As a remote business leader, you’re already ahead of the game when it comes to many of your brick-and-mortar competitors. You’re using Slack for communications, and your employees live all over the world, which means you’re able to hire the best talent no matter where they live. Whether you’re a blockchain startup entrepreneur like Brian Magierski or an ecommerce guru, you’ve experienced many of the challenges of running a remote business and overcome them. No matter what the name of your business is or the industry you’re in, the business is doing great.
But recently, you’ve come across a challenge: hiring Gen Z employees. You aren’t sure what they’re looking for, but you know that you want them to work for you. They’re the youngest generation right now, and you need their insights and their passion for hard work. So if you’re ready to attract this pool of young talent, here’s how.
1. Offer awesome jobs
As a remote business leader, you know that it’s possible to make it in the remote business world. But with so many websites out there, like Upwork and Freelancer, offering to pay for huge online projects, a new jobseeker is going to be less than thrilled with low-quality options. If the only opportunity you’re offering new hires is an unpaid internship or low-wage work that you know deserves better pay, Gen Zers won’t want to work for you. Unlike the idealistic millennial generation that came before them, they’re hungry for money (or at least an experience that will further their career).
According to Payal Vasudeva, managing director for Accenture Strategy UK, explains it like this: “Recent graduates feel underemployed if they think they are not making use of their university degrees… Employers need to give them opportunities to use their skills. This means giving graduates challenging work opportunities and breaking down functional barriers so that they get exposure to multiple parts of the organisation and have a richer learning experience.”
Gen Zers will soon make up 40 percent of US consumers, so it’s in your interest to get them working for you. They’ll soon be a window to many trends, no matter what your business.
2. Get connected
If you’re an online-based company, it’s likely that you’re already quite active online. But are you active where it counts to Gen Zers? On platforms like Instagram and Snapchat, especially, you need to be constantly posting. US consumers are spending five hours a day on their mobile devices, and Gen Zers are on them more than anybody else. So you need to post often and use hashtags like #hiringnow and #hiringremote. In fact, the more you use, the better; the optimized number of hashtags for any post is between 25 and 30.
Additionally, don’t forget to use cool features like fun filters on Snapchat and Instagram stories. Gen Zers are using them all the time, and if you aren’t aware of how these trends work, they’ll feel like you aren’t on the same page as they are. Matching your Instagram account’s brand look to your website will make a difference, too.
3. Offer flexible schedules
According to Staffbase, “This generation will be increasingly spread out: they will work from different locations, travel more for their jobs, and want to stay connected 24/7. 26 percent say they plan to work in two countries, and 19 percent want to work in three countries.” This is great news: since you’re already a remote company, you’ve got an advantage when it comes to non-remote competitors for hiring. But if you want to make the deal even sweeter for Gen Zers, offer flexibility in terms of how they complete their work projects.
For example, ask your new employees to tell you how they’d prefer to complete their work. Do they prefer an hourly wage or one paid per project? Are they more likely to complete work on weekends, instead of during a traditional nine to five Monday through Friday week? Some businesses won’t have this much flexibility, but if you’re a lawyer like Aaron Kelly, it might be beneficial to have Gen Zers working on their own terms. They’ll be more likely to stay up working on a brief if they prefer a night owl schedule.
It also doesn’t hurt that Gen Zers love it when anyone asks their opinion, whether it’s a brand they’re engaging with or an employer.
By using these strategies, Gen Zers will be more interested in working with you on your remote team.