Gen Z - don't be afraid of hiring the digital generation

Without walls

The event opened with a spoken word performance, ‘Without Walls’. Set in a job interview waiting room, the piece explores the voices of young people and refers to some of the barriers they face when looking for work, such as a lack of experience. In the final frame we hear,  "I’ve found a company that values what I have to say, I just wish it could have always been that way".

So what changes can employers make to attract early talent?

Recruitment and selection

Ideas on how to make recruitment and selection processes more inclusive were shared including utilising social media and accepting video CV’s.

The Head of Recruitment at University of Nottingham talked about their challenges attracting talent and the blind recruitment processes they have adopted such as removing names and academic institutions before shortlisting. See NTU’s ‘Top Tips’ for advice on how to attract early talent to your organisation.

The impact of COVID-19

Due to lockdown Gen Z have had less opportunity to gain work experience, build social skills and network in person. They have also had to quickly adapt to new technologies and ways of learning. Although there will be some who have built great resilience and adaptability through this time, others may be less confident, especially in an interview. In addition, although hybrid working arrangements are more prevalent at the moment, it is not always easy to learn a new job remotely. Employers must be mindful of this when planning inductions.

We discussed the challenges facing young people seeking creative careers with a particular emphasis on roles in construction. It was commented that many of the creative roles available, outside of architecture, are simply not known about. This thought was led by a Partner at Cundall, Senior Business Development Manager at Morgan Sindall and Senior Talent Business Partner at Pick Everards.

A Digital Engineer (and Gen Z’er), at Willmott Dixon, shared her career journey, talking about EDI and how creativity, and her own work as a make-up artist, made her stand out in the recruitment process.

The Executive Artistic Director of Television Workshop, a BAFTA award winning drama group, noted that only 5% of their cohorts tend to go into acting. The majority of young people look to utilise their creativity in other settings. Director of People and Culture at Nelsons Solicitors shared a similar thought that creative skills are transferable to many industries and commented that it is indeed essential for lawyers to be creative and adaptable in their day to day role.

Preparing for the workplace

We promoted a number of NTU initiatives in place to help students prepare for the workplace and increase their confidence and success when applying for jobs.  This includes our Professional Student Wardrobe equipped to provide students with an outfit for any recruitment related opportunity. Grads4Nottm, a two-week work experience programme where students work collaboratively on a project brief for a local employer – an excellent way to establish relationships between employers and students. Also, Employer Led Projects, presenting a range of routes for employers to increase their brand exposure and students to gain valuable skills through course-based challenges, guest lectures, industry insights and placements.

We spoke about the opportunities we provide for students to gain work experience via our JobShop, Unitemps and Student Mentor roles. We also highlighted the success of our first Part Time Jobs Fair in March 2024!

If you are interested in collaborating with NTU on any of the projects mentioned please get in touch.

Are you inspired to make changes to your recruitment and selection process in order to reach a wider audience? Our Employer Toolkits are packed with useful information to help you attract, select and keep the right employees. Download our free guides today!