Understand what Gen Z wants and hire the best of their generation for your company.

Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) is expected to make up more than a third of the workforce by 2030 – making this a critical group of workers for employers to attract and retain. The problem is that most employers don’t understand Gen Z workers.

Unlike generations that came before them, folks in this age group do not remember a time before the internet, and many have never held a full-time job in a pre-pandemic setting. This makes this generation unique with newfound expectations for employers when it comes to the job search and work itself.

All of this to say that it’s more important than ever for employers to understand the needs and expectations of this group. That’s why Hireology went directly to source and surveyed more than 6,000 recent job seekers – about a quarter of which were Gen Z. We then compared the Gen Z responses to those of their older counterparts and uncovered some interesting findings that indicate just how significantly this younger generation is influencing work as we know it.

Here’s what we found …

Growth and company culture hold the most weight for Gen Z

More so than any other generation, Gen Z values company culture, growth and meaningful work. In fact, the survey indicated that Gen Z job seekers were a third more likely than their older counterparts to apply for positions with the promise of available career pathways, while 40% said they’d stay in a position with more meaningful work even if offered a role with higher pay.

And remember that this generation is internet savvy. They’ll scour your website, social media channels and Glassdoor reviews to learn more about how you can meet their needs in these areas. So, if you’re not marketing your culture, growth opportunities and more within your employment branding materials, you’re likely missing out on large portions of this generation that won’t even take the time to apply for your jobs if they don’t see that you can offer what they want.

What’s more, during the hiring process, you need to focus on showing and selling your company culture which is driven by good communication habits and nailing the interaction with the candidate in their interviews. Gen Z candidates say that they are able to tell if hiring managers enjoy working for a company based on body language and how they speak about the organization, other coworkers or departments which are all considerations when deciding whether they align with the business or not.

If you want to attract top talent and convert them to your newest hires, you need to speak their language in the workplace – and that means tailoring both your employment branding messaging and the interview process and offering to what Gen Z wants rather than what you’ve seen work in the past.

Gen Z is mobile first

Gen Z is digitally native. They’re accustomed to being able to complete almost any task on their phones – from ordering food to getting a ride to booking travel. Applying for jobs is no exception. In fact, more than half of Gen Z survey respondents (52%) used their smartphones for the entire search and application process from start to finish. On top of that, 59% said that they had completely abandoned an application because it took too long to complete on their phones.

To put this another way, you’re likely missing out on about half of your potential applicants if your applications aren’t mobile friendly. What exactly does a mobile-friendly application look like? It means you don’t require applicants to create accounts. You keep the number of fields to a minimum. And you optimize the design for mobile, meaning you don’t require folks to zoom in just to read text or click a button.

Our own internal data at Hireology revealed that if more than six fields are required, completion rates drop significantly. Generally speaking, only one in four will submit an application if there are between six to 10 enterable fields, while 36% will if there are six or less. When you have between 11 and 15, completion rates drop to just 14%. Sometimes less is more – all other information can be gathered during the interview process, so stick to the basics.

Speedy communication is critical

Another trait that’s unique to Gen Z is expectations for speed. Largely because they’ve always had the internet at their fingertips, they expect processes to move along quickly. And in recent years in the hiring market, getting a job has been a rather quick experience. About a third of Gen Z respondents said their last job took them less than two weeks from start to finish.

What’s more, about a quarter of Gen Z respondents admitted to ghosting a company during the interview process, half of which said they received another job offer during an interview process with another company. The longer candidates are stuck in the hiring process the less likely they are to accept your offer. If it takes you a week to respond to their initial application or they have to wait days to hear back from you after an interview, they can and will move onto other options. And they’ll view the delay as a sign that your company is disorganized internally.

But how can you speed up the process without cutting corners? Simply documenting a step-by-step process with mandated response times can make a big difference. That way all of you recruiters and hiring managers are being held to the same standards and requirements. Additionally, you can incorporate technology into your process like candidate texting. Texting increases the likelihood that candidates will see your message sooner and makes it easier for them to quickly respond – all while your competitors’ messages are sitting in overflowing email inboxes.

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to modern hiring problems, but knowledge is power – especially as Gen Z job seekers’ expectations continue to mold the hiring landscape. If you want to attract and retain young top talent, remember that they are looking to build careers, engage in meaningful work and work for a company that takes a stance on societal issues. Promoting those values within your employer branding messaging and streamlining communication is the key to impacting their decision to choose your company over a competitor. 

Interested in seeing more data like this? Download The Great Reassessment for a full breakdown across all generations or check out our Gen Z specific report, Gen Z: Definers of the New Workplace.

Adam Robinson is the Co-Founder and CEO, Hireology in Chicago, Illinois. US, driving his mission to help business owners make better hiring decisions using predictive data and innovative technology. With more than 20 years of experience, Adam is a noted recruiting industry expert and speaker. He is the author of The Best Team Wins: Build Your Business Through Predictive Hiring, host of The Best Team Wins Podcast, and columnist for Inc. Adam has been named a finalist for Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst&Young, added to the Chicago Tribune’s Blue Sky Network of Chicago’s top innovators, listed in the Chicago Tech50 by Crain’s Chicago Business, and named a “Top 25 HR Industry Game Changer Under 40” in 2015 by Workforce magazine.