Incentivizing the Young: Beyond Salary Expectations
Certainly, GenZ has caught a lot of flack on the job market, and not all of it has to do with them being young. With salary success defined in some cases with absurd and lofty expectations (close to $600K a year to achieve “financial success”), compared with Millennials who view the number as closer to $180,000. Perhaps this points directly at the maturity gap—assertions from the C-suite that “26 is the new 18”, but it could also point to a pessimism about the lengths required to be successful in the modern market. Research shows that the top title for GenZ is “founder”, with 66.6% of the 18-35 age group working at least one side gig (or planning to). The side gig? Certainly seeming more necessary as their expectations of salary fall $30,000 of the average Gen Z post-graduation job market. This also connects to complaints about a 9-5 only workforce disinterested in their job: in an economy where their 9-5 may dissolve at any time, they are de-prioritizing those work places in place of self-care, but also the pursuit of multiple sources of income. What other generations see as lazy disinterest may in fact be astute perceptions of the economy, and their forays into the work force may be teaching them lessons that their supervisors don’t realize they’re teaching.
We see something similar in ant colonies and beehives: some workers will intentionally work in different ways that don’t create the highest short-term productivity. Their reasoning? During periods of crisis, they exist as reserves for the rest of the colony and step in when the rest of the system collapses. Without them, a period of burnout turns into a disaster.
In a recent podcast by the Harvard Business Review, Tim Elmore (author of The Future Begins with Z; Nine Strategies to Lead Generation Z as they Disrupt the Workplace), speaks about the myriad ways in which GenZ behavior and workplace dispositions are reactive to the world they see around them: they aren’t leaving at 5pm to laze around, but to care for an increasing number of aging Boomer and GenX parents, or more likely, to go to a second job. Their impatience and “arrogance” within the workplace come from an upbringing that is skeptical of systems some have called “disillusionomics,” a generation adjusting to an ever-changing (and often unknown) financial future. Elmore directly calls out this arrogance as “leadership sandpaper”: that is, GenZ have no patience for bureaucratic systems, inefficiencies, or bad personalities among their managers. So what does Elmore recommend?
Using Onboarding as a Career Launchpoint. Take the time to get to know what the employee wants, both long term and short term. Introduce them to potential mentors, and consider that you might be building a future valuable asset for your company, rather than simply discovering a disposable “commodity.”
Take the Time to Find the Why. Previous generations may be more okay with hierarchy and bureaucracy (or at least pretended to be), but GenZ are decidedly curious about processes and systems, and may be able to bring new ideas to the table. What may be seen as audacity might actually be an opportunity to update concepts like value and mission for a modern market and economy. When it comes to their expectations of sudden success or skyrocketing salaries, it is important to explain why proper training and experience take time, and that in many ways this process is unskippable.
Listen First. This is especially true when it comes to reprimands and course corrections. Guidance and training can only come once supervisors have earned the trust first by asking, rather than simply asserting fault. The thought process needs to be understood before proper coaching can happen (even if this process takes longer). Elmore quotes John Wooden: “The more you know, the harder it is to listen.” First appear as a person by asking how they are doing and seeing them as a person before seeing them as a worker.
Seek to Make Work Enjoyable Again. Elmore speaks about the dichotomy of work versus play: we pay workers to work, not to enjoy the experience. He believes this may be an incorrect notion. People are passionate about their hobbies, and care more about outcomes. If young people believe in the larger vision or the mission of the company, and develop strong relationships with their co-workers, the company benefits. As Elmore says: “Everyone is more important than their job. No one is more important than the mission.”
Desire to be part of a complex working system is how bees determine their appetite: foragers gather not based on their personal hunger needs, but those of their entire colony. Whereas solitary insects operate based on only their own metabolic and motivational systems, social signals act directly on appetite circuits in individual bees, turning a bee’s food-seeking behavior towards the larger cause of colony nutritional needs.
