Be a Hero, Hire a Gen Z (Part 2 of 3) – Recruiting Gen Z

​A study done by employment experts, Robert Half International, reveals that 20% of the US workforce will come from Generation Z by 2020. How you get them to work for you will require an approach that is not your father’s recruiting.
To connect with the typical Gen Z, employers must understand how they view the world. They have never lived without smartphones and social media. They have lived in good economic times, but understand they are tenuous. They want to work, but don’t want dead end jobs their parents have endured. Recruiting them requires employers to connect at a personal level. In short, attracting Gen Z to your company requires more than placing a want ad online.
Here are three suggestions on how you should recruit today.
Market Your Company as a Great Place to Work
Instead of a job post that tells what skills and experience you want from an employee, send a message that shows your business as a great place to work. Create your “Why You Should Work Here” story that explains why you’re great. Include your community involvement, growth and development opportunities, stability, and what is in it for your employees. Thirty percent of Gen Z’ers would take a pay cut to work for a company with a mission they care about.
Use Video and Social Media
Videos, graphics, and other visual media are most effective in messaging to younger audiences. Use simple smartphone videos to document a day-in-the-life of one of your younger employees. Use a vlog (video blog) format to show what they do, what skills they are learning, what tools they use, and how they help customers and the community. Capture events and activities that motivate and inspire employees. Use video to explain and illustrate what you do and why. Plaster social media with these videos. Advertise and sponsor events where young people congregate. Get one of your tech-savvy employees to help.
Tout Individual Development
Consider that many Gen Z’s have not learned business and social skills the same way previous generations have. Therefore, you should use individual training and support as a recruiting tool. Create a development plan for every role you hire. Explain this plan to applicants to let them know they will be trained and supported as they work. Consider yourself as much a coach as you are a “boss”.
These are just a few of the changes to your recruiting that will attract younger employees. Others include: offer flexible scheduling; hold interviews with co-workers, not only managers; highlight the use of technology; hold hands-on recruiting events that allow candidates to experience your work and company.
In Part 3, we’ll discuss the importance of onboarding, training, and incentivizing employees to keep them working and growing.