How do young people become capable and happy employees (including in management)?
Dear readers,
for as long as humanity can remember, older generations have viewed the generations that followed them with skepticism. Even the greek philosopher Socrates (470–399 BC) expressed concern:
"The youth of today love luxury, have bad manners and despise authority. They contradict their parents, cross their legs and tyrannize their teachers."
It seems, then, that young people have faced the same prejudices for thousands of years — prejudices that are not entirely unfounded and likely rooted in a certain psychological dynamic that is both natural and necessary.
And yet, Generation Z is the first generation that truly seems different …
Caught between labor shortages, changing values and societal transformation, they are described either as a beacon of hope or as the embodiment of an overwhelmed working world. Discussions range from sometimes absurd ideas about work-life balance and mental health to the question of whether young people today are resilient enough to cope with the realities of modern organizations and whether our economy is doomed in light of the workforce that is coming after us.
But perhaps this is where the real misunderstanding already begins. To deal effectively with something, it is essential not only to know the background, but to truly understand it. And anyone who wants to understand Generation Z (those born between 1995 and 2010) should resist rushing to judgment and instead take a closer look at the conditions under which this generation grew up.
A remarkable contribution to this discussion comes from Jonathan Haidt in his book "The Anxious Generation" ("Generation Anxiety - How we are losing our children to the virtual world and putting their mental health at risk"). In it, Haidt describes how childhood and adolescence have changed in recent years, shifting from a play-based childhood to a smartphone-based childhood, shaped by social media, constant digital overstimulation, perpetual comparison and a daily life that increasingly takes place online.
A digital youth with serious psychological consequences
The social psychologist’s book is not merely about media consumption. It addresses the effects on attention, concentration, self-image, social confidence and psychological stability. Generation Z is the first generation to have been socialized almost entirely in digital environments. Many young adults no longer know a life without permanent connectivity. Communication happens predominantly asynchronously rather than face-to-face. Push notifications, algorithm-driven attention systems and the subtle pressure of social comparison are all part of everyday interaction. And this reality is no longer just a private issue affecting individual members of Gen Z, it increasingly appears within organizational contexts as well.
The question, therefore, is no longer whether the world of work is changing. The crucial question is: What does this development mean for leadership?
In our work at KellerPartner, we are currently witnessing growing uncertainty among many leaders. They observe younger employees who appear highly reflective, value-driven and willing to learn, yet who often struggle with long-term focus, uncertainty and self-organization. This frequently manifests itself in increased mental exhaustion, lower frustration tolerance or a strong need for guidance and feedback. Some leaders, much like Socrates did centuries ago, quickly interpret this as a lack of willingness to perform. In our view, however, this explanation falls short.
Anyone who wants to understand how Generation Z works must first understand the conditions under which they grew up.
Many young people have spent their entire youth in a world where attention is constantly fragmented. Haidt refers to the period when smartphones entered the market, social media platforms exploded and numerous technological revolutions (such as high-speed internet) converged as the time of the “great rewiring” of our youth. They experienced a completely different childhood from previous generations and that has consequences. Concentration is no longer trained; it is interrupted. Focus competes with stimuli and silence competes with constant digital activity. Boredom no longer exists. Today, people scroll.
Highly educated professionals with concentration and self-worth challenges?
Organizations increasingly encounter young employees who are exceptionally well educated, yet who often struggle to immerse themselves in sustained periods of focused work. Deep work (longer phases of concentrated attention) has become a challenge for many people. Not because of a lack of interest or motivation, but because the brain has been conditioned over years to operate in short stimulation cycles. This development has direct consequences for collaboration and leadership.
Today more than ever, leaders must provide orientation and clarity. At the same time, young employees need environments in which concentration, focus and self-regulation can consciously be relearned. Modern leadership therefore means more than setting goals and managing performance. It also means creating work environments that enable psychological safety and focused work.
Concentration has become a key resource in complex working environments.
Those who can no longer sustain long periods of concentration will struggle to solve complex problems, think strategically or make sustainable decisions. Attention is therefore no longer merely an individual skill, it has become an organizational issue for the future.
From our perspective, one topic in particular will become increasingly important in the years ahead: focus and attention-span training.
Just as organizations today invest in resilience training, leadership development or communication skills, they will increasingly need to place concentration, self-regulation and the conscious handling of digital stimuli at the center of development initiatives.
These measures should not be pathologizing. Because Generation Z also brings enormous strengths: a strong sense of values, social awareness, openness toward diversity, digital competence, and a pronounced desire for meaningful work. Many young employees challenge established working patterns not out of convenience but because they fundamentally think differently about work.
However, Generation Z also requires leaders who are willing to embrace new forms of leadership. The traditional concept of leadership, shaped by control, distance, and purely hierarchical management, is becoming less effective in many areas. Young employees expect orientation, transparency, feedback and above all: PURPOSE. They want to understand why they are doing something and what contribution their work makes.
We view this development as something very positive. It does not mean that performance is becoming less important. Research and experience show that people who experience meaning in their work often take on greater responsibility. What is changing is the way motivation emerges. Leadership is becoming more human, more communicative and psychologically more demanding.
For many organizations, this is the real challenge. It is no longer enough to introduce modern working models or flexible hours. Companies must learn to work with a generation that was socialized under fundamentally different societal conditions than previous generations.
And this does not concern leaders alone. It concerns all of us - as a society, as managers, mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, teachers, neighbors and citizens. Haidt’s book is both a plea for understanding and a call to take responsibility. Because if attention becomes scarcer, mental strain increases, and orientation becomes more difficult, then we need people and organizations that consciously counteract these trends, that guide, support and lead.
For managers, this means understanding before judging.
Anyone who views young employees exclusively through the lens of previous generations will often misunderstand (and disapprove of) their behavior. Those who are willing to consider the broader societal context, however, quickly recognize that many current challenges are not individual weaknesses but expressions of a profound cultural transformation. Modern leadership will therefore increasingly require pedagogical, psychological and cultural competencies. This does not mean organizations should become therapy centers. Rather, successful collaboration will depend more and more on how well we understand people within the reality of their lives.
At KellerPartner, we repeatedly experience in leadership consulting just how crucial this perspective has become. Organizations that merely want to “manage” younger generations quickly reach their limits. Organizations, however, that are willing to listen, provide orientation, and consciously create spaces for focus, meaning and self-efficacy often develop significantly more resilient and motivated teams.
The real question, therefore, is not whether Generation Z is capable of working but whether our organizations are ready to rethink leadership.
Yours sincerely
Daniel Keller
Image source: Photo by musefoto on Freepik
