Offer Room for Growth

When there’s a lack of education and a clear path in career advancement, young talent will start to look elsewhere to fulfill that goal. Whether your industry is “exciting” or not, you need to provide interesting work, learning opportunities, and workplace benefits to keep young talent engaged and on-mission. When they don’t feel challenged, they will quickly become bored with the work and move onto something new.

Allow Millennial and Gen Z employees to lead, or co-lead, projects when available. Hold educational meetings on relevant industry topics. Unite young talent with established employees by offering mentorship programs or frequent check-ins to discuss opportunities for growth in the company. Ask younger employees what jobs up the ladder they desire. Offer advice, tasks, and activities that can help them achieve it. Young talent wants to envision a future with the company they work for, so make sure they see one with you. But remember: with young talent, it’s not always about the title. Their top priority is a good work environment.

Prioritize Work-Life Balance

Millennials and Gen Z face criticism for being lazy and entitled. What they truly want is work-life balance to prevent burnout. Especially in a post-COVID world, young talent is seeking (and often expecting) flexibility in their schedules. Some desire a hybrid-work model while others want a longer lunch break to exercise, meditate, or run errands they otherwise wouldn’t have time to handle. Think outside the 9-5 box: what would it look like for your employees to determine their own schedules? How would you rearrange the workplace layout to support this goal?

Younger employees want your trust to do the work on-time and up-to-standard with a schedule that works best for them. The happier your employees are, the more productive they will be. This also means the more creative ideas they will bring to the table. Offering collaborative tools for them to be successful should be the focus.

Utilize Collaborative Work Areas

Agile workplaces, like zones, pods, and other collaboration spaces, are a great way to win over young talent. When building out your workplace, consider if assigned seating is really the best tool for your team. Millennials and Gen Z prefer to move around the workplace, so hot desking and mobile workstations are a great option for a flexible work environment. If remote work is out of the question for your company, then flexible workplaces are a happy medium. Larger meeting rooms are ideal for kicking off projects, but smaller, individual break out rooms can be a nice change of scenery for young talent instead of their desk.

Collaborative work space puts the responsibility in the hands of young talent. They get to decide where they work, how they work, and when they work. This responsibility is key to keeping them around.

Formcraft designed, modernized, and optimized Tenneco’s workplace with several common lounge areas and breakout spaces. Just as Tenneco hoped, this attracted new talent because of the open, collaborative layout. Young talent respects a work environment that is on-brand and functional.

Design an On-Brand Workplace

Millennials and Gen Z want your workplace design to send a clear message about your company’s values, goals, and culture. Before they even step foot in your workplace, they want to feel connected to your mission and that their place in your company will be of value. What does your workplace say about your brand? How does your team feel when they walk through the doors? A few ways to liven up your workplace are utilizing natural light, adding greenery and other biophilic elements, and investing in outdoor work areas.

Don’t forget your established employees when you’re on the mission to attract younger talent. Your workplace design and environment should reflect the message and ideals of every employee on your team. Ensuring a cohesive design that satisfies everyone will bring the workplace together, furthering collaboration and creative ideas from young talent and established talent.