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WWhat are some of the most cutting edge attraction and retention tactics that employers are using specifically around Gen Z and Millennials? What are some of the most cutting edge attraction and retention tactics that employers are using specifically around Gen Z and Millennials?
Hello, and thank you for your question regarding the cutting edge attraction and retention tactics that employers are using specifically around Gen Z and Millennials.
The short version is that the conditions which are most important to Gen Z and Millennials are, work life balance, growth opportunity, recognition, equality, empowerment, modern technology, health insurance, a competitive salary, and a boss they can respect.
Companies are attracting and retaining Gen Z and Millennials with cutting edge tactics such as, encouraging employees to individualize their schedules, extending paid parental leave, offering perks like, on-site massages, paid volunteer time, postmortem family benefits, the ability to earn unlimited vacation time, creating customized company social networking sites for co-workers to connect to each other, and doling out restricted stock units to many employees. Below is a deep dive of my findings.
METHODOLOGY
After thoroughly searching academic databases, industry reports, trusted media sites, user forums and review sites, and corporate websites, we have found that many of the most successful companies are coming up with creative and cutting edge tactics to attract and retain Gen Z and Millennial employees.
WHAT DO MILLENNIALS AND GEN Z EMPLOYEES WANT
According to Monster, Gen Z believes that a job should offer much more than just a paycheck. They are goal oriented, with many focusing on one day owning their own business. Unlike Millennials, Gen Z values security and benefits, much like Boomers and Gen X, therefore, health insurance and a competitive salary rank high on their list of job requirements. As a generation that grew up with technology, Gen Z wants to incorporate this into their job, believing this allows them to be more productive and mobile.
Forbes stated that Millennials, especially women, want to know that what they are doing every day is, in some way, having a positive impact by "contributing to the company values and shaping the culture".
Both Gen Z and Millennials are looking for recognition from the company they work for, an opportunity for growth, and for their financial pressures, such as student loans, to be understood.
A report from Adecco Staffing has found that Gen Z (15-20) believes that they will spend three years or fewer at their first job. Millennials, who for the most part will be managing the Gen Z workforce, shares similar beliefs, both have can-do attitudes, high confidence levels, and are willing to learn new skills. The unique differences of Gen Z is they want "well-defined chains of command and teaching-style leadership". Gen Z also values open communication with peers and management.
STRATEGIES FOR RETAINING EMPLOYEES
With services like LinkedIn, Millennials are being bombarded with job offers for their talent, so companies have to step up their game when it comes to retaining Millennials. In a Randstad study, it was found that, "it costs $20,000 to replace each Millennial employee". Losing employees puts pressure on other employees who have to fill in for them.
Forbes Human Resources Council came up with a list of strategies that can be implemented to retain employees.
1. Conduct Stay Interviews: Instead of waiting for employees to leave, conduct annual meetings to get feedback on what can be done better and answer questions.
2. Empower Your Team: Companies like Opportunity Network, make each employee feel like an entrepreneur, while managers support, facilitate, and convey trust.
3. Allow Them To Communicate Anonymously: This allows team members to give and receive feedback. Tiny Pulse has implemented this strategy.
4. Avoid Micromanaging: This allows for growth, while encouraging employees to take initiative. The Unity Council wants their employees to try new things and not be afraid to take risks.
5. Check In Regularly: Giving your employees the opportunity to discuss their strengths, struggles, and career aspirations, will show you are dedicated to their professional growth and addressing their concerns.
6. Be Transparent: By being open about how the company is succeeding, providing clarity on what can be improved, recognize who had a direct impact and offer direct data to support the claims, employers can increase retention and employee loyalty drastically.
COMPANIES USING CUTTING EDGE TACTICS TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN MILLENNIALS AND GEN Z EMPLOYEES
A Deloitte Study showed that Millennials want to work for a company that makes a difference in their community, this is what a few companies are doing to retain their Millennial employees.
•Microsoft: Encourages employees to raise money for charities by participating in over 300 activities, for example an online auction and a 5k run. 65 percent of employees participate in these activities.
•Jetblue: Planting over 1,200 trees, Jetblue had 1,900 volunteers and crew members donate their time to participate in this event.
•Ernst & Young: "EY Connect Day" has allowed employees to log over 60,000 hours of service each year.
LinkedIn published a list in 2016 of the 40 companies that are "Top Attractors". These companies are the best in the U.S. at attracting and retaining employees. We will list the top ten.
1. Google tops the list, offering perks such as, free food, A-list speakers, on-site massages, and postmortem benefits for families. Google also bases pay not on prior salary, but on the job, helping to close the gender gap. Time is also spent studying what makes teams effective.
2. Salesforce spent a reported $3 million to close its gender pay gap, while also offering paid volunteer time off. Salesforce created its new office space to include meditation spaces and "mindfulness zones."
3. Facebook works hard to attractive engineers giving them free rein to conquer projects. The company has extended its four-month paid parental leave program to include all full-time employees.
4. Apple now offers restricted stock units, which are much sought after, to the majority of its employees, winning their praise. According to the report, the broad appeal of the company's products is the main reason that workers love working for Apple.
5. Amazon culture was criticized in a New York Times article characterizing the company as having a "bruising workplace." Yet plenty of people want to work here, with excellent pay and benefits, stocks being offered after 2 years, option to relocate, and plenty of vacation and personal time, according to Glassdoor.
6. Uber has 6,700 official employees, drivers who are independent contractors. With reviews on Glassdoor stating that they love the culture, perks of free food and snacks, excited to work for a company that is growing and maturing, and call Uber and "amazing opportunity".
7. Microsoft believes in maintaining high employee morale, offering new-employee breakfasts, good communication, a weekly newsletter where colleagues share information about themselves, they also offer awards for citizenship, impact, leadership and customer service to their employees. At their Redmond, WA campus, for example, Microsoft offers perks such as, restaurants, cafes, espresso stands, retail shops and a sports field.
8. Tesla, founded by Elon Musk, the electric car company take this spot. Tesla has been competing with Google, Apple, and others to recruit engineering specialists. They offer good health insurance, employee profit sharing, three weeks paid time off, and discounts on leasing cars and public transportation, according to Glassdoor.
9. Twitter has experienced some turbulence, announcing layoffs last year, but CEO Jack Dorsey announced that he would "give a third of his stock, worth about $200 million to employees". Twitter also offers 20 weeks of fully paid parental leave for all full-time employees.
CONCLUSION
To wrap it up, many of the top companies are coming up with cutting edge tactics to attract and retain Millennial and Gen Z employees. These generations are interested in work life balance, growth opportunity, recognition, equality, empowerment, modern technology, health insurance, a competitive salary, and a boss they can respect. Top companies are implementing creative, and cutting edge tactics to retain their Millennial employees, while attracting Gen Z employees.
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