The Debrief: Fashion Execs on Managing Gen-Z

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Background:

The youth-obsessed fashion and beauty industries can’t get enough of Gen-Z talent: they believe they need to recruit more entry-level employees in order to maintain relevance and attract new customers. But the cohort is entering the workforce with big expectations — not only around salary, but remote working, too — that many companies feel unprepared to meet.

“Gen-Z is entering the workforce amid a labour shortage… So that’s real leverage behind the demands they’re making,” explained Sheena Butler Young, BoF’s workplace and talent correspondent.

Key Insights:

• Gen-Z is the latest in a long line of generations accused of impatience entering the workforce.
• A key difference between Gen-Z and its Millennial predecessors is that the job market currently favours job-seekers rather than employers — so their demands are more likely to be met.
• Fashion is finding demands surrounding remote work particularly hard to deal with given the collaborative nature of most jobs.
• Brands shouldn’t get caught up in stereotypes about young talent, but find ways to actually understand job-seekers’ desires.
• Often, the generation that hates being sold to and just wants transparency, honesty and open lines of communication about career progression.

Additional Resources:

• What Will It Take to Make Gen-Z Happy at Work? A shift in workplace power dynamics has companies struggling to balance their youngest employees’ expectations against the needs of their businesses.
• What Fashion’s Class of 2022 Expects from Employers: A tight labour market, the pandemic and renewed emphasis on racial equity and climate change have recast the industry’s desirable jobs and companies.
• Solving Retail’s Labour Shortage: As retailers struggle to hire holiday season staff, some are finding ways to make stocking shelves and ringing up sales more appealing.

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