If you are hiring, chances are you are ignoring the resumes from Gen Z candidates that come your way. Data indicates that Gen Z employees have about a 50% chance of being terminated during the first year of employment. Would better communication tactics improve this outcome?

Gen Z employees make up a growing percentage of the workforce. As you hire more employees, you will not be able to avoid onboarding younger workers. These team members can contribute significantly to your organization’s goals.

You may need to reframe your thinking about issues during the hiring process. Consider the following questions as you recruit and onboard Gen Z employees:

• Which Tools Help Managers Hire the Best Gen Zers?
• Is it Better to Rely on AI to do Entry-​Level Work?
• What are the Best Ways to Develop Gen Z’s Communication Skills?

Which Tools Help Managers Hire the Best Gen Zers?

One of the biggest issues hiring managers may have is their stubborn mindset. You may have heard stories about Gen Z employees acting entitled in the workplace. Or a friend may have told you they had to terminate a young employee because of their poor worth ethic.

The individual stories may be true. But this anecdotal evidence doesn’t mean all Gen Zers are bad employees. You can find the gems in your candidate pool with the use of technology. With a psychometric assessment tool like TeamTrait, you can learn more about candidates. You’ll also understand the communication tactics to use with each candidate.

For example, you’ll want to distinguish between hard and soft skills.

Hard Skills

In the Hult International Business School survey, managers complained that Gen Zers don’t possess real world experience. And they also lack business etiquette. These are examples of hard skills.

Many previous generations of employees have come into the workplace facing similar complaints. In those days, the supervisors of younger employees shared their knowledge and guidance.

That knowledge sharing, especially for hard skills, may not be happening at the same pace today. Team members may not always work in the same office or work the same hours.

Managers may also be impatient about productivity and downplay the role of mentorship. While mentoring takes time, managers should think about this process as an investment in the future of the company.

Analysts hint that today’s managers may also be enthralled with the potential of AI. As they imagine the benefits of AI, they criticize Gen Zers’ hard skills.

Soft Skills

Managers regularly claim that soft skills are more important than hard skills. In addition to not being able to do their job, employees with poor soft skills may negatively impact their co-workers.

People have natural strengths and weaknesses when it comes to soft skills. Some individuals are better at problem solving. Others possess more empathy.

Hiring managers typically need individuals with specific strengths. For example, a customer service agent with plenty of empathy can work wonders to diffuse a tense situation. Part of that job will require excellent communication tactics.

Don’t automatically turn down a Gen Z candidate who scores low in time management if they are also high in empathy. A good customer service agent with authentic empathy can be hard to find. You might consider hiring this person if you believe you can help them improve their time management.

Can AI Do the Work of a Human?

These shortcomings prompt managers to consider whether AI can do the work of a human. Businesses are already benefiting from their efficient use of AI. The technology excels at summarizing large pieces of text. The tools also generate nicely written blog posts. 

AI doesn’t do so well when it comes to creative thinking. And most customers are not happy to interact with an AI-​bot when they have a problem. Only 18% of surveyed customers gave chatbots a favorable rating.

Chris Westfall, writing for Forbes, underscores the problem hiring managers face when they want to turn to AI. The technology “is far from ready to take on complex human roles.”

What are the Best Ways to Develop Gen Z’s Communication Skills?

Part of that complexity involves good communication tactics. Gen Zers may not be much better than AI when it comes to communication.

But you could train these employees instead of complaining about them. You may be surprised to learn that Gen Zers are frustrated with the outcomes of their education. They believe they have not been trained for real world experiences.

Couple that fact with their heavy reliance on social media as a primary form of communication. You’ll see that Gen Z’s struggles in the business world are not surprising.

Westfall reports that “about 40% of those over 55 haven’t spoken to a Gen Z colleague in the past year.” This alarming statistic should prompt managers to take immediate action. Communication is a two-​way street, and experienced employees should step up and interact with their Gen Z team members.

More than anything else, your Gen Z team members need to learn how to communicate in the modern workplace. Pair your more experienced employees with your Gen Zers. Set up a formal mentorship program.

Encourage them to role play various scenarios. These scenarios might range from answering a client question to leading a small team meeting. Because each person has unique communication preferences, mentors should review their psychometric assessments. 

Don’t let yourself miss out on hiring great Gen Z talent. Use assessments to find the gems in your candidate pool. Then, commit to training them on communication tactics.

Photo by Antoni Shkraba on Pexels.