One major concern for GenZ is an expectation that the companies they work for will take positions on social issues and climate change. Seeing employers who are willing to invest in GenZ workers as future “currencies” (as Elmore calls them) may involve directly seeking to tackle the most complicated problems of our time. It is up to modern leadership to determine for themselves how they can retain this new crop of potentially market-changing workers, and what they will do to prove their commitment to these important causes.
To learn more about creating rich and sustainability-conscious environments for your
workers and the services that Free Range Beehive offers, visit
http://www.freerangebeehives.com/ or give us a call at (720) 320-5517
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Gen Z Doesn’t Want a Participation Trophy—They Want Work That Matters.
We’ve talked in the past about how bees take on different roles as they age, and about the amazing effect external variables can have on their duties and roles (older bees may take on the work of younger bees in emergency situations, for example). Like bees, humans are certainly susceptible to sharing values and perceptions based on the time in which they were born and the experiences that they’ve had. Who we are and what we’ve experienced, after all, has a distinct and unique effect on our perspectives of the world. Gen Z, at 29 years old, now outnumber baby boomers in the workforce. As Gen X CEOs are replaced, they are more being replaced (at least statistically) by Millennials rather than Gen Xers. Why is this the case?
If we are to believe generational theory, external experiences and historical events generally factor into the beliefs and perspectives held by generations, especially as they are coming of age. Certainly, there are limits to this way of thinking, as each person lives their own subjective experience (and differences may be more attributable to period of life than generational experience), and is affected not just by large historical events but also personal ones.
Boomers, named for the post-World War II baby boom (1946 to 1964) that coincided with booms in the economy. Their work experience, opportunities for growth, and ability to afford the trappings of middle class suburban lifestyle led to the creation of a sub-generation, Generation Jones, who did not inherit the full boom of early Boomers but did inherit those expectations (leading to the phrase "Keeping up with the Joneses”) Still, this was a generation that watched war live for the first time on television, watched a president resign in a corruption scandal, and experienced the high-inflation and high employment (stagflation) of the 1970s, events that helped to definitively unravel the feelings of post-war optimism. Boomer’s ideas of success and identity became deeply tied to their occupation (and the salary and home it brought)—even to the point of being unwilling to give up either in the present. Many Generation Jones Boomers found their prime earning years sabotaged by the 2008 housing crisis, and as one sociologist suggests, by an earlier generational competitive crush for schooling and jobs caused by being part of such a large generation. The one big difference between them and later generations? Housing was affordable enough to make them wealthy, and provide a stopgap against future economic disarray.
GenX (born between 1965 and 1980), meanwhile, experienced much turbulence during their formative years related to both technology and economics: the 1987 stock market crash, the dot com crash, and the Great Recession (in which they happened to be the bag-holders for 75% of homes purchased 2000 or later). With six times more debt on average and 45% of their wealth vanishing post 2008, this generation learned “self-sufficiency, resourcefulness, and authenticity,” but their doubtfulness and skepticism has lowered their chances of entering true leadership rules (and seconded them often to No. 2 positions). Adaptability combined with a loyalty to companies may be to blame here: during the great resignation, they were the generation least likely to have gotten fired or to have lost their job, even if leaving might have resulted in high pay or better opportunities. Even their nickname, the latch-key generation, puts them in a position of deference to absent authority.
Meanwhile, Millennials (1981-1996), have been described in many unsavory ways: self-absorbed, lazy, seeking promotion (without any accompanying accomplishments). Though they were also the first generation to become digital natives (as they experienced a substantial technological growth wave), which created a comfortability with new technology in which they became de-facto pioneers. As frequent historical upheavals have left this generation without a clear status quo, they have become not only adaptable, but also more pragmatic than previous generations: more willing to quit and job hop, more educated, more willing to take a pay cut for work/life balance, and less likely to be engaged at work if they don’t find the work purposeful and in alignment with their values.
