Page 17 - BusinessWest July 25, 2022

How to Succeed in Hiring Gen Z
Employers Should Look at Each Candidate as an Individual
By Kelly Moulton and Mia McDonald
In the midst of the Great Resignation, employers are desperate to hire new staff. Insider Intelligence reports that in 2022,
approximately 20.2% of the U.S. population will be made up of Generation Z, meaning employers will increasingly need to turn to this group to fill roles.
“Gen Z is not unique in facing broad generational criticisms. Baby Boomers and Millennials can relate to the struggle of being defined by their generation. But just like prior generations, Generation Z is diverse in its composition, motivations, and beliefs.”
Born between the years of 1997 and 2012 and sometimes called ‘screenagers’ for their attach- ment to mobile devices and upbringing in a digi- tal environment, the strengths and weaknesses of Gen Z, as well as what they have to offer to the
KELLY MOULTON
MIA MCDONALD
for both employers and Gen Z employees, while increasing Gen Z commitment to the employer.
Raised in different decades and growing up utilizing different technologies, it can be a chal- lenge to integrate intergenerational individuals employed in the same workplace. But with the influx of young workers entering the market, employers need to continue to learn and adapt so they can obtain and retain the best applicants, just as they require their new hires to adapt, learn, and grow within their roles.
A great way to help acclimate new hires to the community and culture of the workplace is to integrate them into a working team of estab- lished professionals who can help ease their introduction. This is a strategy we both expe- rienced when we started at Meyers Brothers Kalicka.
MBK created a space where both of us could work directly and collaboratively with a team
of other young professionals, allowing us to quickly meet and bond with co-workers in vari- ous specialties. This made for a welcoming, and less intimidating, entrance into the firm and the demands of public accounting in particular. This strategy also provides a broad base of dif-
Gen Z
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workforce, differ significantly from previous gen- erations in some ways, but mirror their predeces- sors in other ways.
Edward Segal, in his Forbes article, “How and Why Managing Gen Z Employees Can Be Chal- lenging for Companies,” discussed the challenges Gen Z applicants present to employers. Among those, noted several executives, are a lack of dis- cipline and patience as well as the need to devel- op a work ethic.
Gen Z is not unique in facing broad genera- tional criticisms. Baby Boomers and Millenni- als can relate to the struggle of being defined by their generation. But just like prior generations, Generation Z is diverse in its composition, moti- vations, and beliefs. Working to understand each of these components can help generate success
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