How to Lead and Engage Gen Y and Z Effectively

INSPIRING YOUR FUTURE WORKFORCE

INTRODUCTIONEvery generation is unique with their distinctive values, priorities and beliefs. When a new generation enters the workforce, it affects the existing workplace symmetry as management, human resource personnel and older employees have to learn new management strategies and approaches so as to better understand, engage and inspire them. Oftentimes, this results in tension and an us-versus-them mentality.

In the spotlight in today’s workplace are Generation Y (Gen Y), with Generation Z (Gen Z) on the verge of joining the corporate world.

Understanding the challenges that executives and managers face within their organisations when they deal with younger generations, Centre for Executive Education (CEE) embarked on a research study to bridge the gap between generations and help employers overcome managerial challenges positively, while accommodating the needs of the various generations, their diverse viewpoints and working styles.

In this study, we explore the unique values and belief systems that these two generations embody, their attitudes to work and life, their highly ambitious and inquisitive nature, and how to best fit them in organisations locally and around the world in the context of today’s economic reality and diverse workplace. At the same time, we examine their loyalty level, and suggest ways to establish better understanding with them to foster greater collaboration and cohesion within your organisation.

RESEARCH AREASTalent Attraction: What do Gen Y and Z look for in an organisation?

Talent Retention: What factors will attract Gen Y and Z to remain in an organisation?

Talent Engagement: What do Gen Y and Z value in their bosses? How do they like to be led?

Organisation Culture: What work culture suits them the best?

Gen Yaged 20 – 34 years

Gen Zaged 16 – 19 years

201 respondents, engaged in full-time employment 103 respondents,

polytechnic and university students

METHODOLOGY & RESPONDENT PROFILESurvey data was collected from 304 respondents from both Gen Y and Z in Singapore during the period of September 2014 to January 2015. Their views were obtained via an online survey and the results were further validated during focus group interviews.

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ConsiderationsTo Gen Y, career growth/advancement is their primary concern followed by job satisfaction, while for Gen Z job satisfaction is a priority. The latter also value career advancement and a positive work environment. For Gen Y, salary is important whereas Gen Z favours other benefits such as health insurance, dental care coverage and annual leave. Consideration for bonuses, both fixed and variable, figure more prominently in Gen Z than Gen Y. Gen Z prefers greater flexibility in working

RESEARCH FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS

40.70% (81)

30.10% (31)

73.79% (76)

44.72

% (89)

Ask for Leads from Parents,

Siblings or Relatives

Recruitment / Staffing Firms

72.8

6% (1

45)69.90% (72) 61

.31% (122)57.28%

(59)

69.90% (72)38

.69% (77)

70.87% (73)30

.15% (60)

Company Websites to

Learn More about Perspective Employers

Online Job Boards

Social Networking

Sites

NewspapersAdvertisements

Gen Y (Aged 20 – 34 years)

Gen Z (Aged 16 – 19 years)

hours, telecommuting facilities or a work-from-home arrangement, with Gen Y favouring the traditional hours and method of working.

Gen Z ranks the location of office as very important while both generations value the company leadership, the organisation’s reputation and brand recognition (including employee value proposition) equally well. Conversely, job titles and in-house training are not major areas of consideration for both Gen Y and Gen Z.

JOBCONSIDERATIONS

FinancialSecurity

Job Stability

61.54% (64)

61.31% (122)

40.70% (81)

55.77% (58)

Career Growth /

Advancement79.40%

(158)69.23%

(72)

Job Satisfaction 73.87%

(147)

83.65% (87)

Working in a Positive

Organisational Climate or

Environment66.83%

(133)

69.23% (72)

Gen Y (Aged 20 – 34 years)

Gen Z (Aged 16 – 19 years)

TALENT ATTRACTION

Job SearchGen Y make employment decisions based on the company websites where they learn about the job openings and their prospective employers. On the other hand, Gen Z select their organisations through

recruitment/staffing firms. Other avenues like online job boards, social networking sites, newspaper ads and leads from friends and relatives figure less and in varying degrees for both generations.

Work-Life Balance – balancing professional and personal obligations

58.79% (117)

33.65% (35)

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TALENT RETENTION

Factors influencing job changeGen Y tends to switch jobs if they are promised higher pay, while Gen Z is more swayed by better perks and benefits. An equal amount of ambition is visible in both generations. For both generations, commuting distance and dissatisfaction with immediate supervisor have the lowest influence on their decision to leave a job.

