8 Assumptions About Gen Z Employees—And Why They're Incorrect

Forbes

5 days ago

By Kristin Schinella
Gen Z seeks workplaces with open communication, psychological safety, and opportunities for growth.
Generation Z, born between 1997 and 2012, represents the largest cohort of new workers, and by 2030 is expected to represent 30% of the total workforce. Gen Z is also considered by most managers (74%) to be the most challenging generation to work with. Issues surrounding Gen Z run the gamut from being unprepared to enter the workforce to lacking in motivation to unable to take feedback.
This disconnect between management and Gen Z makes sense when you consider the landscape from which these younger professionals have emerged. Gen Z represents the first generation of true digital natives—people who have never known a world without smartphones, instant connectivity, and information that is literally at their fingertips. And the differences aren't just technological. They're also experiential, cultural, and deeply human.
When hiring Gen Zers, companies should consider these differences, and it isn't about accommodating weakness—it's about being understanding. In this article, we will explore how to bridge these generational gaps productively.
Assumptions About Gen Z Workers
This generation isn't avoiding hard work, they're redefining what meaningful work looks like. Sixty-five percent of Gen Z employees describe themselves as extremely eager to learn, and nearly three-quarters are motivated to contribute more than is required.
Gen Zers experienced their formative years during cascading crises: an economic recession, climate anxiety, social upheaval, and a global pandemic. These experiences created a heightened consciousness of life's fragility that drives them to seek purpose in their daily activities.
The numbers support this: 89% of Gen Zers see purpose-driven work as essential to their overall well-being, and the majority will research a potential employers' social impact before applying for work. Unlike previous generations who compartmentalized work and life, Gen Z seeks integration—they want their values reflected in their daily tasks, not relegated to weekend volunteer activities.
How managers can respond: Make your commitments to social issues, work-life balance, and growth trajectories known. When work aligns with personal values, intrinsic motivation flourishes. When it doesn't, Gen Zers' efforts may seem hollow, not because they're lazy, but because they're looking for meaning in the work they do.
Companies that regularly communicate their social impact through transparent reporting create what psychologists call "moral engagement," where employees' personal identities become intertwined with the organization's mission, leading to discretionary effort that extends far beyond job descriptions.
Unlike previous generations who prioritized salary above all else, Gen Z's priorities are split nearly evenly between compensation and purpose in their career decisions. What managers interpret as entitlement often reflects sophisticated boundary setting. Gen Z is entering the workforce with clearer expectations about reciprocity and they are more inclined to invest deeply in organizations that invest meaningfully in them.
This is a group that was rewarded at an early age for simply showing up as parents peddled the "everyone gets a ribbon for participation" value. They grew up in structured environments where expectations were explicit, and with parents and schools that espoused formulas about how to achieve and what achievement looks like. From organized sports to standardized testing, they learned to function with clear feedback loops and acknowledgment of effort.
How managers can respond: Show appreciation. Managers often expect young professionals to work extra hours "because that's what we did," without verbal appreciation or tangible recognition. If you demand sacrifice, demonstrate reciprocal investment.
Neuroscience research reveals that recognition activates the same neural pathways as monetary rewards, with verbal acknowledgment releasing dopamine that reinforces positive behaviors. Teams receiving regular recognition consistently demonstrate higher productivity and better performance compared to those operating under traditional command-and-control structures.
Picture a generation raised on real-time updates: grades posted online, immediate responses to social media posts, GPS that recalculates the route when you take a wrong turn. Gen Z learned to course correct quickly because information was always available. They also grew up with protective parents and feedback-rich schooling, which shielded them from failure's sting.
So for many Gen Z employees, feedback serves as an anxiety-reduction tool. A study found that most Gen Z employees want feedback regularly, and many would like it weekly. Without regular input on their trajectory, uncertainty breeds stress. They view feedback as navigation data, not personal judgment.
How managers can respond: Course correct quickly. Annual review cycles that delay feedback frustrate employees who thrive on continuous calibration. Teams implementing frequent feedback loops see faster skill development and role clarity.
Managers often cite being 'busy' as a reason for cancelling one-on-one meetings, but the price is leaving younger workers rudderless and anxious. A brief check-in to answer questions can keep Gen Zers on track, and they will view you as someone who cares and is trustworthy.
While many managers believe Gen Z lacks communication skills, the reality is they communicate constantly, but do so via different channels and styles than previous generations. They have mastered communication through images, brief text, video gaming, and ephemeral messages.
Think about the cognitive skills they have acquired: conveying emotions through carefully chosen emojis; building relationships through curated visual content and gaming; and parsing nuanced meaning from abbreviated exchanges. These communication patterns reflect specific expectations: brevity over elaboration, visual over textual, and immediacy over delay.
However, in traditional corporate communication formats, Gen Zers may be less skilled and need explicit training. When comparing Gen Z to other generations, Mental Health America found that 63% of Gen Z employees do not feel confident expressing their opinions, and 60% felt that they could not be themselves at work. This raises the issue that while Gen Zers' style of communication is different, they also don't feel safe expressing themselves in the workplace.
