How Gen Z Employees Prefer To Be Managed
By Marq Burnett – Associate Editor, The Playbook, The Business Journals
The latest college graduates have garnered a less-than-savory reputation for how they’ve entered the workforce. But some of that may be rooted in misperceptions around how members of Generation Z want to be managed.
With labels such as acting entitled and having a poor work ethic in the workplace, recent college graduates have been deemed headaches, with some hiring managers admitting to avoiding them altogether. But a recent survey of 600 recent college grads from Intelligent.com found what young employees need is direction based on their individual needs as opposed to a one-size-fits-all approach.
The report found 1 in 5 recent college graduates said they want to be micromanaged, with a manager who is hands-on and involved in their day-to-day work life. The survey found 25% preferred a hands-off, distant management style and 57% would opt for a balance between the two.
Within the group that said they wanted a hands-on management approach, 83% said that style creates a sense of feeling more supported at work, 73% said it helps them stay on task and 63% said it helps them feel less anxious. Thirteen percent also admitted they don’t trust themselves to do a good job on their own, according to the report.
Huy Nguyen, chief education and career development advisor at Intelligent, said the large percentage of recent grads who prefer to be micromanaged could be a result of several factors.
“It’s likely that many had limited real-world work experience while they were attending school, so they do not have the familiarity or confidence to transition to a more autonomous environment,” Nguyen said. “In school, they received clear instructions, frequent feedback and knew their complete path to graduate successfully. As they enter the workplace, their path to success is less clear to them, and they may be scared to make mistakes and have anxiety to perform perfectly on their first job. Their reliance on managerial supervision and validation can be seen as a way to cope with early career challenges before developing more confidence, which comes with experience.”
Communication, feedback are clear priorities for Gen Z
Along with how they prefer to be managed, the report found a lot of recent grads want constant communication.
The report defined a “check-in” as an email, phone call, video call, instant message, meeting or anything similar. Nearly 4 in 10 recent grads said they check in with their manager four or more times per day.
The largest group, at 44%, said they check in with their manager an average of one to three times per day, 16% check in less than once per day, and 3% say they never check in with their manager.
Additionally, 43% of respondents said they check in with their manager during non-work hours at least once per day. On average, one in four respondents estimate they ask their manager four or more questions per day, while one in five say they have one-on-one meetings with their manager multiple times per week.
Given how much of their college and early working years were spent navigating the pandemic, the vast majority of respondents (88%) said they would prefer to work in-person at least one day per week, and 28% even say they’d prefer to work in person full-time.
The main reasons selected about why this cohort prefers in-person work most of the week included: it makes them more productive (74%), it’s easier to concentrate (64%), to make friends with coworkers (45%), and to have more contact with their manager (43%).
“Many Gen Z workers are just starting their careers, so they are eager to experience the dynamics of the workplace and learn through observing and collaborating with their coworkers,” Nguyen said. “There may also be a perception that being in the office with their managers, or others higher up in the organization, makes them more visible and proves they are working hard.”