Strategies to attract and retain Malaysian Gen Zs and millennials

MANY employers in Malaysia are struggling with workforce shortages due to the great resignation brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Today, attracting and retaining the workforce remain the top priority for chief executive officers and business owners alike.

More than half of the working population in Malaysia are represented by Gen Zs and millennials.

Deloitte’s Global 2022 Gen Z and Millennial survey has revealed key trends on what these demographics want from workplaces in Malaysia.

As defined in the study, Gen Zs are anyone born between January 1995 and December 2003, and millennials are those born between January 1983 and December 1994.

Gen Zs and millennials feel deeply concerned about the state of the world and their own future.

They are reassessing their priorities in the wake of ongoing crises, and are actively trying to balance the daily challenges with their desire to drive societal change.

Business leaders in Malaysia need to consider bold moves to address this as cost of living is a major concern.

It is by far their top concern. Many live paycheque to paycheque and are not confident they will be able to retire comfortably.

To make ends meet, more than four in 10 Gen Zs and a third of millennials have a part or full-time side hustle, in addition to their primary job.

At a broader societal level, they are deeply concerned about wealth inequality and not optimistic that the economic situation will improve.

Flexibility is a priority

Most Gen Zs (75%) and millennials (77%) prefer hybrid or remote work, but less than half currently have the option to do so. They value flexible work because it helps them save money, frees up time to do other things that they care about, and allows them to spend more time with family.

Having a good work/life balance is one of the top reasons why they choose to work for an organisation.

Mental health concerns

Nearly half of Gen Zs say they feel stressed all or most of the time. Millennials’ stress levels are also high but are down slightly from last year. Both cite their longerterm financial future, day-to-day finances, job and workload as the top three contributors of anxiety and stress.

Sixty five per cent of Gen Zs surveyed in Malaysia feel burnt out due to the intensity and demand of their workload.

While employers are seen to be trying to address workplace mental health issues – more than half of respondents say while their employer is more focused on workplace well-being and mental health since the start of the pandemic – many do not believe the increased focus has resulted in any meaningful impact on the employees.

Up the ante

Malaysian workplaces need to up the ante to compete effectively and win in the war for talent. With the weakening ringgit against the US dollar, Malaysia is at higher risk of losing talent as global opportunities become increasingly more attractive.

The great resignation signals a breaking point in response to ongoing dissatisfaction, increasing distrust in business, and shocking events like the pandemic that have caused people to reassess their priorities.

Business leaders have an opportunity to drive the sustained workplace changes that the Gen Zs and millennials have long been asking for.

While compensation, better work/life balance, and more learning and development opportunities are at the top on the list, addressing them requires more than a checklist of activities.

The address the cost-of-living concern, it is not about paying them more, but to ensure that they are moving towards higher value and meaningful jobs that attract a higher salary.

To do so, business leaders need to fundamentally relook the business and organisation from top to bottom and reimagine the work, workforce, and workplace to be more productive, profitable, and positioned better for the future.

Providing flexibility cannot be solved merely by a human resources policy document.

The deeper meaning behind flexibility is adaptability.

Businesses and organisations will have to be nimble and able to quickly pivot to the changing needs of customers, workforce, and environment.

Becoming an “adaptable organisation” is a fundamental shift in operating philosophy that enables organisations to operate more like startups, with modernised people practices and an ecosystem that enables enterprise agility.

A new generation of bold, capable, adaptable, empathetic, and purpose-driven leaders are needed to lead the workforce in a highly uncertain future.

Malaysia needs to invest heavily in accelerating the development of our corporate leaders before we are overtaken by the intense competition from our neighbours.

In Indonesia, the Catalyser programme is currently the biggest leadership accelerator programme in South-east Asia that aims to build world-class Asian leadership.

Singapore, on the other hand, has been running the Skillsfuture Leadership Development Initiative for several years to develop the next generation of Singaporean business leaders.

The pandemic and the ensuing great resignation is unprecedented.

Now is the time for business leaders in Malaysia to move away from incremental solutions to bolder and imaginative thinking to improve competitiveness and ultimately win the war for talent.

They are reassessing their priorities in the wake of ongoing crises.