How managers can respond: Effective intervention requires parallel tracks. First, organizations must acknowledge that communication competency exists on multiple planes. They should offer training in traditional business communication while also embracing multimodal communication, such as visual collaboration tools. Brief check-ins can enhance overall company communication.
Second, creating psychological safety becomes paramount. When young professionals feel genuinely heard and valued, their natural communication abilities will flourish. This means establishing mentorship structures that bridge generational communication styles while building confidence in formal channels. When psychological safety increases, communication barriers dissolve and retention improves dramatically.
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Gen Z knows how to work effectively and efficiently at home. Many entered college remotely, started careers from their childhood bedrooms, and learned professional norms through Zoom squares rather than conference rooms.
This generation, however, is "pro-office" with 65% preferring working hybrid and only 29% preferring working fully remote. They want hybrid arrangements, not to avoid doing work, but because they value work flexibility as a means to peak performance. They also value authentic human connection and have discovered that focus and creativity can be enhanced by controlling their surroundings. Research on autonomy confirms that when people have control over their work environment, their motivation and well-being increase dramatically.
How managers can respond: Offering employees only fully remote or in-person work options misses the nuanced preferences that not only drive retention, but encourage employee engagement and innovation. Organizations that offer thoughtful flexibility will see the highest satisfaction rates with Gen Z as well as all generations of employees.
Gen Z was raised on screens, and many use their devices intentionally for work-related tasks such research, networking, skill development, and collaboration. For this generation, the distinction between digital and analog tools doesn't exist, and their phones, while capable of causing distraction, are also productivity extensions. A Gen Z employee on their phone may be cross-referencing client information, coordinating with remote team members, and researching industry trends—all simultaneously.
How managers can respond: Blanket phone policies may alienate digital natives and reduce efficiency. Smart organizations should establish technology guidelines that distinguish between productive and distractive use, leveraging rather than limiting capabilities. For example, during meetings, set guidelines for when it's okay to be on the phone to do work, and to know which meetings are an absolute no phone zone.
A survey of recent college graduates found that 92% want to be able to talk about mental health at work. Between Covid, climate anxiety, and mass shootings, this group has been exposed to sensitive conversations from an early age, which has reduced the stigma of mental health. Their openness about psychological wellness isn't a weakness—it's strategic transparency about factors that affect workplace performance.
In a McKinsey study, over a quarter of 18- to 24-year-olds say that mental health significantly impacts their work performance. Previous generations often wore stress as a badge of honor, equating burnout with dedication, but Gen Z sees this as counterproductive. They seek work environments that sustain long-term high performance rather than short-term heroics that can lead to eventual collapse.
How managers can respond: Organizations that dismiss mental health needs as "soft" lose high performers to companies that understand the connection between psychological safety and productivity. Workplaces that invest in meaningful mental health programs see significant reductions in turnover compared to those that do not. High-trust organizations report 50% higher productivity and 76% greater engagement.
Gen Z respects competence and authenticity over titles and tenure. They grew up with unprecedented access to information and learned to base their belief structure on what they consider substance rather than status. Having been taught to question, research, and verify information online, they apply the same critical thinking to workplace hierarchies.
Gen Zers will respond positively to leaders who demonstrate expertise, maintain transparency, and invest genuinely in their development. They want to understand the reasoning behind decisions as well as contribute to solutions. They're not necessarily asking "why" to challenge authority, but to understand context that will help them perform better.
How managers can respond: Organizations with managers who act as coaches rather than commanders will see significantly higher engagement, retention, and performance—especially among younger workers. Leadership research shows that coaching-oriented managers produce teams with superior problem-solving capabilities and faster skill development compared to traditional hierarchical approaches.
Transparent decision-making processes where rationale is shared openly create what organizational psychologists call "cognitive buy-in," leading to higher implementation rates of new initiatives among Gen Z team members.
How Gen Z-Ready Is Your Organization?
Is your business Gen Z-ready? Answer yes or no to the following questions:
□ Do you offer weekly feedback opportunities?□ Can employees work hybrid when needed?□ Are advancement paths clearly communicated?□ Do you have robust mental health resources?□ Do you have multi-channel communication platforms?□ Do managers coach rather than command?□ Is your company's mission clearly articulated?□ Do you recognize effort beyond just results?
Count the number of yes responses. 6-8=Well-positioned; 4-5=Needs attention; 0-3=Not Gen Z-friendly
If your company isn't ready to attract and keep Gen Z employees, here's what you can do to change that:
Your Next Move
The choice is clear: continue paying the hidden costs of clinging to assumptions, or invest in understanding the generation that will define the next decade of workplace evolution.
Gen Z isn't asking organizations to lower standards, they are asking us to consider the larger social and cultural implications of our practices, to remember that mental health does not suddenly disappear when we walk into work, and that everyone works better with open communication, psychological safety, and opportunities for growth.
The data is compelling. The choice is yours.