Generation Z (No, It Doesn’t Stand for “Zombies”)

With all the creativity that led to Generation X being followed by Generation Y, we now have…Generation Z. This is generally considered to be the group born starting in the late 1990s. Other names have been suggested — my favorite so far is iGen — but they are young enough that we have plenty of time to name them before they start becoming important.

Or do we? If you expect your company to be around a long time, you need to be looking at long-term human capital trends, because when the time comes to start hiring people to fill slots, it is a little too late to start thinking about what kinds of people they should be. As this new generation prepares to start graduating from secondary school soon, you should be considering how this is going to affect your workplace of the future. You may feel that the arbitrary definition of these demographic groups is unnecessary — and if so, you’re not alone in thinking that — but you do need to realize that over time the backgrounds and expectations of your newer employees are going to be different from what you are used to.

The descriptor to which everyone defaults is, “they understand technology.” Well, sure they do. They are born texters. They probably joined Facebook while they were in the womb. They will deliver their first-grade “What I Did On Summer Vacation” report with a YouTube video. Though interactive technology will be a regular part of their lives, learning to use it effectively (from a business standpoint) and appropriately (from a social one) will take some practice.

The ability to interact so easily with friends and strangers alike will lead this generation to more easily work with others. Dr Larry Rosen, formerly a psychology professor at CSU Dominguez Hills, says of Gen Z students, “They are very collaborative and creative. They will change the workplace dramatically in terms of work style and expectations.” For Creatives, virtual workplaces may increasingly replace physical offices. Free agents may gain more traction as the ability to put together an ad hoc team of employees becomes more important for leaders than does the ability to retain long-term staff. Collaboration may be easier to achieve and can affect everything from health insurance to commuting.

One effect of this technology that is especially important for building a creative worforce is the opportunity it provides for content creation. 15 years ago we demanded broadband at home so we could download entertainment media, but Generation Z will grow up more interested in creating and sharing their own content. This can be good from your perspective because it means an entire generation is developing their creative skills and identifying their talents from an early age. The downside is that much of what they produce may be crap, but no one has told them that, which may lead them to come to you with an overinflated sense of their own talent. You will need to be prepared to channel their enthusiasm in a commercially viable direction.

While Generation Y has been accused (perhaps unfairly) of being coddled and too dependent upon their parents, Generation Z will grow up with a different reality. Born during a period of ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a global recession, and increasing partisan political rhetoric in developed and developing countries alike, they may have a more realistic view of the world than their predecessors are alleged to have. Having seen their parents worry about job prospects, they may come to you with less of a sense of entitlement than you might have seen a few years ago.

It is impossible to predict what an entire generation of kids will grow up to be like, considering many have not even been born yet. There is no telling what world events in the next decade might occur that will shape them…Gen Y was certainly shaken up by 9/11, and many would argue that led them to be more interested in world affairs and civic involvement than they are typically given credit for. It is worthwhile to keep up with Gen Z, though, since they will be entering your workforce someday (maybe even today, depending upon what definition you use for the generational starting point) and that will affect how you organize your business.

Here’s the real question, though: if we are calling this group Generation Z, what will we call the next generation???