Gen Z, people aged between 18 and 34 years old, is now a more important part of the workforce than ever before. Not only do their numbers continue to grow each year, but for many companies, Gen Z employees are key to driving future-ready innovation, offering fresh perspectives and creative thinking. Empowering Gen Z employees to bring their A-game to work is key for companies to improve employee performance. But what do Gen Z employees need to be successful at work?

To answer this question and more, we launched the Kahoot! ZetaPulse Gen Z Workforce Study, a survey of 1,015 Gen Z knowledge workers in the U.S., in collaboration with market research consultancy Researchscape. Download the free report to dig into our key findings, and get actionable insights into the challenges and opportunities for Gen Z in the workplace today.

Workplace social discomfort is a stumbling block for nearly all Gen Z knowledge workers

While Gen Z’ers may be confident in sharing their voice with the world on social media, many don’t feel as comfortable when it comes to connecting with their coworkers in real life. 

9 in 10 Gen Z employees surveyed reported experiencing social discomfort or anxiety at work, with more than half saying they feel it at least half the time. When asked what makes them feel anxious at work, their top 5 responses included being called on in meetings and giving presentations. This could present significant challenges not only for their career advancement, but for the team’s ability to collaborate and share knowledge.

Gen Z calls for more soft skills training, peer-based and independent learning

Though many Gen Z knowledge workers report feeling unprepared to nurture their professional relationships, they have also zeroed in on where they most want support from their employer: building soft skills, including communication, negotiation, and leadership. 

Gen Z employees are also calling for more peer-to-peer learning, showing a desire to strengthen their connection with coworkers and share their own knowledge. Self-directed learning rounds out respondents’ top 3 training priorities, pointing to a need for more flexible, self-paced learning experiences.

Generative AI is helping Gen Z learn new skills, grow their career, and boost productivity

As ChatGPT and other generative AI platforms surged into the spotlight, we saw that Gen Z became early and enthusiastic adopters. In fact, more than 3 in 4 Gen Z employees surveyed confirmed that they use ChatGPT, supporting new skill development, productivity assistance, and career advancement.

This speaks to Gen Z’s ability to leverage technology to boost their job performance, as well as their motivation to expand their knowledge and skill set.

Empower learning and collaboration for all employees

For companies seeking to optimize their employee learning and engagement strategies for the modern workforce, our Kahoot! 360 solutions can help companies support young employees to unleash their potential. 

Start by kicking off meetings, presentations, and events with Kahoot! icebreakers. These energize employees and help them feel more comfortable speaking up and interacting as a team.

Next, create impactful and engaging learning content on any business topic in seconds with the new Kahoot! AI question generator. This not only helps you boost engagement in presentations and training, but also makes it more accessible for any employee to create high quality, engaging content and share their knowledge. Employees can feel much more confident giving presentations when they know that participants will be getting actively involved and enjoying the experience with friendly competition.

You can also create a safe, non-judgmental space to exchange ideas and gather input by hosting a Kahoot! brainstorming session, now made even more efficient and actionable with AI.

At Kahoot!, our solutions serve employees in hundreds of thousands of companies worldwide. Kahoot! helps organizations transform learning and training, build teamwork and strengthen company culture, power up employee engagement, and beyond, and we’re always innovating new ways to make work even more awesome.

Ready to discover how Kahoot! can help you support and empower your Gen Z employees? Get in touch with us today at 360@kahoot.com.

Download the free Kahoot! ZetaPulse Gen Z Workforce Study report to explore even more Gen Z employee data.