How to Be a Great Leader for Generation Z

You may have wondered recently…How to be a great leader for Generation Z? If you aspire to be a great people leader (and of course you do, because that’s why you’re reading this!), one of your top priorities should be to do your best to figure out how to connect with, engage, motivate, and lead all of your employees. Because people’s needs and interests can vary tremendously by age, knowing how to manage different generations is a critical element of management today. (It’s so important, in fact, that in addition to addressing it in multiple blog posts , keynote addresses , and training sessions , I’ve even written an entire book on this subject !)

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We’ve had several years to develop understandings of the Boomers, the members of Generation X, and the Millennials. But the newest kids on the block, the members of Generation Z , are such recent arrivals to the workforce that many managers aren’t quite sure yet how to work with them.?

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If you’re feeling uncertain about how to manage GenZ, you’re in the right place! Drawing on my own experiences with this cohort of workers and keeping an ear to the ground for what other business leaders have had to say on this subject, I’ve put together some guidelines that will help you manage your younger employees with confidence, with empathy, and with success!

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DO mentor them. DON’T micromanage them.

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Don’t tell people how to do things; tell them what to do and let them surprise you.

—George S. Patton

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For many members of GenZ, their current positions are their first “real” jobs. They’re eager to become full participants in the workforce, and they want to learn and succeed in their careers. At the same time, though, they want to be treated as trusted adults, not as children who need babysitting.?

Provide them with the guidance and mentoring they seek, but be sure not to micromanage them. Help them build the knowledge and skills they need to succeed, but give them room to try things on their own (and even make mistakes!).

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DO give plenty of feedback. DON’T focus only on the negatives.

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Management is the opportunity to help people become better people. Practiced that way, it’s a magnificent profession.

Generation Z employees value feedback as a tool that can help them learn and grow. But it’s important to remember that feedback doesn’t encompass just “here’s what you did wrong” (or “here’s what you need to improve”); it also includes “here’s what you did right.”?

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Even though these employees want advice on how to fix their failures, they also want recognition (and credit) for their successes. Find the balance between cheering them on and showing them how to learn from their mistakes. If you want to give GenZ feedback that is truly constructive, it needs to contain both positives and negatives.

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DO be open to learning from them. DON’T be afraid of their knowledge.

A manager can’t act like a role model. They need to be a role model.

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It’s true that Gen Zers are young employees who still have a lot to learn. But don’t lose sight of the fact that they also have a lot to offer (after all, that’s why they’ve been hired, right?). If you open yourself up to the possibility that you might learn something from them , and if you have the grace and humility to recognize when those opportunities arise, you can build even stronger connections with your young employees.

An acknowledgement such as “Oh wow, I did not know that!” doesn’t undermine your authority but can actually increase it by showing your employees that you are willing and flexible enough to learn from them. Demonstrating your own openness to learning new things models this behavior for your employees—who, ideally, will embrace that same attitude themselves.

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DO embrace technology. DON’T lose the human element.

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Technology is so much fun but we can drown in our technology. The fog of information can drive out knowledge.?

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As the first generation of true “digital natives,” the members of Generation Z have never known a time without the Internet, social media, smartphones, and the other tech innovations that have come to dominate our personal and professional interactions in recent years. To manage these employees well, you must be able to meet Gen Zers where they are by knowing how to leverage the tools and media that they prioritize for communication.?

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But keep in mind that even though Generation Zers can’t imagine a life (or a job) without that technology, they also value their workplace relationships and interpersonal interactions. Therefore, their managers need to find a balance between embracing the technology that this cohort uses in all aspects of their lives and nurturing a “human” approach to work.

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Want more tips? Finish reading here: https://valgrubbandassociates.com/how-to-be-a-great-leader-for-generation-z/

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