Gen Z disrupting workplace
Gen Zs do not fit in the proverbial box, they cannot blindly follow rules.
I sat in an interview panel for a technical field position sometime back and this young man showed up in khaki pants and a polo shirt. On asking why he was not in “official” clothes, he asked: “Madam, isn’t the position a field one?” I could not argue with his logic. He was brilliant in the interview and has gone on to become a dependable employee.
Human resource (HR) policies and procedures manuals espouse that upon successful recruitment, the new employee is taken through an induction and given a list of dos and don’ts. Truth be told, it’s usually a list of don’ts, and the very dire consequences if these “commandments” are not followed.
HR has been deemed punitive, painting practitioners as “prefects” and giving “teacher on duty” vibes. Staff lived in fear of the dreaded show cause letters. But here comes a group of employees who almost dare you to write that letter. And more often than not, you realise they had a justification for their behaviour. So what is the place of our list of commandments in this new age? Do we throw them out?
Gen Z do not conform to the labels they are given. They don’t fit in the proverbial box, they cannot blindly follow rules. You can’t tell them to be at work from 8am to 5pm; they will tell you that they work better at night so they want flexi time, or they finished their work in three hours so there’s no need for them to sit at their desks doing nothing. These moves earn scathing remarks from bosses who have never been questioned.
It is time for a global conversation on the future of work and the workplace. Our children have shown us that it is time to rewrite our HR processes and procedures manuals. I would love to see this conversation started in every professional body, starting at the 28th IHRM conference to be held in October.
HR practitioners have to burn the midnight the oil to create new, leaner, more effective, more responsive HR policies that embrace change, welcome innovativeness and inject new ideas into the workplace. There’s room at the table for the youth. Maybe, just maybe, we shall begin to see the change we have always craved.
Ms Muhoro is a HR practitioner at the ICT Authority.