Gen Z (1996 and 2010) seems to be continuing trends of deeply held individualism, adaptability, and remarkably different values and beliefs than previous generations. They likely spent some of their youth during COVID, which, alongside large political upheavals and demonstrations, led to a generation more willing to share political views at work, and expect their own companies to do the same. The massive social upheavals have also led to high levels of “climate anxiety” alongside pessimism about their economic futures, but also a personal responsibility to get engaged at an individual level. Some theories believe that GenZ is simply taking the slow road to get to where previous generations have ended up, delaying marriage and continuing to live at home until they're able to build a financial nest egg. But others believe their values have formed into a lasting skepticism of norms, capitalism, and even the idea of the American Dream: without the promise of promotion, reward, or even positive performance, they are less interested in “being seen” sitting at their desk and prefer to be seen accomplishing goals; they are less likely to accept “this is how we’ve always done it” and are more likely to have a creative new idea for how something could be changed. Certainly previous generations also struggled with anxiety, but Gen Z might be the first generation to feel comfortable speaking about therapy, and putting their mental health first. Certainly some of these are causal effects of living through (and being educated within) the COVID pandemic: studies show that Gen Z may be less resilient, but more adaptable and with higher levels of openess to change and self-improvement (when compared to Gen X and even Millennials): if they don’t like their company’s vision or direction, they will speak up about it. If something isn’t working for them, they will say so. This skeptical, questioning attitude—if properly harnessed and encouraged—could lead to positive industry-wide upheavals.
Certainly, none of these are destined, unchangeable attributes. But when companies consider the experiences of new generations, there are lessons to be learned about how to manage, how to retain, and how to get the best out of each worker. Gen Z may be getting tapped for CEO roles because they buck convention and orthodoxy, which is certainly needed in an economy where everything is up for grabs. But certainly this is more than a day-long “brainstorming session” with wall-sized post-it notes: they must actively become involved in decision making, as they won't simply settle for “lip service” by their companies when it comes to social and environmental issues: they’ll just walk.
Both bees and humans can change within their job - bees according to a schedule, humans based upon merit. Similar to humans, bees find themselves adjusting to and filling the roles as needed, becoming workers based on biological necessity. What a CEO sees outside their window might be quite different from that of his Millennial or GenZ employees. To the CEO, solar panels, energy-efficient or sustainable materials, or on-site beehives might be part of an ESG-oriented mission statement. But to a Millennial or GenZ, such a movement is a statement of optimism: a strong belief in the future!
To learn more about the intersection of bees and business, follow us on LinkedIn:
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To learn more about creating rich and sustainability-conscious environments for your
workers and the services that Free Range Beehive offers, visit:
http://www.freerangebeehives.com/ or give us a call at (720) 320-5517
What Makes Good Workers Leave?
Almost a third of GenZ and millennials chose not to attend college or university, according to this Deloitte Report. For some, it is a financial concern, and for others, the payoff no longer seems worth it. According to one source, only one-third of recent graduates believe their education was worth the cost. All of this occurs while entry-level roles not only demand college degrees but also years of experience and 58% of Gen Z graduates were still looking for full-time work as of last July (up from 25% from previous years). Whether it is competing for entry level jobs with AI agents, or using automations to auto-fill job applications which are auto-rejected by a company’s AI automation, what is an entire generation of new workers supposed to do with the landscape of the workplace rapidly changing underneath their feet?
Almost a third of GenZ and millennials chose not to attend college or university, according to this Deloitte Report. For some, it is a financial concern, and for others, the payoff no longer seems worth it. According to one source, only one-third of recent graduates believe their education was worth the cost. All of this occurs while entry-level roles not only demand college degrees but also years of experience and 58% of Gen Z graduates were still looking for full-time work as of last July (up from 25% from previous years). Whether it is competing for entry level jobs with AI agents, or using automations to auto-fill job applications which are auto-rejected by a company’s AI automation, what is an entire generation of new workers supposed to do with the landscape of the workplace rapidly changing underneath their feet?
