Serving a purpose and alignment with values as more important than salary when Generation Z graduates choose where they want to work.
Almost half (49%) of respondents in global research from Aurecon ranked ‘serving a purpose and leaving a positive legacy for future generations’ in their top three characteristics when choosing an employer, while only 6,5% listed salary as their top priority.
Aurecon chief people officer Liam Hayes says that 2019 marked one of the first years that Gen Z would enter Aurecon’s workforce through the company’s graduate programme, and the survey demonstrated the significant value this cohort placed on purpose and leaving a legacy when choosing an employer.
The survey also found that flexible working is critical to this cohort, with almost one third of respondents (27%) ranking flexibility of working when and where they want in their top three characteristics when choosing an employer.
“Catering to Gen Z requires a different approach and providing flexible working, or the ability to ‘work differently’, is an important aspect in attracting and retaining talent,” says Hayes. “As the future of work is changing there is a need to adapt in order to create a future ready workforce with nimble, flexible work environments and a fluidity between traditional models of work and on-demand work.
“The future of work is a hotly debated topic with government, industry and the education sector considering and planning how the nature and type of work will radically change over the coming years. This includes the impact of rapid advances in technology and changing work models from traditional, ongoing work in a single role to on-demand project work.”
The research also highlighted a disconnect between university education and how prepared graduates felt to enter the workforce, suggesting that tertiary studies should involve more industry collaboration to better prepare graduates entering the workforce. Just under 50% of respondents (46%) felt adequately prepared for work after university, and almost one quarter of respondents (23%) ranked industry knowledge as the skill (out of 10) they felt the least confident about bringing to the workplace.
“Employers can help to bridge this gap through working in partnership with academia – at Aurecon for example, in addition to our learning and development programmes, we have a successful internship programme with universities such as the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) where PhD students are able to test their research in real-world environments,” said Liam.