Generation Z - The Professionals of the future

Generation Z - The Professionals of the future

The world's first global and digital generation is about to grow up and start work. As with all new generations, Generation Z will trigger changes in various social and corporate systems, including the world of work.

As with everything else, when planning for a successful future, it is important to understand who they are and what they are about.

Who belongs to this generation

There are many sites that give a precise description of generational theory.?Generation Z are the young workers and future workers of today's labour market. Although there is no exact consensus, young people born between 1995 and 2010 are typically classified as this generation.

What characterises them

They have grown up being able to talk to anyone anywhere in the world at a moment's notice, and have done so throughout their lives through a selection of social media networks.

They are also referred to as neo-digital natives alongside Generation Z.

Generation Z is the first generation for whom the extraordinary technological achievements of the last 20th century have simply become a normal part of life. They will undoubtedly experience the same huge technological changes in their adult lives as baby boomers, Generation X and millennials did in theirs, but Generation Z may be better able to adapt and cope with them because of their early experiences.

How they differ from previous generations

At present, members of Generation X and Generation Y make up the largest share of the labour market.

The mentality of these generations is radically different, one reason being that they started working in different labour market environments. The baby boom generation has entered a more relaxed social and economic situation. At that time, they had predetermined working hours, knew the management personally and did not only meet the boss through video conferences.

Then there are the members of Generation X, who found themselves confronted with unlimited working hours instead of the concept of overtime. Multinational companies have brought with them a new workplace culture, one of the consequences of which is the emergence of workplace anxiety and competition as a constant feature of work.

Generation Y is also active and no longer wants to be on call every day of the week. Instead, they prefer to change jobs, even though they are aware of the fact that they have to sell themselves in a highly saturated and demanding labour market.

However, the world is about to enter the new Generation Z, which has a different set of values. They are the children and students of today and the workers and managers of tomorrow.

The future generation is also very different from the previous ones in that it is a digital generation, they are the "dotcom" kids, they are born into a digital world and they take all digital tools for granted, they treat them not only as an addition to people's daily lives but as an integral part of them. Today's young people live in virtual communities, spend most of their free time online and build their relationships on social networking sites.

The workplace characters of Generation Z

By the time they grow up, the digital generation will have radically transformed the labour market. Demand for labour will also increase significantly compared to the past, while supply will be greatly reduced, leading to increased competition between employers, transforming the supply side of the labour market.

One of the best areas for exploring generational differences is the issue of workplace loyalty, and there are significant differences. While Generation Xers place a strong emphasis on earnings, i.e. they are more likely to be more committed to a job if there are adequate financial rewards, Generation Yers are more concerned with human relations. The youngest, on the other hand, tend to link loyalty to a particular job rather than to personal relationships. At the same time, team spirit is important to them, as is the opportunity to develop. In fact, in the constant flow of information offered by the digital world, constant development is now a basic requirement.

This generation will also be a generation of identity expression, which means that in a decade or two, the companies that will be successful will be those that can attract the identity of individuals.

In practice, this means that in a successful company, there should be no divergence between the values pursued by the company and those communicated to outsiders.

The company must present the image of itself as it really is. In other words, the corporate image will play a major role in achieving this identification between the company as an identity and the individual as an identity.

They are most likely to want a leader who is people-oriented, fair, has good communication skills and is charismatic. It is important for them that the boss does not watch their every move, but rather supports them as a mentor.

For Generation Z, the opportunity for advancement and development comes first. This is followed by listening to and using their ideas. They won't respect leaders if they don't get respect. They want to understand the decisions, they need all the information because they want to know that the decisions are definitely right for everyone.

They will be aware. They will want to follow real people with real values.

Curiosity and ingenuity are key characteristics of today's young workers and career starters. Generation Z is in search of knowledge and is able to extract information from as many sources as possible.

Young workers are always looking for new challenges. They can be given tasks requiring different skills and abilities.?This way they will not get bored quickly.

Because they have grown up in an age where they are exposed to as many daily stimuli as another person 100 years ago in 100 years, the most important challenge for the future leader will be to engage their attention with inspiring tasks that eliminate distractions and diversions.

In this area, and even in learning and working, increasingly fragmented attention is the biggest challenge for the future.

In today's world, the most informed person is no longer the one who has access to the most information, as our parents had experienced in previous decades.

The key challenge now is how to filter impulses to exclude the destructive and keep the productive interaction.

Multitasking, divided attention, works against focus and concentration, and it also causes constant stress, making it easier for burnout to set in even in younger people.