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When I last spoke integration of the younger workforce over a year ago, they were on edge. A strong American economy led to an employee-first reality, where employees had the upper hand. Entering, leaving and re-entering the workforce was easy.
Now, their economic position has mostly oppositesand still General Mr still has a reputation of low enthusiasm for work and a higher rate of leaving work. A 2024 CNBC survey found that they overwhelmingly value engaged work, desire autonomy in their roles and connections with their colleagues, yet many report simply feeling dissatisfied or worse. Businesses are still struggling to understand how to motivate and retain them in the modern workplace, so what are they still doing wrong?
About 10 years ago, I shared a motivational video with my team that may answer this question. A photographer was showing the view through his camera with different lenses. The camera body remained the same, but as he changed to each lens — wide-angle, fisheye, macro — he described how it would affect what he saw.
Like a photographer with only one lens, many leaders are still considering the workplace from their own perspective, but the incoming workforce grew up with an entirely different worldview. To motivate and engage younger workers, we must first learn to see through their lenses; understand their unique abilities, ambitions and perspectives; and use that knowledge to support them in achieving their professional goals.
Understand their lens
Every generation goes from the young and inexperienced to the new workforce of the majority at some point. In any transition, businesses must first recognize the lens that has shaped it the world view of the new generation to retain them as employees. The generation entering today's workforce grew up in an extremely polarized world – politics, religion, the environment and the Covid-19 pandemic. At times the pendulum had swung so far and wide that it engendered worry, division, and fear for the future.
Encourage the older generation of workers to be responsible for adjusting their lenses to see the new reality of the younger generation. Having already encountered and adapted alongside a generation that came before them, they are better equipped to facilitate INTEGRATION. In the meantime, try to inspire the younger generation to take responsibility for recognizing how a polarized lens can shape their appearance and ensure that the pendulum stays within the bounds of a productive conversation. The sooner we move our lenses towards unity and a place where we can accept our differences and move forward, the better off we will be because of it.
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Looking forward may require looking back
When we started Clearfield, everyone did everything, and we initially thought that a flat organization with easy access for me and the other senior members would be most beneficial – and for a while, it was. Like other startups and small businesses moving forward with a flatter structure, it helped us stay fast and nimble in a changing economy. But recently, we found that our younger generation preferred to go back to the old philosophies.
Many new employees come from a university environment with regular guidance, feedback and instruction – they also experienced disruption to their lives and education during the Covid-19 pandemic. Understanding this lens allows me to see how younger team members may hear about our easy approach to leadership, but have a harder time living it. I can consider ways they can benefit from more direct, immediate feedback and a designated boss to ask questions and get clear direction.
So we went back to a more traditional management model: more layers, but without silos. This allowed us to take a more hands-on approach, identify more individual skills and maximize those opportunities. The younger generation grew up with the Internet and digital technology, so we reached out and identified 25-year-old MBAs joining our team with stronger Excel skills, for example. Then we let them take the lead in demonstrating new ways to use it to our advantage.
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Make the possibilities visible
Our new layered structure also delivered career path options which were clearly defined and highly visible so team members of any age or experience level knew them and how to achieve them. Without clarity about the criteria for earning a raise, two employees in the same role may believe they both deserve one. If their boss recognizes and rewards only one of them and tells the other to wait another year for the same opportunity, that becomes the target of the second employee to see the company. Their boss needs to understand that lens and find a way to reframe it or risk losing the second employee.
If someone doing the same job as someone else does not earn the same salary as someone else, the reasons should be as clear as possible. If leaders must turn down a request for a raise or promotion opportunity, they must also set clear expectations about what that employee can do to achieve it. Then, work with them through education and training to create an educational path that gets them there. With greater clarity about their role and the promotional opportunities that can engage them, we have a better chance of retaining new team members to benefit from that experience.
Rather than being defined by their work like previous generations, younger workers brings a new energy. They still care about work and find satisfaction in their accomplishments, but they see both through a lens shaped by a different worldview and their unique lived experience. Some of my children are in their 20s, and while they may be the same age, they grew up to be very different individuals. Leaders must expect that everyone is different and plan to get to know them and what keeps them motivated—but first, they must understand their target to set the tone for more constructive dialogue and mutual respect.