If we are to take another lesson from bees, the solution is simple: move on. We need to differentiate between the regular migrations of bees and what is called “absconding”. During a migration, bees receive advanced notice and prep for moves based on changes in the amount of available resources. Some bees, like Apis dorsata (the rock bee from South Asia) and Apis laboriosa (the Himalayan giant honey bee), might migrate twice a year. Others, like the humble bumblebee (Bombus latreille) do more than just migrate: they change their behavior, life cycle, and even biology in order to adapt to climate change. What sorts of significant adaptations will companies have to make in order to make use of this new, large work force?
Embrace the Apprenticeship as a Retention Program. Companies need to once again start investing, and “train up” the skills they are searching for, instead of hoping some other company will bear this burden. Expecting someone else to invest in an employee creates a shell game where GenZ and Millennial employees stay under-skilled and underpaid, and the hiring funnel disappears. If a company only views an employee’s upskilling as an individual effort, there is a danger that employees will begin to think of themselves that way too. Investment builds loyalty. But treat an employee like a mercenary and notice how quickly that loyalty can shift.
Reduce Applicant Volume to Trade Breadth for Depth Companies pay to post on job boards that then require them to pay to use Automated Tracking Systems (ATS) or Recruitment Management Systems (RMS) to manage the excessive amount of applications, leading to an inadvertent filtering out of unorthodox candidates. As filters hone in on skillsets and keywords (admittedly created by the humans running the software), they may leave nuanced reading of resumes out. IF ATS/RMS systems must be used, use “affirmative” filters (to tease out positive skills) rather than “negative” filters that exclude (sometimes based on misinterpretation). Companies should consider making fewer postings, with job descriptions that were rewritten within the past six months based on what the previous position holder did, rather than what skills would be nice to have. (Entering into a cycle of annual job duty review can also create ladders as employees take on more work, or create clear parameters for performance reviews.) As for hiring, less may be more: Read 50 resumes well, rather than worrying that your ATS/RMS missed the diamond in the rough within 1,500 applications.
Onboard Like You Expect Them to Stay. 20% of employee turnover happens in the first 45 days. GenZ and Millennial workers will quickly make decisions based on the presence (or absence) of value alignment within their workplace. According to the Harvard Business Review, onboarding needs to be both practical, technical and social: ID cards and norms, accountabilities and time-based goals, and building rapport with the team through formal and informal conversations. Mentorship, whether formal or informal, improves employee retention. Discussions about the type of climate that an employee will be coming into—macro and micro context that will help them understand where their role fits in the goals of the company—help an employee to adapt into the kind of employee that the company needs.
A company might be able to, like a beehive, prep a complete product or service shift based on changing industry conditions, but can be caught flat-footed by sudden, external shocks. New environmental conditions require different workforce philosophies, which in some cases may be a reversion back to fundamentals. Still, in an ever-changing climate, it is helpful to show your employees that you are willing to structure change. Certainly, GenZ and Millennial workers are looking at their company’s administration, and connecting the dots between their actions and what they value.
To learn more about the intersection of bees and business, follow us on LinkedIn:
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To learn more about creating rich and sustainability-conscious environments for your
workers and the services that Free Range Beehive offers, visit
http://www.freerangebeehives.com/ or give us a call at (720) 320-5517
The Hive Mind at Work
What makes GenZ and Millennial workers stay at jobs?
We’ve talked in the past about how bees perform different tasks as they age. With bees, genetics and pheromones dictate their job duties, and it is built into the hive for job changes to occur at set periods of time. But just as bees are under external environmental threats, the future of work for GenZ and Millennials is also tenuous. A recent report from Deloitte reveals many disconnects between GenZ and Millennials workers and the leadership at their companies where they work. These communication breakdowns lead to lower retention and a reduced degree of effort (the phenomena of quiet quitting, Bare-Minimum Mondays), in what might actually be problems related to work/life balance and a lack of opportunities for growth. Whereas current company leaders might see this sort of behavior as disloyal, it reminds us of a similar situation that occurs naturally within the world of bees: the swarm.
