Managing expectations between generations during the recruitment process

Recruitment is a tricky process to navigate in the best of times, but the increasing difference in expectations arising from generational gaps has begun to severely impact the process.

Construction specifically is an ageing industry in desperate need of a boost of young talent in graduate, junior or apprentice-level positions. Many of these fresh faces will be from Gen Z which has recently begun to enter the workforce en masse. This sparks the question of how to manage expectations between generations who expect completely different things.

Having multiple generations within the workplace is an undeniable strength for any workplace as each generation offers a range of strengths brought about by their time in and out of their workplace, their mindset and attitudes, as well as their values.

The main area to consider is the requirement many younger generations have for flexibility, transparency and increased focus on benefits and perks. The pandemic has created a shift in perspective for many younger people who have seen that working from home is a viable route and many wish to go in that direction. This is paired with their desire for better work/life balance through more flexible working hours, creative incentives, and a healthy working environment.

Another area that the younger generations are focused on is potential growth, for obvious reasons having only just begun their career journeys. Working at a company which provides a relatively low career ceiling is not attractive to people with their whole professional life ahead of them, while someone who is established and closer to the end of their career may be content with the role they have and not require any further growth.

As mentioned above, benefits and perks have also seen an increase in demand when applying for a role. Something like a gym membership, private health insurance or a even a few extra days off for personal events can go a huge way.

One last point to consider is transparency throughout the recruitment process. Recent surveys have shown that Gen Z is much less likely to even apply for a role if the salary is not listed in the job posting and are in general much more comfortable discussing salaries than previous generations.

In contrast, older generations who are more established in their career tend to look for different areas to focus on when recruiting. Job security in particular is of importance to those in the middle or end of their career as these people are usually not looking for much more in the way of growth and are established in their chosen sector enough to earn the salary they deserve.

For those in the middle of their career’s salary may be the biggest sticking point as they are skilled and educated enough to reach higher-level positions and seek to make as big of an impact as possible and earn as much in the process.

With all of the above in mind, it is also worth acknowledging that the recruitment process itself would be handled by those of varying ages and career levels meaning that even in the micro sense of an interview expectations would have to be clearly communicated as a senior manager interviewing a young graduate may be completely differently aligned in what they expect. With construction being an industry that is quite inflexible in how it can be run at times due to its nature this can potentially cause issues for those who are used to it as opposed to those just starting out.

With all the above in mind, a flexible approach should be taken during the recruitment process, not only for those starting out their careers but even for those who are more established. The key takeaway should however be transparency and honesty. Job postings concretely detailing all aspects of the job, and interviews discussing completely what is expected and the potential of the position as well as how it fits into the company’s direction are both critical.

There will always be a certain level of friction between generations but if everyone is receiving and achieving what they view as important then the drawbacks will be heavily outweighed by the benefits and the first place for this to happen is when advertising your roles and recruiting for them.