With Clarity

Marla Feldman McGraw, assistant dean, career management, Broad College of Business, Michigan State University

I’m Generation X. They said we were slackers, and now what do you hear? Gen X is the hardest-working generation. So, there are misconceptions about Gen Z, such as the belief that they don’t work hard.

I have a team of 16, and I find Gen Z colleagues fantastic. They’re super talented, fun to work with and self-starters.

You have to be open, honest and transparent with them and respect that they don’t expect their entire lives to be centered on work. That doesn’t mean that they won’t work hard or be loyal. They are both of those things, but they also have an expectation that they’ll have some sort of personal life, that they have a lot of hobbies or interests or side gigs that they are invested in.

We, those not part of Gen Z, may have different ideas of professionalism in the workplace. For example, why doesn’t this group know to take out both earbuds during a conversation? Gen Z folks entering their first professional experience might not have the same expectations, so it’s not a matter of ill manners or bad intent; it’s just that they don’t know and need to be told what the expectations are.

“Younger generations are not afraid of hearing feedback, either. So be honest with them about expectations. Don’t assume that they’ll intuitively understand or know what’s important to you.”
Marla Feldman McGraw, Assistant Dean, Career Management, Broad College of Business, Michigan State University

I often coach employers to be really clear about all expectations. Do people come in at 8:30 or 9? What time do they leave? Write down your unwritten rules—the things younger generations might not know right away—the attire, when they’re supposed to be logged in, whether their cameras should be on during calls.

That includes being upfront during hiring. Have a clear job description. Let them know exactly how long it’s going to take to make a decision and whether they’ll be hearing from you if they don’t get the job.

Younger generations are not afraid of hearing feedback, either. So be honest with them about expectations. Don’t assume that they’ll intuitively understand or know what’s important to you.

Younger generations are also looking to make a contribution. They don’t necessarily want immediate recognition, but they want to feel like they’re making a difference.

Reverse mentoring has caught on as a way for younger and older generations to connect. Gen Z has a lot of knowledge and skills that could be really useful for older generations, and they’re looking to share that in the workplace. Gen Z can teach themselves things on YouTube, and come to you and say, “Hey, I just figured out this new way to do this thing, can we think about implementing that?”

What works today might not work the next year, and expectations and generations continue to change. So be nimble and listen to all your employees so you can get a sense of where you should be going next.

People Are People

Cam Marston, author and keynote speaker on generational management

Senior generations have worried about younger generations forever. This is not new to our times. In fact, I kind of say tongue-in-cheek: I’m pretty sure Adam and Eve looked at Cain and Abel and said, “Holy crap, kids these days!”

What senior generations are getting wrong is thinking that the way they do business or communicate needs to completely change. It doesn’t. There needs to be some acknowledgment of subtly different value systems, but the fear that this is a Chicken Little moment and the sky is falling is overblown.

We need to keep the perspective that time, wisdom and maturity typically cause people to become more similar than different. Younger workers often enter looking or sounding different, but time in the workplace, growing up and wisdom—I call all that getting beaten up—tends to make people more similar.

Having said that everything’s going to be the same, young people do tend to get bored or frustrated when their career path isn’t clear to them. Succession planning is a conversation that I would encourage leaders to have sooner than later—no promises being made—but just to say your skills, time and effort will have value as you take on more responsibilities. Reaffirming that their time spent has purpose beyond the moment, beyond the next paycheck.

One of the big mistakes that I see, particularly in recruiting and retention, is focusing on your history: “We’ve been around for 100 years, and here’s a laundry list of noteworthy accomplishments.” I find that senior leaders tend to point to the past to build credibility. But when young people enter the workplace, they want to hear descriptions of who they’ll become. So talk to them about who the organization is, how it will change as they grow in the job, and what their future and the company’s future may look like.

“I find that senior leaders tend to point to the past to build credibility. But when young people enter the workplace, they want to hear descriptions of who they’ll become.”
Cam Marston, Author and Keynote Speaker on generational management

Leaders can speak directly to younger workers this way without offending older generations. I’m a big fan of: You dance with the people who brought you. And the senior leaders are the ones who brought you. Respect their wisdom. Respect their stories. Let them talk. Let them lead. And at the same time, talk to the younger ones about their growth and future.

This flexibility is important. You have to be adaptable to work with older and younger generations. You have to straddle that balance beam if you want to create a better workplace—and a better customer base. Cultural differences are only a liability in that senior leadership has to learn and change their behavior, and that requires effort. Some may refuse to do it or drag their feet, and they will face challenges.

But this focus on career growth—along with the desire for flexibility, purpose and work-life balance—I don’t think these ideals are going away. In a recessionary economy, where you’re having a hard time finding a job or are worried about keeping a job, workers might not expect such opportunities. But as long as the economy is okay, those ideas will remain important.

Ultimately, this generational conversation has existed for a while. The truth is, and I hate to say it because people will stop hiring me, but people are people, and I don’t think we’ve changed all that much since the ancient Greeks. You just have to figure out what motivates each different employee.