Gen. Z In the Workplace

By 2030, Gen. Z will make up 30% of the workforce in the United States, and this adaptable generation is eager to get to work.  Literally.  This is the generation that went to school, graduated, and entered the workforce in isolation during the pandemic.  They crave a sense of place and community, and a workspace and company culture that is as flexible as they are.

For the first time, we are welcoming a new generation into the workforce that doesn’t have any preconceived notions about work and place. They can work anywhere at any time.  And they are the first generation to put quality of life and social responsibility over financial motivation.  This generation prioritizes mental health and social issues, and while older generations have “lived to work”, gen z “works to live”, and will not compromise on a healthy work/life balance.

The problem?  This motivated generation has the will to work but can’t attain the skill and knowledge to do their jobs without the guidance of management and senior employees.  They can’t learn the ins and outs and subtle nuances of a new job while working fully remotely, detached from their mentors.  The passing down of knowledge between the generations is critical to success in any industry.  And as human beings, we learn just as much through observation as we do from instruction.

Gen. Z needs guidance and mentorship.  So how do we as designers bring Millenials, Gen. X and Boomers back to the office?  These generations have spent their careers being praised for overworking and overperforming.  They have been denied flexibility in their jobs and at their places of business, and now they are reluctant to compromise on their newly found work/life balance.

The key to bringing everyone back together is to provide employees with what they crave above all else, choice and control.  Employers can “earn the commute” by allowing their employees to choose where they work, and to control how they work.  Companies may start to restructure themselves to operate more similarly to universities.  In college, students have the choice of whether they want to work from home or meet at the library for a group project.  They have an abundance of flexible amenity spaces, and the freedom to decide where, when and how they get their work done.

Ultimately, our job as interior designers is to work with personnel to understand the amenity choices that would be most valued by each team within an organization. Through a collaborative interview and design process, we can create spaces where people can have choice and control over how they work. The mission of these adaptable spaces must be four-fold: to support individuality, foster social collaboration, instill a desire to return to the office, and most importantly, bring the generations back together.