The Kids are Alright: The Next Generation of Workers is Full of Surprises

Our expectations of the workplace are changing all the time; some of us (ahem) worked with dial-up and now find ourselves working through the finer details of flexible and remote working, with technology changing at a faster rate than ever.

But what about people who’ve grown up alongside the internet? What are they hoping for when they enter the world of work? Are they really expecting to have to show up at an office at 9am sharp? And if you want to recruit the brightest and best, how can you make sure you’re an attractive proposition?

We conducted an informal survey of students at business schools in London in a bid to better understand what this generation expects from the future. We’ve combined what we learned with some findings from global studies in order to start a discussion about what the next generations may or may not be expecting.

Potential to Grow

For a while it was all about working at the ‘cool’ company, but that’s no longer enough. In The Times 100 Graduate Employers, Google doesn’t always come top (despite the rooftop gardens, swimming pools and massage rooms). That’s because graduates are eager to grow, so they’re drawn to companies that will challenge them and help them progress — often prioritising this over alluring amenities.

Topping the list for 2022-2023 were civil service (for the second year running) and the NHS. PWC and Deloitte came in third and fourth place, respectively, before Google’s appearance in fifth place. The question asked for those surveyed was simply: “Which employer do you think offers the best opportunities for graduates?” According to The Times, the question was deliberately open-ended and respondents were not provided a list of employer’s to choose from, instead being given the freedom to choose any employer they deemed to offer the “best opportunities”. This also meant that the criteria for what was deemed as a good opportunity was wide, including factors like starting salary, quality of training and development and remuneration packages.

Flexible Working

You might be surprised to learn that more of the business school students we spoke to said they’d prefer to work in a traditional office than a coworking space. This might be for reasons to do with having a clear structure, but it’s also likely to be down to limited exposure to different types of space. That said, all respondents expected a certain amount of flexible and remote working when it makes sense to do so. This could be through an agile office layout or an activity based working space, where employees are encouraged to choose their own working environment and style.

Flexible working isn’t specific to the office space, either. It can also refer to the office hours worked on a daily or weekly basis. In fact, 70% of Gen Z and millennials would prefer a 4-day working week, while another study found that 44% of Gen Z’s in the UK want flexible working hours as a top priority for their careers.

Company Culture

Company culture is king and this is something you will want to think about reflecting in the space you choose to work in. For Generation Z, it’s important they can clearly see where they fit. Do you have a company mission? If you do, are you making positive steps towards that mission? Are you putting equal opportunities into practice or just talking about it? Are you making a positive impact on the environment? How and where can you demonstrate that? This is going to be more important than ever.

Respect and transparency is just one way companies are looking to attract and retain Gen Z employees. If your workforce believes you’re making a positive change, are respectful to both them and your clients and if you keep your teams in the loop, you’ll be more likely to gain the trust of the next generation.

A Smooth Application Process

This goes hand in hand with how you run your office and what your company culture is like, because it’s effectively a potential employee’s first impression of those things. The brightest and best do not expect to be thwarted by server errors or multi-page forms before they’ve even started. It’s also imperative that you make the application as easy to follow as possible — having too many stages to the interview process has been cited as one of the biggest pain points in job applications.

It’s also important that you include the salary on the job advert for any role. Not knowing the salary band for jobs is a major frustration point for many job seekers, and a recent campaign is looking to make salary-less job adverts illegal. Ensure that you’re transparent with applicants and that you’re providing a smooth and quick process for job seekers, and you’ll likely attract more applicants to any advert you list.

Go a step further and invite applicants into the office as part of your recruitment process, so they can get a feel of the space, meet the team and get a better idea of the real culture of your office space. After all, you want to attract them to work for you, so why not make the effort to make them feel as comfortable as possible right from the start?

Attracting a New Workforce With a Flexible Office Space

While the new generation of workers expect more of a hybrid role from job roles, there’s still a lot to be said about having the right office space. Having an office space that makes your team feel comfortable and able to work productively, in the way they want, can ensure your workers want to commute to the space.

Here at Knight Frank, our team are able to match the office space to your business wants, needs and expectations. We can negotiate the best deals for you, so you’re not left paying over the odds for your perfect office – and best of all, our service is free. Get in touch with our team to begin your search for your next office space.