A lot has been said about Gen Zs in the workplace since the generation (the oldest at 27 years old) entered the workforce. They’re transforming company culture and rebelling against tradition! They want structure! But also flexibility! Autonomy, with some authority-to-follow mixed in!

While navigating this basket of contradictions, what does it truly take to create a company culture that will attract and keep young employees engaged?

Walk the talk

To get a better idea of what resonates with Gen Z in the workplace, I spoke to several of my Gen Z colleagues, and many of them cite authenticity as one of the most important aspects of company culture.

With a greater focus on corporate purpose in recent years, it’s crucial to make a company’s identity, beliefs, and values tangible. It’s easy to say you’re sustainable, value diversity, protect work-life balance, or are driven by innovation and creativity; the difficulty lies in making that true.

But maybe the answer isn’t in grand gestures. For example, at BBH Singapore, we talk about ourselves as black sheep. That means thinking and doing things differently, even in the most routine and mundane things.

To show fellow employees what we actually mean by this difference, we used our employee handbook. A couple of us junior black sheep worked with the leadership team to turn it into “Second Skin”: a sleek raincoat in which new and existing employees can find the company’s principles, ways of working, and even mental health and expense claims policies; hidden in pockets, on clothing care labels, and woven into the fabric. It not only makes boring admin fun but it’s also a tactile, tangible reflection of who we are.

Second Skin was a hit, particularly with the younger black sheep in the office. It became company pride everyone could proudly wear on their sleeve — to fend off the air-conditioning in the office, brave the rain during lunch, and learn how to do their expense claims so they had money for lunch.

Open up

Most of my Gen Z colleagues called out a flat hierarchy and open communication as another key part of a healthy company culture.

While generations before worked in top-down corporate structures, Gen Zs live in an age where egalitarianism is rising. Whether gender, socio-economic status, or sexual orientation, they grew up watching or participating in the fight for equality. That is why they prefer a structure in which open collaboration is encouraged, and everyone can share their perspective and knowledge, no matter their title or rank.

Craving more openness and less hierarchy doesn’t mean Gen Zs don’t respect authority. When asked to imagine working with Gen Z bosses, some of the responses I got were “oh god” and “not good”. While it might be a more laidback work environment, Gen Zs appreciate mentorship and value a workplace that’s dedicated to nurturing talent, young or old(er).

One way we’re working together as a company to create a more open work environment at BBH Singapore is by forming dedicated teams filled with people across departments, juniors and seniors alike. These teams facilitate open conversations and create programs around important issues, from diversity and inclusion to mental wellness. There’s even a team called ‘Feedback Champions’ that goes around collecting feedback about the office so that everyone has a say in how we improve our space.

Work-life balance

When it comes to discussions about Gen Z in the workplace, conversations around work-life balance are never far behind. A majority of the Gen Z colleagues I spoke to place it as the top consideration that would attract or keep them at a job.

Often hitting the headlines are big measures taken by companies and even countries to make this happen, be it unlimited leave days, flexible work arrangements, or 4-day work weeks.

While these are great initiatives that businesses should consider and adopt if they can, emphasizing work-life balance doesn’t have to mean big organizational change. Small efforts go a long way in creating a balanced work culture. For example, at BBH Singapore, lunch-hour is blocked out company-wide so that lunch meetings are few and far between, and it’s common to see people block out time in the evening to care for their kids, exercise, and more, and that time is respected. It’s these little, continual efforts to support each other in our daily lives that make all the difference.

It’s not a generation thing

Ultimately, it’s important to know that Gen Zs aren’t this strange alien race. By being born at a different time in humanity’s development, different generations simply have different desires and motivations.

So, maybe it’s less about management sitting together in a boardroom and working out how to attract a particular generation of people and more about involving different generations of people in building your company’s culture together. Because culture is people. And just like people, it can, will, and should change.

But what do I know? I’m just a Millennial.