Move over
Generation Y, Generation Z is set to take your place as the youngest
generation in the workforce.
And if a
new study is any indication, the latter have a stronger entrepreneurial spirit,
are less motivated by money, are less entitled and will be better prepared for
jobs than their Generation Y counterparts.
For
years, companies have worked hard to understand the wide-ranging work styles of
the multi-aged workforce and to decipher a confusing generational alphabet
soup. Now, it’s about to get a bit more complicated as Generation Z prepares to
enter the job market.
Millennial
Branding, a Boston-based research and consulting firm, collaborated with
Atlanta-based HR services and staffing company Randstad to conduct a study that
provides an in-depth look at the workplace preferences of Generation Y (ages
21-32) and Generation Z (ages 16-20). A report on the research results was released
on Sept. 2, 2014.
Much
emphasis has been placed in recent years on the members of Generation Y, also
known as Millennials, and how they perform in the workplace. According to
officials with Millennial Branding and Randstad, the study is one of first to
compare and contrast key job-related traits of the two youngest generations
“Generations
are increasingly separated along narrower age bands, requiring managers to
juggle the needs and preferences of four or even five distinct generations
working side by side,” said Jim Link, chief HR officer for Randstad North
America, in a written statement. “This study provides an insightful picture of
what employers can use to motivate, drive and inspire this newest generation as
part of their overall recruitment and retention strategy.”
A key
finding in the study is that members of Generation Z have a stronger
entrepreneurial spirit than their Generation Y counterparts. Among the nearly
2,000 survey respondents from both generations, 17 percent of those in Generation
Z said they wanted to start their own business and hire others to work for
them, compared to 11 percent of Generation Y respondents.
In
addition, money seems to be less important to members of Generation Z when
compared to their slightly older counterparts. Approximately 42 percent of
respondents from Generation Y ranked “making more money” as their top work
motivator compared to 28 percent of Generation Z participants. The top work
motivator for Generation Z was “opportunities for advancement” (34 percent).
Surprisingly,
given that they have grown up entirely in the digital age, the report found
that a majority of the survey participants from Generation Z (53 percent)
prefer in-person communications over electronic tools such as instant messaging
and video-conferencing.
And even
though they prefer face-to-face interactions, 20 percent of Generation Z said
they would prefer telecommuting and working at home over a corporate workspace,
compared to just 11 percent of respondents from Generation Y.
“Gen Z
has a clear advantage over Gen Y because they appear to be more realistic
instead of optimistic, are likely to be more career-minded, and can quickly
adapt to new technology to work more effectively,” said Dan Schawbel, founder
of Millennial Branding. “Additionally, since Gen Z has seen how much Gen Y has
struggled in the recession, they will come to the workplace well prepared, less
entitled and more equipped to succeed.”
For the
study, Gen
Y vs. Gen Z Workplace Expectations, researchers surveyed about
1,000 individuals from the two age groups. The study participants were from 10
countries—the United States, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, South Africa,
Sweden, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
Although
the Randstad and Millennial Branding research defined Generation Y as those
born between 1982 and 1993 and Generation Z as those born in 1994 and after,
other studies have defined the two generations more broadly. Often Generation Y
has been identified as those born between 1980 and 1995 and Generation Z as
those born after 1996.
While
many members of Generation Z are still too young to participate in the labor
force, Generation Y now has more workers in the labor force than any other
generation—recently replacing Baby Boomers (people born between 1946 and 1964).
Demographers have estimated that there are approximately 80 million members of
Generation Y in the United States, and some projections show that they could
account for nearly 46 percent of the U.S. workforce by 2020.
According
to statistics from the Pew Research Center, nearly 70 million workers from the
Baby Boom generation will retire by 2025. This projected exodus has employers
and HR managers scrambling to find ways to attract, manage and retain workers
from the younger generations.
These
efforts to attract and retain have led to dozens of studies examining the
impact Generation Y employees are having on the workforce. The Randstad and
Millennial Branding study is one of the first to compare and contrast
generations Y and Z on a global scale. Examples of other studies focusing on
Generation Y include Deloitte LLP’s 2014
survey on Millennials in the workplace. The Deloitte study was released
in January during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The emphasis
on the importance of Millennials in the workplace is apparent from the comments
accompanying the study’s release.
“To
attract and retain talent business needs to show Millennials it is innovative
and in tune with their world view,” said Barry Salzberg, CEO of Deloitte LLP.
“By working together and combining their different skills, business,
governments and non-government organizations have an opportunity to ignite the
Millennial generation and make real progress in solving society’s problems.”
Deloitte followed its January release with a report examining the
impact of Generation Y on public policy in April 2014.
Another
example of interest in the impact of Generation Y on the workplace was an
August 2013 report from the Center for Women & Business (CWB) at Bentley
University. Researchers for the CWB took a different tack and examined the level
of workforce preparation among men and women in Generation Y. The
study concluded that women who are part of Generation Y tend to be more
prepared for work than their male counterparts.
Bill
Leonard is a senior writer for SHRM.