4 Tips to Attract the New Wave of Talent: Gen-Z
The hype about Millennials is fading. As the job market packs the last batch of Millennial into the workforce and move on to nurturing them into middle level managers, the market now prepares for the next generation; Generation Z (Gen-Z), said to be born after the mid-90s.
Once again, we would see employers scramble to hire, train and retain a new generation of employees, whose traits and attributes are likely to be more tech-focused, result-oriented, and demand instant solutions to immediate challenges. Here, we offer some tips on how to attract the Gen-Z to your organization.
1. Offer Robust and Flexible Benefits
Many researches have come to the conclusion that higher salary isn’t the most important factor in employing and retaining the new generation. Positioning your job offer in such a way that lets the Gen-Z know you are taking into consideration not just their health, but also other areas of their lives.
Some considerations would be gym subscription, dental and optical benefits, time-off for charitable works and childcare, as well as travel / parking subsistence. It would be great if your company can offer all-round benefits, but even if unable to, offer flexibility in your remuneration package. Some employees may need new glasses more frequently than others, some are just more prone to ailments than others, some may love what your company does but requires too much commute to work there.
2. Offer A Mission-Driven Career
Gen-Z are an educated bunch; they question their places in society and will question their roles in the company. They don’t want to clock in and out performing tasks that they don’t know what the end-result / products are. Gen-Z want to be impactful but at this juncture will most likely take up junior positions and therefore, may not have enough work experience and knowledge.
Offer tips on and off to guide them through the work and organizational processes; how marketing leads customers to sales, how relationship managers keep rapport with customers to support continued sales, why IT security is important, how prompt response to customers and co-workers enhances working relationships. Keep the Gen-Z well-informed and you will likely keep them interested in their tasks.
3. Offer Transparency
Gen-Z are used to getting information at an instant and immediately seek details that elude them. Keeping their career paths vague is likely the surest way to lose their interest and motivation. Start them young; let them know what their career paths are like and what skills to acquire if they intend to make an impact in what they do. Along the way, prep them with training and development programs to hone their skills. In addition to strengthening your workforce, you are also indirectly telling them that they are here for the long run.
Apart from keeping them interested, you should also keep them informed. Everybody makes mistakes, but to tell them once a year squanders their chances of making corrections early on. Ensure that feedback on their performance is frequent enough to keep them up to par.
4. Be Active on Social Media
Similar to the Millennials, social media plays an important role in attracting Gen-Z. However, there is a difference between the types of social media used by the Millennials and Gen-Z. The Millennials pioneered social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter whereas Gen-Z has the shortest attention span and is more drawn towards instant live videos and ‘disappearing digital content’. They use social media apps such as Snapchat and Instagram Stories where pictures and videos disappear seconds after they are viewed.
With this new user behavior, employers need to be creative in their social strategies. Learn to attract Gen-Z’s love of graphics and accept their short attention spans by engaging with them through brief but impactful visuals.
The job market isn’t what it used to be. It has grown into a more mature and demanding sector that requires employers to more nimble, flexible and reach out for that potentially era-changing talent pool. Even though Gen-Z may not be all that game-changing as they appear to be, as an on-going business, would you dare to miss out on the action while others clamor for a new generation of employees?