Better Being Series: Building Sustainable Performance in a Multi-Generational Workforce

April 10, 2025 12 mins

Better Being Series: Building Sustainable Performance in a Multi-Generational Workforce

In this episode of the On Aon podcast, Helen Payne and Anna Hislop discuss generational dynamics in the workforce.

Key Takeaways

Experts discuss how Gen Z is different from other generations in the workplace.
Tips are offered for an organization o help all generations work their best.
Senior leaders get advice on how to foster trust in a multi-generational workplace.

Intro:
Welcome to the On Aon podcast, where we dive into some of the most pressing topics that businesses and organizations around the world are facing. Today, we're returning to our Better Being series, for a look at generational intelligence and workplace culture.

Helen Payne:
Hello and welcome to the Better Being series from On Aon. My name's Helen Payne and I'm a global director in Aon's human sustainability team. In today's podcast, we're talking about how we can foster a culture of sustainable high performance across the generation and asking the question, what role do senior leaders play in this? Interestingly, when it comes to describing their own wellbeing, Aon's recent employee sentiment study shows that Gen Z and millennials are more likely to say that they are thriving than their Gen X and Baby Boomer counterparts. We know that social factors matter to Gen Z, impacting their experience of the workplace. While all age groups cite work, health, and financial concerns as having a big impact on their well-being, 60% of Gen Z believe that flexible working will have a positive impact on their general social interaction, connection with their team, and connection with their employer.

With me today to discuss this is an expert in the field, Anna Hislop. There are so many strings to Anna's bow. She's a leadership coach, public speaker, change management facilitator, and an expert in Gen Z workplace engagement. She's also an international author with her book, You Only Have to Ask, How to Realize the Full Potential of Gen Z at Work.

Anna, thank you so much for being here with me today.

Anna Hislop:
Thank you so much for having me, Helen.

Helen Payne:
In our discussion, we're going to talk through what we're seeing in the market and what roles senior leaders play in creating a sustainable high-performance culture in a workplace. So let's get started.

Now, as a mother of two, aged 12 and 15, and I find your research so fascinating, perhaps we could start by sharing with our listeners what makes Gen Z different from other generations in the workplace and why.

Anna Hislop:
Yeah, so this question is really quite interesting when it comes to understanding generations and understanding Gen Z in particular. And as you well know, all generations are shaped by their existing world around them. So sometimes it's tricky to avoid the stereotypical traps when describing a whole generation, but there are a number of significant things that influenced this generation and it's kind of painting a picture and showing us a pattern. But of course, it's not the absolute truth. And I think one driver is to have impact and create change in the workplace. That's a big driver for Gen Z. Another one is redefining loyalty and trust and moving away from the typical kind of employer loyalty that other generations are showing in the workplace and being a little bit more loyal towards themselves because they don't know what's around the corner. The world is very, a very uncertain place at the moment and showing up in many different ways. So being more loyal towards themselves is one thing that's driving Gen Z. Job mobility is another one. 75% are citing that insufficient learning opportunities as a key reason for job dissatisfaction. So those are also two big drivers.

Helen Payne:
So thinking about those two drivers in particular, and I'm thinking more perhaps about the trust issue here. There's a fact that in order to build loyalty, you need to feel that you're aligned to the business that you're working with in terms of values and you need to have trust the senior leaders within the organization. What can the senior leaders within my clients be doing in order to create that environment, that culture of trust?

Anna Hislop:
Yeah, that's a great question. One area that we need to improve is our listening skills, being active listeners and asking curious questions. What are their experience like working for this specific company? What would they like to change? What areas did they see potential improvements and being willing to actually hear their responses as well and being willing to explore and investigate whether there could be changes made in the business as a result of their feedback? So that's one area.

The other one is around trust. And we talk a lot about flexible work at the moment and hybrid workplaces. And many believe that Gen Zs or young employees won't matter because it makes their life simpler and easier. And of course that plays a role as well. But for many Gen Zs, it's a trust issue. If the leaders don't trust them to do their work anywhere, then we have a problem. We have a trust issue. So for the younger population in many companies around the globe, flexible working is a way to show that you trust your employees. And I've got a number here, 44 % prefer face-to-face work, particularly when it comes to collaborative work and when we are working together with other functions or other people to do some work together. So that's more beneficial to do face to face according to the younger generation. And belonging is a big thing for this generation as well. And we all know that being face to face create a different type of relationship. We get to know each other better.

Helen Payne:
So in order to drive sustainable high performance, which is what a lot of my clients are looking for, this is getting the balance right between working really hard, but keeping that motivation and keeping a sense of this isn't depleting me as an individual and my wellbeing, which I think came back to your second point earlier, which was they really do want to ensure that they're prioritizing their individual well-being and they're not going to make the sacrifices that perhaps previous generations have made at the expense of work. Is that true, would you say, in your opinion?