A swarm occurs, as we have written previously, when a beehive becomes too overcrowded. Imagine a hive with too many workers, elbowing into each other in the dark. There are not enough resources to go around, and too many mouths to feed. Some bees sense injury or sickness from some in their hive, raising the urgency of the situation. Suddenly, one forager’s pheromones give a signal: a new, abundant source of nectar. Suddenly the bees are activated: the nurse bees begin making new swarm cells, the start of making a new queen to create a new hive. In nature, this potential promise of better outcomes can lead to about half the hive workers leaving with their queen to find a new home. Similarly, 9 out of 10 GenZ and millennial workers surveyed by Harvard Business Review expressed that they were overwhelmed with their workloads in the past month due to extended periods of heavy workload, conflicting communications, or a lack of autonomy; it’s no wonder GenZ and millennial workers are already considering leaving their companies in the next two years (31% of GenZ and 17% of Millennials).
What happens if a beekeeper does not want their bees to swarm? They might intentionally make a “split:” remove the existing queen and a fraction of the workers and transport to a new hive location, while allowing the existing hive to raise a new queen. What’s the equivalent of this in the working world? Here we can again turn to Deloitte’s survey: nearly one third of Gen Zs and Millennials want more of their working time allotted to in-house learning programs, mentorship, and peer learning opportunities. Are there projects that can be given to new hires to facilitate learning, alongside mentorship efforts that might root out the next generation of company leadership? In the hive, you don’t find leadership of a hive, but create it through developing larvae at the earliest stages.
It’s clear then why so few GenZ and Millennials are seeking leadership roles (only 6% of those surveyed by Deloitte). So what else could leaders do to not only retain GenZ and Millennial talent, but help these generations flourish in the workplace? I’d like to hammer home the idea that bees are intentional with their spits and companies should be intentional too:
· Every job should have a ladder. Bees are incredible at moving from simple to more complex tasks as they mature: Larvae focus on their own growth before moving on to hive administrative tasks—wax production, food storage, comb building, nectar processing—then guarding the hive, before becoming strategically-focused foragers. Within your company, is it clear what the next step on the ladder is? Is there even a ladder?
· Keep Communication Clear and Prevalent. Social structure is regulated both by the queen’s pheromones and the workers: the queen sends out signals to the hive that “everything is ok”, and individual bees use pheromones for good news (nectar) or bad (dangers, sickness, or injury). As a company, what signals is your leadership sending out to the company to keep things calm (even during a crisis)? Are you allowing your foragers to call out potential opportunities and threats? Are those signals getting where they need to go?
· Create an environment that is ripe for growth. Leadership in the hive is planned, not sudden or spontaneous. Nurse bees pour resources in a coordinated effort to raise up a new queen. Is your company building mentorship programs that show your workers your intent to move them into leadership positions? How can you show a commitment to perpetual learning that proves you are invested in your work force?
· Acknowledge that values factor heavily into decision-making. At least half of GenZ and millennial populations believe that doing meaningful work is important. More than 60% of each population is willing to pay more for ecologically sustainable products or services; at least 20% of each population research a company’s global or environmental impact policies before accepting a new job. Is your company working to make their mission, vision, and values clear to your laborers in a way that even your “worker bees” can understand? How does your company retain workers who are concerned about the future of the environment?
Undoubtedly the long view of generational changes would assert that every generation has complaints about successive generations, but while some of these items may be superfluous, others speak very much to our deeply held beliefs, which inform our motivation and passion. Often nature provides great metaphors for rethinking business organization and structure, especially when it comes to considering new generators of the labor force.
To learn more about the intersection of bees and business, follow us on LinkedIn:
Free Range Beehives on LinkedIn
To learn more about creating rich and sustainability-conscious environments for your
workers and the services that Free Range Beehive offers, visit:
http://www.freerangebeehives.com/ or give us a call at (720) 320-5517
