Generation Z – those born between the mid-1990s and early 2010s – are entering the workforce in increasing numbers and bringing with them a communication style that has been a shock to some, ahem, more established professionals. As the first generation to grow up with smartphones, social media, and constant connectivity, Gen Z’s approach to communication is markedly different from their predecessors.

Media coverage of Gen Z’s alternative expectations of communication has tended towards the negative – the New York Post recently ran a piece entitled “Gen Z cancelled the ‘hostile’ thumbs-up emoji and wants to ban these 9 others”, while the BBC reports that “Not all employers are tolerating Gen Z’s laid-back language”. Yet we believe that for those in professional services, the shift in dynamics presents an opportunity for all of us to consider our communication styles – and what we can learn from each other.

Having grown up with instant messaging, social media platforms, and video conferencing apps, Gen Z are used to using technology to facilitate quick and efficient communication, and find advances in the same far easier to navigate than previous generations.[1] For professional services firms, this digital fluency translates to increased fluency elsewhere. The preference for instant communication platforms over long email chains can streamline project management and foster real-time collaboration, allowing for quicker decision-making. Meanwhile, Gen Z’s familiarity with data-driven tools and analytics platforms can drive more informed strategies: a win-win for professional services firms and their clients.[2]

Better use of technology can inform better communication elsewhere. The use of video platforms like YouTube and TikTok is becoming more and more prevalent in workplace communication, leading to greater use of video as a medium in internal training, client presentations, and marketing campaigns.[3] The good sense of this is self-evident: TikTok is a platform with a billion users – a data sample of dreams – and if the broader question posed by social media could be said to be “how to engage” then professional services firms would be remiss in failing to learn from the answers.

On a practical level, it has long been a professional faux pas to shrug one’s shoulders and say “I’m no good with technology” while struggling to start a PowerPoint in front of a room full of increasingly bored audience members. Technological fluency is no longer optional, and other generations can learn a good deal from Gen Z’s willingness to embrace new tools rather than shying away from them. There is also significant opportunity for professional services firms in recognising the particular skillset that Gen Z employees can bring, leveraging their knowledge of tools for engagement to create more effective internal communication systems, as well as delivery of materials to clients.

Where criticisms are made of Gen Z in the work-place it is often for a communication style that is considered too “laid-back” by other generations. Growing up in a digital world means that abbreviations, emojis and memes have been part of Gen Z’s language for their entire lives, and is not necessarily easily separated from more corporate communication. As Oliver Hodgson, founder and managing director of Platinum Live who has written about being a Gen Z company boss, put it:

“we’ve grown up in a digital world, valuing flexibility, work-life balance and purpose. Older managers can misunderstand this as entitlement or a lack of respect for authority, when really it’s about working smarter and finding meaning in our work”[4]

While the generation is new, then, the lesson is not: effective communication in a Gen Z era is about knowing your audience. A Gen Z reader might interpret a thumbs up emoji as sarcastic or passive-aggressive – while to a different generation it might be an attempt to ‘speak’ Gen Z.[5] A senior manager might view Gen Z’s taste for informal language as disrespectful – while to Gen Z the emphasis on efficiency and a desire to find work meaningful actually represents an engagement with work that should be welcome to managers.

Effective communication is so often about finding the right language. To get the most out of each generation, we must learn to speak each other’s.

Author Harriet Johnson

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[1] https://www.limely.co.uk/blog/how-are-gen-z-shaping-the-future-of-technology-culture-work-2024#:~:text=Technological%20proficiency,much%20more%20than%20their%20predecessors.

[2] https://www.ofcom.org.uk/internet-based-services/technology/gen-z-driving-early-adoption-of-gen-ai/

[3] https://forbes.com/sites/nathanpeart/2023/02/21/workplace-trends-on-tiktok-how-they-impact-employee-engagement-and-what-you-can-do-about-it/

[4] https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/article/1887304/seven-10-appreciate-gen-zs-creativity-adaptability-admit-struggling-manage#:~:text=Oliver%20Hodgson%2C%20founder%20and%20managing,can%20lead%20to%20miscommunication%20and

[5] https://nypost.com/2022/10/12/gen-z-has-canceled-the-thumbs-up-emoji-because-its-hostile/