Loyalty is a two-way street

Your workforce can help you achieve your goals, if you win their loyalty. Gen Z employees see the need for companies to respond and transform to the changes AI will introduce. Gen Z employees also may consider their firm unprepared for disruption and change that AI will bring in the future, even questioning the firm’s ability survive into the next decade.

Their recognition of this challenge makes Gen Z employees strong candidates to help implement changes in the workforce such as upskilling and adopting new technologies. Gen Z employees are a source of creativity, energy innovation and the future of the workforce. But leaders will have to entice them because without incentives, a significant number of high performers will change jobs. If leaders want to win their loyalty, they need to earn it by implementing specific strategies.?

1.???? Show you’re willing to invest in their development?

Gen Z employees know reinvention is vital both for the organization and employees. This can mean giving workers options like on-the-job training, expanded tuition reimbursement, opportunities to learn skills they’re interested including courses in machine learning, natural language processing, computer vision, robotics, and expert systems.

2.???? Include them in your AI planning

Typically, Gen Z employees are more positive about technology than other age groups, with a significant percentage saying that it will create new job opportunities for them, than the other employees. Use their enthusiasm for AI by creating ways for them to participate in AI initiatives, such as brainstorming groups centered around how to use AI in the firm's day-to-day work.

3.???? Be real about societal impact and values

Gen Z employees want meaningful work, and seek organizations that are focusing on more than the bottom line. Leaders need to be candid about progress, or lack of it, toward non-financial objectives. That could mean enhanced reporting about performance against ESG, diversity, and net-zero benchmarks which the firm has targeted for improvement.??

4.???? Offer competitive compensation

A significant percentage of gen Z employees take on outside work or second jobs as a response to increases on the cost-of-living. Review your compensation packages to ensure that they’re competitive and consider cost-of-living or baseline salary increases to signal that you value them and what to retain your best employees.