RESEARCH FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS

LOYALTY

1–2 years

35.32% (71)

43.27% (45)

3–5 years

39.30% (79)

50.96% (53)

6 years or more

Unsure

8.46% (17)

0.96% (1)

16.92% (34)

4.81% (5)

LEADERSHIPQUALITIES

Effective Communicator

& Great Listener

71.00% (142)

78.43% (80)

Good Leadership

Skills

67.50% (135)

48.04% (49)

Pleasant, Easy to Get Along

With and Approachable

66.50% (133)

58.82% (60)

Understandingand Caring

48.00% (96)

66.67% (68)

85.00% (170)

Able to Coach, Mentor and Guide Me

96.08% (98)

Flexible Leadership Styles and

Open Minded

71.00% (142)

42.16% (43)

Respects, Values and Appreciates Employees

75.00% (150)

15.69% (16)

Gen Y (Aged 20 – 34 years)

Gen Z (Aged 16 – 19 years)

TALENT ENGAGEMENT

Qualities valued in a manager/supervisorBoth Gen Y and Gen Z value immediate managers who have the ability to coach, mentor and guide them. This quality is followed by effective communication skills, listening power, flexible leadership style, open-mindedness and the capacity for respect and appreciation of subordinates for both generations.

Loyalty When it comes to loyalty and longevity at work, Gen Z generally expects to stay in their current position for at least 3 to 5 years. Gen Y, however, is less hopeful.

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Gen Y (Aged 20 – 34 years)

Gen Z (Aged 16 – 19 years)

ORGANISATION CULTURE

Work CultureGen Z prefers a more flexible dress code and is more comfortable in business casuals. Gen Y is more flexible and is willing to dress according to the situation.

Workplace PrioritiesGen Y and Gen Z both value similar aspects of the work environment. Having a perfect work-life balance has been rated as important by both generations, but having a good office space does not really count in their eyes. For both these generations, working with state-of-the-art technology systems is the last thing on their minds. The only exception is that while Gen Y favours working with a supervisor that they can respect and learn from, Gen Z places working with people they enjoy as a top priority for an ideal work culture.

RESEARCH FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS

WORK CULTURE

Business Attire

Business Casual

Jeans &Sneakers

Depending on the

Situation14.43%

(28)

5.94% (6)

36.08% (70)

65.35% (66)

41.75% (70)

4.95% (5)

7.73% (15)

23.76% (24)

Work Culture Gen Y Priority Gen Z PriorityWorking with a supervisor/manager I can respect and learn from 1 2

Working with people I enjoy 2 1

Having work-life balance 3

Having a shorter commute 4

Working for a socially responsible company 5

Having a nice office space 6

Working with state-of-the-art technology systems 7

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Gen Y (Aged 20 – 34 years)

Gen Z (Aged 16 – 19 years)

CEE recommends the following key areas with regards to attracting Gen Z graduates and engaging Gen Y employees at the workplace.

RecruitmentApart from ensuring that job openings are advertised on their corporate websites, organisations must remember that Gen Y prefers online job boards whereas Gen Z prefers social networking and recruitment/staffing firms when looking for career opportunities.

Career ProgressionOften, Gen Y workers are dubbed as unreliable job-hoppers. Here organisations will do well to work on staff retention plans and continuous professional development. Provide them the right opportunities at the right time to excel at what they do, bearing in mind their interests.

Freedom and FlexibilityGen Y employees are truly knowledge workers who are used to options and alternatives on their side. Therefore, allowing them the freedom to pursue goals in their own way is advisable. Managers should allow these employees to make choices as to how to best achieve results and give them the flexibility to work from anywhere.

Coaching and Mentoring95% of Gen Z and 85% of Gen Y cited their ideal manager as a coach or mentor figure. They also expect their leaders to be effective communicators and good listeners. Managers should be authentic and lead from the front and by example or adopt servant leadership, instead of a commanding or directive style. These younger generations need guidance through mentoring rather than control and micro-management.

