Managing Gen Z (CONT’D FROM PAGE 26)
distractions such as social media.” The Gen Zer’s penchant for technology can also make them loners. That can be problematic in a workplace where one-on-one interactions often help drive revenues and efficiencies. “Gen Zers tend to be individualistic and
eration that values transparency, it will eventually fall flat. And then they're going to be disillusioned and job hop a lot quicker.” Will these approaches help reduce employee turnover? Maybe to some extent, but no matter what the company policy, Gen Zers are unlikely to possess the same job loy- alty as previous generations. “The Happy Feet syndrome may decrease a bit and maybe longevity will go up, but it's not about loyalty the way boomers and the greatest generation people think about it,” said Verchota. “It's really about loyalty to me, to my career, to what I want out of life, and about how I'm responsible for getting it.” Finding Champions Gen Zers also differ in their favored sources for instruc- tion. “Older generations tended to look for guidance from people who had maybe 20 or 30 years of experience,” said Gibbs. “Gen Zers, though, tend to look to their peers. So rather than having an expert tell them how to do some- thing, it can be more effective to find a champion in their age group whom you can turn into a superstar and let them be the communicator.” Too, Gen Zers tend to eschew reading and have short attention spans. That can make instruction manuals less effective. “It’s smart to provide video content, short bits of training that only last two to three minutes,” said Gibbs. “Provide bite-sized infotainment to help drown out other
would rather communicate through technology than face to face,” said Ginder. “But that’s not how an organization typically works. It's not just a bunch of solo folks doing their thing. Most things happen within some level of teamwork.” This is where managers can experience a lot of frustra- tion, and the new generation will need some assistance.
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May 22, 2023
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