How To Lead Gen Z… (and Maybe Even Gen Alpha)

Generation Z (people born between 1997 and 2012) is starting to make an impact in organizations. In addition, they could help completely transform the workplace. For example, research by UK careers platform Bright Network found that three-quarters of young people support a four-day work week, with 48% believing it will become commonplace. Additionally, Gen Z is extremely entrepreneurial, with 79% saying it is desirable to have a part-time job outside of work.

So what should leaders know about leading this generation – and potentially the next generation, Gen Alpha?

1. Believe in the future

“Leadership for those born as the last century ended requires new styles of leadership,” says Bruno Lanvin, co-author of The Future is Young: How technology, talent and innovation can help us meet the most pressing challenges of our time. “We need inspiration and enthusiasm that transcends other values, including employee loyalty, as that has a different meaning in the gig economy.”

Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger wrote: “Faith in the future is the indispensable quality of successful leaders”. Lavin agrees with this view, saying, “To lead successfully, business and government leaders must champion and support the next generation. They must harness their creative vision and energy, and nurture their ambition in ways that reinvigorate their hopes of tackling global challenges and shaping a positive future.”

2. Start in a place where you accept their norm

“This generation is very active and accepts individuality and inclusion at every possible level,” says Salma Shah, an accredited coach, founder of the coaching and leadership development platform Mastering Your Power, and author of Diversity, inclusion and belonging in coaching: A practical guide.

She argues that Gen Z is driven by finding meaning and purpose in their work, while also being pragmatic, savvy, and entrepreneurial in their approach to the workplace. “Leading a generation with very different life experiences means starting from a place of acceptance of their norm and valuing their experiences,” she explains. “Understand and connect with their reality in a non-judgmental way. This generation will leave when they find themselves in organizations that pay lip service to diversity or fail to demonstrate the values ​​they claim to possess.”

3. Recognize their unique aspirations

Gen Z is coming of age in a world that is redefining work and goals as a result of the pandemic, recession and climate change. “Your career inspirations are not from people who have climbed the corporate ladder, but from people who have harnessed the power of technology to make a difference at scale,” says Matt Clifford, co-author of This is how you become a founder.

Clifford argues that younger people “want to work on things that they consider valuable, not just make their bosses look good”. He adds, “They want autonomy and purpose.”

According to Clifford, the ambitions of the most talented members of Gen Z no longer align with finance, law, government, or the traditional careers that talented young people pursued in the past. “Their ambition is to build things – products, teams, companies – that matter,” he says. “It’s not our job to lead them; it is meant to make them lead themselves.”

4. Think of them as “The Super Empathy Generation”

“Gen Z can, of course, see through the eyes of someone else — a character, an avatar, a boss who is entirely different from them — in a way far superior to any other generation,” says Mimi Nicklin, CEO of inclusive creative agency Freedm . and author of softening of the edge.

Nicklin believes that emotional intelligence is Gen Z’s currency. “They’re a mature, self-directed, imaginative, open-minded group, and they’re driven by community, ‘we’ over ‘me,'” she says. “They are perhaps the most nimble, connected, and insightful people we’ve seen to date. To guide them, we must remember.”

5. Don’t push them around

“Gen Z is a contradictory cohort – they’re not willing to be pushed around in the workplace or forced to work too hard,” says Jeremy Myerson, director of the WORKTECH Academy membership network, Professor Emeritus of Design at the Royal College of Art in London and Co -Author of Unworking: The reinvention of the modern office. He points out that this generation grew up watching their parents and friends lose their jobs and homes during the great financial crisis of 2007-2009.

In addition, Generation Z has an unparalleled relationship with technology. “This is the TikTok generation,” Myerson notes. “Workplaces without a video-first approach will suffer in recruitment.”

6. Know that this generation will not fall for greenwashing

Generation Z consumers are aware of the power of social media. They also know that organizations can use this channel for greenwashing purposes, argues Eric Archambeau, engineer, entrepreneur and author of Tastes the earth.

“Of course, leaders want to encourage the positive steps they’re taking to be more socially responsible, but Gen Z consumers and employees might pause to consider the broader implications before committing to such marketing,” says Archambeau.

He believes leaders shouldn’t wait for scandalous practices to be uncovered and should instead use radical transparency to “reconcile Gen Z consumers and workers with the business and political leaders that many currently distrust.”

7. Launch a next generation advisory board

The next generation challenges the traditional capitalist model and expects corporations to have a purpose that involves solving societal problems. “They have a distinct value system based on convenience, choice, value for money, inclusivity, sustainability, hyper-personalization and customization, renting rather than buying, experiences rather than assets, and experiences rather than jobs,” says Professor Robert Wigley, Chair of Banking Trade Association UK Finance and the author of Born Digital: The Story of a Distracted Generation. He also points out that Generation Z may have very different attitudes towards gender, marriage and sexuality than previous generations.

“Make no mistake, these changes are short-term or minor,” he says. “Interact with Gen Z through youth customer focus groups, next-gen advisory panels, and peer surveys to understand their views. When the average age of your board of directors is in their 50s and that of your employees and customers are in their 20s or 30s, are you really in touch with the digital wallet that is powering the future of your company?”