gaps between generations.

 

New platforms and applications are going to be critical for your company to stay competitive and be able to attract younger hires. New tech knowledge and understanding gained from your younger ‘digital workers’ can be benefited from. New habits can be encouraged that support all employees’ effective work practices and productivity.

 

How is your management streamlining the integration and adoption of technology to connect the workforce and allow them to collaborate effectively and perform at the highest levels?

 

If you are interested to find out more about how your company, department, or team can adapt successfully for the Future of Work, please email sophie.wade@flexcelnetwork.com.