Gen Z employees need the opportunities we had and organisations need to provide them

Not quite this old. But getting there.

Nearly 30 years ago

My first proper job was in 1996 (after a protracted period as a student) and as with a small local authority. I went into the office every day. I had a phone on my desk (very important as I was a press officer) and a computer of my own.

This was long enough ago that we did not have a council website though we did have email to individuals (really challenging for managers who no longer controlled the flow of conversations around the council).

We had a tea-trolley (which meant you got coffee made as you did not like it served at a time you did not want it, though you did also get gossip about other teams in the council).

Merely 17 years ago

Then since 2008 I have worked in either hybrid or fully remote roles. Since then I've seen a shift in where the median expectation is for organisations. Working mostly in consultancy I would be on the road at least a couple of days a week. Potential clients would suggest I pop in "next time you're in London", current clients would expect workshops, presentations and pitches to be undertaken in person. My Brompton got an awful lot of use.

That shifted with COVID. Suddenly no-one wants a consultant in the office. Initial conversations are Teams calls, workshops are Teams calls, final presentations are Teams calls.

From my point of view this is broadly fantastic. A well designed online workshop can deliver at least as good quality outcomes as a well designed in-person workshop. My addressable market has opened up and my productivity has gone through the roof (I mean I actually enjoy train travel but it's hard to do good quality work on even a long, comfortable train journey).

But I am a middle-aged man in the prime (he says hopefully) of his career. I have a comfortable home office where the only disturbance is from two dogs who do occasionally insist on being walked or fed. I have mature professional networks developed over 30 years of work.

Freezing shared houses

Back in 1996 things were very different. I shared a freezing house with a bunch of artists who kept, let's say, very different hours to me. I had a tiny (though reasonably priced) bedroom and the only potential working surface was the kitchen table. Which was used for other purposes. Only some of them related to the preparation or consumption of food and some of them were inimicable to both.

I was at the start of my career. I knew hardly anyone and I didn't know that much about how to be effective in my profession. I did want to make an impact on my organisation and improve lives for local people.

But I was required to go into an office every day where I had access to a lot of more experienced people who could help me channel my enthusiasm and develop my skills.

So I often wonder what life is like for early career professionals who are, largely, compelled by our crazy housing policies to live in shared accomodation. It was not surprising to read (behind a paywall) that Gen Z is leading the charge back to the office. It's not simply that the office is a better physical place to work than a bedroom or a kitchen table. Early career workers are more likely to want to build new connections, make friends, learn from the middle-aged duffers like myself.

In the world of 1996 a junior employee could reasonably expect to bump into more senior managers in the corridor, before or after a meeting, over a lunch break. You could ask them questions, make naive but enthusiastic suggestions, and become more visible to people who really could affect your career.

Gen Z

How do Gen Z employees manage all this now?

From the FT article above (written by Emma Jacobs and Sapphire Hope) reports:

"One 23-year-old finance worker, who asked to be anonymous says the absence of older managers makes going into the office feel pointless. 'Why would I, as a young person with student debt, say goodbye to around a quarter of my salary just on trains and the occasional coffee?'"

It's a good question and especially relevant to data roles. Based on Hannah Khwaja's analysis of my nonprofit data job newsletter, 71% of advertised roles are hybrid or fully remote.

There are solutions

Organisations need to recognise that all working patterns have trade offs and that these trade offs are different for different people. As well as understanding the recruitment market. A minority of job vacancies are office based but that is potentially to the advantage of an employer if you know you are looking for someone who wants to be based in the office (and therefore will reject the majority of adverts out of hand).

Fully remote organisations have often recognised these challenges and have been intentional about addressing them. MySociety: the civic tech charity holds regular but infrequent physical get togethers in different parts of the UK (I was invited to attend one in Cardiff along with my Mapio Cymru colleagues). Many organisations support remote social activities: online book clubs, fun Slack channels which can help to build networks. All the more so if managers and leaders actively participate.

Even then employers should recognise that not everyone can work from home and should consider funding coworking spaces for employees that would benefit. A harder sell if your organisation is remote to save on office costs.

Be intentional in hybrid working

It is in hybrid working where the risks seem greatest. It is easy to imagine managers filling up their in-office days with meetings with each other and shutting out more junior staff. It is easy to imagine rotas being created to provide "coverage" of the office which spreads team members out over the week and makes it even harder to build relationships.

This is an area that organisations should not leave to chance. Managers and leaders should be understanding what they gain and lose by their working pattern and what the impact is on individuals right now and their career development as well as the opportunities for innovation and resilience for the organisation.

But I do not recommend a return to the tea-trolley.