Soon to be college graduates, recent college graduates, and young professionals seem to be straying away from wanting careers where they only work from 9 am to 5 pm in a traditional and old school office setting. These young job seekers and entry-level candidates are developing new preferences of the workplace that have not been previously seen by older generations.
These Millennials and early Gen Z-ers are leaning away from the idea of working just to make money. Things that these young professionals seem to value no, more than ever, is hour flexibility, room for growth, positive company culture, and approachable executives. Many millennials have stated that they would be willing to take a pay cut if it were to mean that they would have more of a work-life balance, as they place a high value on experiences such as traveling and time with friends and family and yearn for life experiences and growth out of the office.
In terms of hour flexibility, this could mean a variety of things from making up hours later on in the week in order to attend a cool out- of work- an opportunity to working from home sometimes if necessary. A positive company culture is super important to these job seekers because they want to actively enjoy work. Many big companies and smaller agencies offer a variety of cool opportunities that enhance the company’s culture.
For example, many advertising agencies have ping pong tables in their brainstorm rooms. Some even have beer on tap for their employees in the kitchen. These are just some of the ways that traditional careers are changing because of the ways that these newer job seekers prioritize various opportunities.