Anna Hislop:
And don't forget, this generation was shaped by quite an unstable world when they were growing up during their formative years. We had the economic instability during the Great Recession and what that did to their parents and other adults in their life when they were being laid off or when they were having problems with their mortgage, banks collapsing and the housing markets failing, et cetera. And this is when conversations were had around the table of “I don't want to be just a number” or “I've dedicated so much time and so many years to this company and now I'm being laid off”. There's no loyalty there to be had. So this is what shaped the younger employees and they're really working hard not to make the same mistakes as their older siblings or parents did.

Helen Payne:
But those very people that have been through some of that are still going to be the leaders in the organizations that they're working for and have been through a number of world events that may have shaped their own perception of what they're willing to tolerate. Now they're the ones in charge. Are they always willing to adapt? Or do you think that's part of the problem? It's almost like I've had to earn my stripes. I've had to be tough and resilient and get through things, why shouldn't the rest of the younger generation?

Anna Hislop:
Absolutely and you’re shining a light on something really important here, Helen, and that is perception. We experience the world based on our own lived experience, what shaped us and the values that comes with either my generation or me as an individual. And that is very much the case. We see that as the right way of being, the right way of thinking, the right way of acting and behaving. So of course it can be very challenging when a new generation is coming through and they don't share those values. They have other values that they've created based on their own lived experience. So yes, absolutely. And that's why I spend a lot of my time and my work on generational intelligence and moving the focus from one generation to all generations to be able to fully understand what shapes the different generations within a team or within a workplace.

I really understand that and fully appreciating what they bring as their skills, as their know-how, as their experience and as their creative thinking. So understanding and appreciating what all generations bring to the workplace, I think is key to have a thriving team or a thriving company.

Helen Payne:
Yeah, I couldn't agree more. And I see in some really good examples of organizations actively facilitating that kind of intelligent conversation between the generations. I've seen things like reverse mentoring, for example, where senior leaders are paired up with younger colleagues so they can really understand where each other are coming from. I'm wondering whether you could perhaps share some examples where you've seen companies doing things that have really worked and what that looks like and the benefits that could bring.

Anna Hislop:
Absolutely. And I think what a few of the examples that you were giving here are really quite helpful and really powerful if they are used in the optimal way. So reverse mentoring is helpful, but just being able to have conversations, possibly facilitated by someone from outside the organization to open up the mindsets of people, asking questions like, “in what way is my colleague really clever and really smart and really contributing to the business”, rather than thinking “they do things differently compared to the way I would do it”. And that's a problem, but seeing it as a positive instead of as a negative, that creates a multiplying effect because it means that we're tapping into their skills and really utilizing their skills rather than writing it off as something not important because it's not the way that I used to do it is one example.

Helen Payne:
It's so true, but it takes effort, doesn't it? There is no sort of silver bullet, hey, let's just put in some nice new benefits. This is really about how we work together every day, how we talk about each other, each other. I think, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it has to start at the top. If it doesn't come from the senior leaders, it's unlikely to percolate throughout the organization. So when working with clients, would you typically start working with the most senior people in an organization or where would you start?

Anna Hislop:
Yes, I do think it's great to start with the more senior leaders because if the buy-in is there from them, then it's helping the overall work to do within the organization, definitely. But it's also sometimes the most challenging group to work with because we are set in our ways and we do have a tendency to believe that my way is the right way. I got myself here with through hard work and through dedication and whatever else, and I'm going to stick with it. So it can be quite challenging to open up those conversations and to really support leaders to see that our perception might not be the truth. Other ways of approaching things and when we understand what shaped our different generations, why we show up the way we do, why we want to communicate the way we do, why we want to learn the way we do, et cetera, then it's easier to fully kind of grasp the idea of my way is not the right way.

Helen Payne:
There's so much we can learn by just really understanding one another and having these kinds of conversations in our workplace. As we wrap up, have you got any sort of final thoughts? If you were speaking to a client, one thing that would make the biggest impact on the organization today, what would you recommend?

Anna Hislop:
Ooh, I would initiate a conversation around the type of leadership that is a part of the culture because Gen Z, they are looking for support. They're looking for a caring leader and they're looking for a leader who will give them clarity and direction. And they will work hard if they feel that they have the support, they know who cares about them and they know what they are expecting to achieve and do in their role. Those are three kind of traits that aren't necessarily the traditional leadership traits that we've seen in the past. That is important if you want to be a part of future proofing your business.

Helen Payne:
Thank you, Anna. That is fascinating and also I think achievable. Hopefully it's given our listeners something to think about and something which they could implement within their organization if they're not doing so already.

Anna Hislop:
Absolutely.

Helen Payne:
So that's all we have time for today. Thank you so much for joining us and thank you everybody for listening.

Outro:
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