Gen Z (born between 1997 and 2012) is expected to make up a third of the workforce by the end of this year. This is a massive talent pool that you can’t afford to overlook as an employer looking to fill open roles and compete long-term. But the problem is that most folks outside of Gen Z don’t always know how to connect with and win over job seekers from this age group.
Why? Because unlike the generations that came before them, Gen Z is digitally native, they don’t remember a time before social media, and their phones rule their lives. They’re accustomed to being able to order anything they want, book a ride, pay their friends, and schedule appointments all with the click of a button on their phones. Chances are, if something can’t be done via mobile, they won’t do it — applying for jobs and interviewing with companies included.
In fact, a recent Hireology survey of nearly 1,200 recent Gen Z job seekers found that:
- 51% complete the entire job search (from application to offer) on their phones
- 54% have given up on a job application because it took too long to complete
- 40% have given up on a job application because it was too tough to complete on mobile
- 92% would be willing to text with recruiters if it meant moving the hiring process along faster
So what can you do to get these twenty-somethings on your payroll as they quickly become the largest generation in the workforce today? Read on to find out.
Want to see the full results of Hireology’s research around Gen Z recruiting and hiring? Read the study, Gen Z: Definers of the New Workplace, today.
Mobile-friendly applications
How long are your digital applications? Do you have to zoom in on a phone in order to read and complete them? Do you ask for PDF uploads? What about required login information? If you answered yes to any of these, you’re deterring folks who want to complete your applications on their phones. And like we mentioned above, that’s more than half of Gen Z applicants. And this number is even higher if you look at folks who work in fields like healthcare, hospitality, or retail where employees are largely on-the-go and don’t have time to sit down at a desktop computer to complete an application.
So what can you do to optimize your applications for mobile? For one, cut them down to 5-6 fields max. Anything more than that and people are going to get tired of trying to complete it on their phones. Don’t require any sort of document attachments and design your applications responsively — meaning they render differently on a smaller screen, eliminating the need for zooming in to read text or complete fields. And finally, don’t make job seekers create or log into an account to apply. This is way too complicated and time consuming to do on a phone.
Building mobile-friendly applications is of course easier to do with tools like Hireology. Every Hireology account is equipped with a basic application form tailored to ensure all essential applicant information is captured. They are easy to use and fully customizable to fit your needs. Even better, all of our applications are optimized to render appropriately on mobile devices.
Candidate texting
Email is still the standard channel of communication for most employers today. But remember that while we do have email apps on our phones, email was designed for desktop and laptop computers. It still isn’t the easiest to navigate on a phone. On top of that, email inboxes these days are cluttered with an array of marketing emails, and navigating through all this noise is not easy to do on a smaller screen.
So stop making a generation that isn’t accustomed to emailing do so in order to move forward in your hiring process. Instead, text them. This is a generation that grew up texting. It’s easy and natural for them — they’re much more likely to not only see your message if it comes through via text but also respond to it. Thankfully this is possible with Hireology. Our built-in candidate communication feature empowers you to send and receive texts from within your Hireology account.
Texting is a great way to engage Gen Z candidates and streamline your hiring process. See first-hand how candidate texting works within Hireology.
Streamlined interview scheduling
Have you ever tried to format an email where you list out multiple dates and times you’re available for something on your smartphone? It’s not easy. It’s cumbersome and difficult to navigate. Most of the time you’d wait until you’re at a laptop to write the response and send it. But Gen Z isn’t going to wait. They have so many options for work they’ll choose the one that makes it easier for them to respond on their phones.
Make it easier for them to give you their availability for interviews on phones by simply giving them options that work for you to choose from. For example, using Hireology you can automatically sync hiring manager calendars with Hireology to generate available time slots for applicants to select — eliminating the need for candidates to type out dates and times that work on their end.
Digital offer letters
It should go without saying that a generation that is accustomed to doing everything via the internet and often on their phones doesn’t have a printer. So don’t risk losing these folks once you’ve made an offer by forcing them to print and sign your offer letters. Make it easy for them to accept via their phones by digitizing the offer letter process.
Using Hireology you can manage the full offer process — from creating the offer letter to requesting and receiving the candidate’s e-signature — directly from your account. Not only does this make it easier for candidates using their mobile devices to quickly accept offers, but it also reduces errors on your end and accelerates the process of generating offer letters so top candidates don’t lose interest. From there, Hireology’s digital onboarding software helps you follow a similar approach to get new hires integrated into your team fast.
At a time when hiring is harder than ever, it’s important to do everything you can to adjust your recruiting and hiring efforts to attract the most qualified candidates. And in the years to come, the vast majority of your talent pool will be members of Gen Z. Thankfully Hireology is equipped to help you modernize your recruiting and hiring processes to keep pace with these digitally native, mobile-first candidates.
