Over the course of these blogs and through the talk I have put together I explain

how and why Generation Z is different, naming seven key characteristics
the challenges for leaders and organisations
five solutions not only to overcome those challenges but ensure future prosperity.

Click on the link to book Alex to speak at your event about Generation Z

‘We have weekly one to ones and we also have quarterly reviews. We like to sit down with a manager and look back on performance, but also discuss where you want to be in the next quarter. It's really helpful to have those feedback structures. We also get some transparency in terms of where we are all going and can contribute to it. It is really key because it helps you to develop’.

Gen Zer

More personal? How?

There are two key aspects to this word, but both are joined by a united theme. In short, I recommend organisations offer a very broad range of development opportunities.

Gen Z’s hunger for learning and improvement is well represented in their outstanding academic outcomes, as described in detail here. Organisations who ensure their new employees can continue on this trajectory, and who also make clear what is on offer from the very start, will be in a strong position.

Bespoke

The first key aspect is personal in the sense of customised, or bespoke. Although your younger employees will have common needs, they will also expect some choice. These may reflect particular interests, or areas which may serve their future career. If you still ask the ‘where do you see yourself in five years’ time’ question at interview then at least provide the means for your new employees to work it out for themselves.

It is hard to overestimate the extent to which life has become more personalised over the course of a generation. There are zillions of internet rabbit holes to dive down, social media accounts to follow, and a streaming music collection to curate. The secondary school experience in England has not followed this experience, although the diversity of choice in higher education remains strong.

The growth of online learning and thought leadership via social media provides younger employees with huge choice beyond the workplace. Having said that, much of it is not free and it would be an abdication of duty to leave it to the employee. The responsibility of the organisation is to find the best of what is out there, consult with staff on what they want, determine what is most useful for the next step of anyone’s professional development and allocate working hours for employees to pursue it.

On top of that is the kind of line management structure described in the quote at the top. However, traditional line management processes tend to focus on performance. The other key aspect, which is the primary focus of this blog, means that this model has severe limits.

Personal

The other key aspect of personal development focuses on aspects of work where employers may not expect to spend so much time.

For a minute let’s go back to the job descriptions and, in particular, person specifications.

Gen Z’s academic outcomes may be far beyond those of previous generations, but that also comes as a result of a school curriculum which has focused on them to a great extent. Personal development may form part of the Ofsted inspection framework in England, but it does not contribute to examination scores. The gains in examination outcomes have not been matched by similar gains in personal development.

On top of that the pressure to achieve these outcomes has been a key factor in a disastrous deterioration in the mental health of teenagers. A NHS report in 2022 showed that 26% of 17 to 19 year olds in England have a ‘probable mental health disorder’. Five years previously it was 10%. Covid did not help but the 250%+ rise in five years is not just down to this.

Employers may find that expectations around working etiquette such as email conventions, dealing with social media notifications and taking personal phone calls need to be made explicit. As I have advocated elsewhere, Be Clear Be Thorough. As Gen Xers we developed them together as adults as the technology arrived after the beginning of our working lives. Gen Z did not, and they now learn it after they have been engaged in social media with their peers for years. There is a big difference.

Gen X managers should also be prepared to discuss their expectations with their colleagues, and not demand that life must remain as it was for them when they started. A stubborn reluctance to move with the times will likely create as much eye-rolling from Gen Z as anything else.

Managers may have more than a few ‘do I really have to?’ moments as they find themselves having to go through aspects of work they did not have to previously explain. Spare them (and you) the ‘you have a first class degree but you don’t know how to do X?’ type conversations. Ultimately if you want your Gen Z staff to know something, do not assume it will be learned by osmosis. It may not have been learned through work experience placements while at school either, they may be ‘expected’ but are not ‘statutory’.

Professional/Personal imbalance

Your Gen Z employees may come to you with a far higher level of some technical skills, the ability to engage in electronic multitasking beyond your comprehension and, let’s not forget, qualifications but there may be other aspects that aren’t there.

