An ISE webinar with Amberjack explored the widening professional skills gap and practical advice to support Gen Z as they transition into work.
As digital natives and innovators, Gen Z bring many benefits to an organisation; their focus on wellbeing, diversity of thought, and passion for inclusivity challenges the status quo and drives organisations forward into a new era.
Yet there are challenges in hiring. Many organisations report a widening gap from student to professional, particularly in areas such as professional communication and personal brand, as well as trouble with soft skills such as resilience and attitude.
And while this generation values accessible and approachable leadership, L&D opportunities, and the chance at career progression, they suffer significantly from a fear of failure, perhaps due to the 24/7 comparison and pressure that accompanies the modern digital climate and social media.
A recent ISE webinar explored how to help Gen Z overcome these challenges and harness their full potential as future leaders.
Amberjack’s new Head of UK Learning and Development, Jenny Fitzgerald, and Learning and Development Delivery Manager, Neave Taylor, as well as British International Investment’s (BII) Future Programme Manager, Morgan Fong, and members of the Gen Z Advisory Board, provide insights and practical guidance.
Challenges in practice
BII introduced its graduate programme three years ago. Before this, they hired people with a minimum of five years’ experience. The hiring of Gen Z, who are fresh into the working world naturally presents challenges, especially in an industry with a high performing work culture.
Not only does the hiring of people with minimum experience bring up inevitable learning moments, but for line managers and senior leaders at BII this can be a new experience too.
This is where development of new hires and their managers can provide more effective outcomes. From a delivery perspective, Neave Taylor, explained that while we’re seeing an enthusiastic generation come through, who are excited and ambitious, understandably, they also experience anxiety, stress and pressure.
From an L&D perspective, this drives the delivery of flexible and specialist sessions that allow individuals to build meaningful connections, explore these feelings, and bring out their strengths.
What does Gen Z Say?
Bringing our Gen Z panellists into the discussion, we began by asking them what skills they thought they needed to develop before joining an organisation.
Almost immediately, impostor syndrome was raised. One panellist said that when on a vacation scheme with a law firm, she thought ‘I hope they don’t know that I’m not meant to be here’.
Our Gen Zers shared that, sometimes, no matter how much research they do, they still feel like they don’t know what’s going on and if they fit in, and this can impact their confidence in speaking up and sharing ideas.
Our apprentice panellist also explained that the wide variety of communication methods, from Facetime and phone calls to social media posts and texting, often means that there can be a lack of awareness of what to choose, and a bit of a culture shock too, when entering a professional setting for the first time.
To a certain extent, the development of confidence and soft skills comes with practice and experience – things that your new hires might not have a lot of.
It’s about sharing with them a sense of ‘it’s okay to make mistakes’ and ‘making mistakes doesn’t mean that you don’t belong’. Hearing from senior staff members about their failures can be useful and relatable.
The webinar turned to support from employers that could help Gen Z to feel more supported and overcome some of these hurdles.
It can be valuable to have opportunities to talk about impostor syndrome and nerves, particularly when hearing from someone who has seen your track record and skills or from a ‘buddy’ in the business.
An impostor syndrome session is often a part of Amberjack onboarding and development programmes. Other activities that look at necessary skills and how to apply them are highly valued too.
Taking action
BII takes a themed approach in its programme, focusing on personal brand, communication, and work etiquette, followed by ‘communicating with impact’. This takes place over time, focusing on transferring learnings to the on-the-job behaviour shifts that need to be achieved in order to demonstrate ROI.
As a holistic approach with self-paced learning activities, lessons are taken beyond the workshop and training, ensuring that there is a chance to apply learnings back in the workplace environment.
Explore early careers development treands, challenges and best practice at ISE’s forthcoming Student Development Conference 2025.
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