By the end of 2024, there will be more Gen Z employees in the workforce than Boomers according to the Wall Street Journal. This signals a labor shift as the last group of Boomers exit in the next few years. Now, employers and recruiters alike will need to find ways to engage Gen Z in lieu of coaxing them up the proverbial corporate ladder.
This time, employers need to get it right. More than a decade ago, companies attempted to woo the upcoming millennial generation with in-office chefs, massages, and foosball tables. Boomers struggled to engage the new, young population of workers who were wary of the 80-hour work week grind. In hindsight, we now understand that these perks tied millennials to their jobs without any real engagement or loyalty to a company. Chef-prepared dinners became synonymous with working into the evening.
As recruiters, we are constantly listening to our candidates, trying to understand what will drive engagement in their work. Because very quickly, these junior-level candidates will become mid-level engineers and project managers. If we, as employers and recruiters, think that they will simply be engaged in the work because it’s work, we’re in for an unfortunate surprise.
Gen Z finished High School and College during the pandemic. They watched as their parents worked from home, used technology to communicate virtually, and prioritized the life part of the work-life balance. They are part of a generation that thrives on a sense of purpose. To assume that their experiences over the past 5 years haven’t shaped their attitudes towards work would be disastrous for employers competing for top talent.
This is a technology-first generation, a generation where developers have been coding before they left primary school. They are acutely aware of their surroundings through social media, news, and connections across the globe. They are bombarded with information every day, yet they have missed out on opportunities to create in-person connections and get real work experience during the pandemic.
So how do we attract this new talent? How do we have conversations with clients about adapting their recruitment process to retain new talent? First, we listen. They aren’t asking for ping pong tournaments or weekly happy hours. They’re asking for support, for coaching, for mentorships. They’re asking to be heard, given a sense of purpose, and live their lives in and outside of an office. They aren’t pledging loyalty to a Fortune 500, or committing to 80-hour work weeks like many Boomers once did.
As our recruiting team talks to new graduates and junior-level candidates, we know that they are talented, driven, and motivated. But we also know that they must feel personally tied to jobs that they accept. Like every generation, they are motivated to make money, succeed, and become a part of society. However, they aren’t willing to compromise their mental, physical, or emotional health for a 9-5 job.
Over the next few years, companies will need to decide how to shift their attitude towards the new generation of workers. There is no shortage of competition in the technology space. Talk to your recruiting partners about the candidates they are interviewing. We spend time every day speaking with candidates. We are in a unique position to talk about their career aspirations beyond an individual job description or scheduled interview time.