Be prepared to train for them and to do so in a longer induction programme. Also be prepared for your Gen Zs to want to get this right more than you might envisage. They know they need high level interpersonal skills for their futures. You both have an interest in ensuring your employees are highly competent in ‘real world’ skills, so make sure the learning opportunities are on offer.

You do not need to tiptoe around this. When a much higher proportion of your communication has been asynchronous, which by definition means not in person, you have had less practice in live conversations about work or thinking on your feet. Gen Z has had a lot more practice in multitasking, but when it comes to a single, uninterrupted activity not so much.

Digital natives ≠ digital literacy

Gen Z may be digital natives but that does not mean they necessarily have the precise digital literacy skills you need them to have from the beginning.

The fact that they have grown up with a variety of screens and a multitude of tools, does not mean they know how to use them all or how they might be applied to resolve a particular problem. Not every issue can be solved digitally.

An overreliance on tools can also mitigate against the kind of critical thinking employers need from employees. The emergence of everyday AI tools only amplifies this issue. An understanding of how to get a tool to operate and deliver the outcome you want is not the same as solving a problem. Sometimes a tool has to be created or adapted rather than just plucked from an electronic shelf.

Critical thinking skills

These are highly prized by employers and they form the basis of your decision making when hiring. I’m referring to research, problem solving, conflict resolution, communication, analysis and so on. Do not underestimate Gen Z’s hunger to work on their areas for development and to make progress faster than you imagined. Just because they may not have the basics in one key aspect does not mean they cannot quickly reach an advanced level with the right resources in place.

An individual’s antennae in separating fact from fiction has to be so much sharper these days. What actually is newsworthy as opposed to fake news? Filtering is so much more difficult these days but my experience is that Generation Z processes information at lightning speed.

Gen Z is not immune to the idea that a lot of time spent on social media may not have prepared them for an employer’s demands. They will want to know the scenarios they are going to come across, and how they might tackle them. Where that involves critical thinking skills which require judgement and intuition tell them. Give them an opportunity to practise. If the answer involved an algorithmic approach they wouldn’t have expected you to hire a human to do it anyway.

Hypercognitive generation

Does this look like the top of your laptop screen?

Gen Z is a ‘hypercognitive’ generation’ with the agility to filter and process at speed. It is multi-tasking at a whole new level.

Yet this is often portrayed as a concentration problem as in the case of the famous Time headline below. If that was the case performance in examinations, particularly the 2 to 3 hour ones, would be dipping and they are not.

It makes for a good headline but it does not stack up with my experience. I remember being told about a child who apparently ‘couldn’t concentrate for two seconds’ in any classroom but would also arrive very tired on Monday morning having played the new Call of Duty for 18 consecutive hours over the weekend.

We have seen the same with Netflix and a ‘just one more episode’ mentality for a favourite show, then it’s the season finale which turns out to be two and a half hours and you are going to bed at 3.

The ability to flick endlessly between different activities and having so many on the go at once may not necessarily be productive, but it is unlikely to be a barrier for your Gen Zs. There may be advantages to your professional development programmes being broken down segment by segment but do not feel everything has to be in tiny packages because that is all they can cope with. I have seen it made into a big issue, but for me it is a non-issue. Don’t let it constrain you.

And finally…

The role of induction programmes and early career development programmes is changing. The organisations who are prepared to rethink the breadth and depth of what is on offer, and liaise with their employees as they do so, can expect to be rewarded for their efforts.

Alex Atherton bio

Other blogs:

Click for the first blog summarising who Gen Z are and why they are different.

And then for the Key Characteristics:

no.1 - Well-Behaved

no.2 - Prudent

no.3 - Pragmatic

no.4 - Diligent

no.5 - Apprehensive

no.6 - Diverse

no.7 - Patience

Accompanying videos are all here and also on YouTube