Feedback & RecognitionGen Y puts emphasis on personal interaction and acknowledgement. By providing feedback and acknowledging progress, you can make a Gen Y worker feel purposeful. A highly engaging and interactive management style characterised by open communication works best for this generation. Offer rewards and recognition for their contributions as they are motivated by instant gratification.

Work-life BalanceGen Y values work-life balance more than other generations, their motto being “work smarter, not harder”. Balance can be restored by reducing time spent on things like commuting by making arrangements for them to work from home, for example. Gen Y workers value open-minded employers in this respect. Gen Z prefers to work for an organisation that offers flexible working hours and telecommuting.

Sabbatical & CSRBoth Gen Y and Z involve themselves in causes outside work. They are drawn to organisations that are socially responsible. Tap into that interest by involving them in charitable activities. Come up with a sabbatical policy that would allow these employees to embark on paid leave in support of worthwhile causes.

RetentionManaging Gen Y in the workplace is only one part of the deal; retaining them is more challenging. 75% of Gen Y and Z indicated they expect to remain with an organisation for less than five years. Engage them effectively so that they do not feel tempted to jump over to your competition.

RECOMMENDATIONS

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SUMMARYFlexibility is vital to managing Gen Y and Z, especially if your organisation comprises a multigenerational workforce. By understanding Gen Y and Z and adapting your management styles accordingly, you can effectively harness the potential of future generations of employees while maintaining the loyalty of other staff, thus effectively attracting and retaining employees, building teams, dealing with change and increasing employee engagement.

TRAINING BY CEEAt CEE, we collaborate with companies to create an environment that will inspire your future workforce. Beyond the younger generations, our programmes are designed to support companies in managing multigenerational staff. We guide companies to recognise the strengths of each generation and learn how to leverage them so as create value for your clients and organisation.

Our training sessions are facilitated by highly credentialled consultants and executive coaches lead by our Master Executive Coach, Professor Sattar Bawany.

Programme 1: Leading & Engaging a Multigenerational WorkforceHighly interactive, informative and practical, this workshop will provide participants with a deeper understanding of what the differences between generations are, how those differences impact their own perception and leadership style, how they manifest themselves in the participants’ own organisation and effective ways to lead the people in their organisation to become more harmonious, productive and mutually respectful.

Programme 2: Enhancing Team Effectiveness at a Multigenerational WorkplaceAn intensive multigenerational team effectiveness-training programme, this workshop combines proven-in-action techniques and S.C.O.R.E. framework with peer interaction help the participants gain a clear understanding of the differences between Traditionalist, Baby Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y and Gen Z and how to lead these employees of different generations into becoming a unified, high-performing team. Participants will also learn practical strategies that can be implemented in resolving conflicts at the multigenerational workplace.

TESTIMONIALS

Prof Bawany provided an informative and energetic presentation to more than 75 managers and 20 HR professionals on understanding the generational differences and how to engage and harness the potential

of a multi-generational workforce to create value for our customers.— 3M Singapore

Thank you for the successful delivery of the series of workshops on ‘Developing Multigenerational Team Effectiveness@CAG’. From the

participants’ feedback, your presentation was professional and well received with more than 95% rating the sessions as ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’. Thank you for

making the workshops a great success. — Changi Airport Group (CAG)

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ABOUT CEECentre of Executive Education (CEE) is a premier network of established human resource development and consulting firms around the globe. We design solutions for leaders at all levels to help them navigate tomorrow’s business challenges.

The CEE suite of executive development programmes includes talent management and succession planning, management and leadership development, executive coaching, CEO and board mentoring and advisory services. We help corporate leaders and small business owners optimise their performance and accomplish their business and professional objectives. Our programmes are designed to equip these leaders to support growth, execute change and develop people to build high performance organisations — leading to increased productivity, exceptional business results and greater profitability.

ENQUIRESFor more information about the CEE Suite of Talent Management and Executive Development Solutions or

our Multigenerational workshops, please email us at enquiry@cee-global.com.

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RESEARCH TEAM Prof Sattar Bawany, Principal Consultant

Adam Bawany, Associate Consultant

CENTRE FOR EXECUTIVE EDUCATION PTE LTD

259 Tampines CentralSingapore 915209

Tel: +65 6789 0977 Fax: +65 6789 0911Email: research@cee-global.comHomepage: www.cee-global.com

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