How do Employers attract and retain Millennials and Gen Z talent?

Recently, I looked at the effects an organisation's strong ESG performance can have on talent attraction and retention.?

What really got me thinking was the generational differences and the emphasis, in particular, that Millennials and Gen Z place on environmental and social factors compared to the generations that have come before them (apart from my existential crisis that there's a whole generation after mine, who let that happen?!).

By 2029, Millennials and Gen Z will make up 72% of the world's workforce and already:

• 40% of Millennials have accepted one job offer over another because that company was perceived to be more environmentally sustainable?
• Companies most attractive to students and young professionals have ESG scores 25% higher than the global average.??
• More than half of Gen Z (54%) would take a paycut to join a firm that reflected their ethos
• 60 % of Gen Z’s would stay at a firm longer and be more likely to recommend it as a good place to work if that firm made stretching ESG commitments (compared to the national average of 52%)

So what other strategies could companies employ to attract Millennial and Gen Z talent?

When thinking about how to attract these generations, you have to take stock of what they want and what is important to them.

‘Younger’ generations no longer place the same importance on financial stability and job security as the generations that have come before them.?

According to a survey by management consultancy Deloitte, Gen Z consider the following factors when choosing between new jobs:?

• Good work life balance?
• Learning and Development Opportunities?
• Salary + other benefits
• Sense of Meaningfulness at work
• Flexible working model

Work Life Balance and Flexible Working Model

There has been a philosophical shift within Millennials and Gen Zs attitude to work. Rather than wanting to find a firm to work for, they want to find an employer that works for them.

A 2022 Workmonitor survey conducted by global recruitment company Randstad found that 40% of Millennials and Gen Zs said they would quit a job because it didn’t fit in with their personal lives, 75% believe that flexible work schedules is a significant consideration when choosing a employer and almost two-thirds say that they don’t prefer the traditional 9-5 work schedule.?

Furthermore, Deloitte's survey showed that hybrid or remote-working is the preferred working mode. 75% of Millennials and 66% of Gen Zs who currently work in an office said that they wished that they could work remotely or have a hybrid solution.?

Career Development

Beyond a job that complements their lifestyle, 87 % of millennials highlight career development and growth as a key aspect of their jobs (compared to 69 % of non-millennials).

Initiatives like a fast - track promotion structure, increasing frequency of promotions, mentorship (68% of Millennials who intend to stay at their current employers have a formal mentor and conversely, only 32% of those who are not intending to stay have a mentor) and access to executive facetime could go some way to addressing this desire.?

Further to ‘younger’ workers expecting employers to provide professional development opportunities, 83% of Gen Z job seekers look to their employer to help develop “soft” skills like leadership, communication and management.?

They are also less concerned with ‘titles’, rather, prefer to measure success through achievements. Providing a variety of projects and initiatives and celebrating the success of them can give these opportunities to Millennials and Gen Z’s that they are seeking while helping to promote non-linear career paths by developing wider skillsets.?

Salary and other Benefits?

Not all organisations can offer market leading salaries and as already discussed, ‘younger’ candidates also highly value other factors, such as, flexible working models and a company ethos that aligns with their own.?

However, companies can get creative with benefits that offer specific appeal to Gen Z and Millennials. For example, providing Millennials and Gen Z with the tools, resources and support to better manage debt.

Gen Zs are set to be the most educated generation yet. Putting the obvious positives to one side, this leaves a generation saddled with university debt, coupled with facing financial constraints of getting onto the property ladder that were much higher than the previous generations faced.?

As a result, many would place more value in paying off student loans and saving for a deposit over cultivating a healthy pension.?

Thankfully, the perceptions of traditional work-family dynamics are being dismantled, with millennials almost twice as likely as Baby Boomers (born 1946 to 1964) to have both spouses in full time work.?

Employers have the opportunity to give support and flexibility to working families through schemes such as onsite childcare, enhanced maternity, paternity and shared parental leave and some firms are even offering pet insurance (sign me up!).??

So how successful are companies currently at attracting and retaining Millennials and Gen Z talent??

According to a survey conducted by the Allegis Group, not very. Nearly 70% of HR decision makers surveyed felt that their organisation fell short when delivering benefits specifically embraced by Millennials and Gen Z.?

Furthermore, Gen Z is the most racially and ethnically diverse generation so far, but the evidence is that employers EVP are failing to sufficiently reflect this:

Only 17% of organisations consider Diversity and Inclusion as key part of their Employer Value Proposition strategy, 79% of Diversity and Inclusion programs are not supported with a clear well defined strategy and, ultimately, 88% do not believe that their diversity and inclusion program helps them to attract Millennial and Gen Z talent.?

So what can my company do to attract Millennials and Gen Z talent?

When evaluating how your Employee Value Proposition might be received by Millennials and Gen Z talent, consider:?

• Could your workplace model be made more flexible to help better fit your employees work life in with their personal life? Consider both your workplace/ hybrid offering and flexibility around work hours.?
• Does your company offer clear and rapid career progression? How can you recognise and reward employee progression?
• Do your employees have opportunities to holistically develop their skills? Both core skills and soft skills??
• Do your employees have access to mentorship and face-time with senior executives??
• Are your employee benefits catered to the specific needs of Millennials and Gen Z’s?
• How successful are you at attracting diverse talent? Is your Diversity & Inclusion strategy well understood and have clear success metrics??

In my personal opinion, it is not a question of how can Millennials and Gen Z (in particular) adapt to the workplace, rather, how can companies and the workplace adapt to get the best out of these generations?

P.s. If you are interested in reading my previous article, "ESG, Talent Attraction and Employee Retention", click here: https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/esg-talent-attraction-employee-retention-stuart-grimmond/

Hi! I am a Senior Talent Associate at fscom, a specialist Governance, Risk and Compliance consultancy that services the Fintech and Investments market across the UK and Ireland.

The views contained this article are my own and not an official reflection of my work with fscom.

If you are a regulatory compliance or financial crime professional and interested in opportunities with fscom, or the fintech market, reach out to [email protected]