Hiring young people: how to set them up for success

Bringing a young person into your business can be genuinely exciting. Their fresh perspectives, energy and enthusiasm can be infectious and bring a real spark to your team.

But in the excitement of welcoming a new team member, it's easy to forget that for many Gen Zers (16-26 years old) this may be their very first job.

When you've been in the workplace for years, it's natural to take certain things for granted, such as writing an email or knowing how to behave in a meeting. But these are skills we’ve picked up along the way, and a young person stepping into work for the first time simply hasn't had the chance to learn them yet.

Coupled with a lack of experience and, in some cases, maturity, Gen Z employees often need a little more guidance than we might initially anticipate. The key is providing that support in a way that builds confidence rather than knocks it. Nobody wants to feel stupid or embarrassed for not knowing something they were never taught.

This blog outlines some practical things you can do to help your young employees settle in, thrive, and become a real asset to your business.

Start with an induction

This seems an obvious starting point, but you’d be surprised by how many companies don’t have a structured induction process and just throw new employees in at the deep end. This is never a good approach, especially if that person has never had a job before.

Inductions play an important role in ensuring your new employee has the knowledge and confidence to do their job well and allows you to clearly communicate your expectations along with any essential company information.  An induction should ideally cover:

• A tour of your premises

• An introduction to other team members

• An overview of your company’s values and culture

• A detailed explanation of their job role and expectations

• Health and safety overview

• If you have one, a copy of your employee handbook.

Whether you do an induction over one day or several depends on the size of your company, but make sure your new starter feels comfortable coming to you with questions, no matter how small.

Talk about workplace communication

While technology has revolutionised the workplace and made things a lot quicker and easier to manage, it’s easy to forget that everyday office communication tools such as email, may not be on a young person’s radar.

Yes, they may have grown up with digital tools, but email is perceived as being slow and outdated, especially when compared to more natural ways to communicate such as texting or via social media.

And did you know that roughly 70% of young people prefer texting over talking with many viewing phone calls as awkward or pressure-inducing?

“Telephobia”, an anxiety around making or accepting phone calls, isn’t unique to young people; however, previous generations grew up with no other option than having to pick up the phone, so it was a skill that had to be learnt.

Nowadays, the prevalence of texting, voice notes and customer service webchats means there is a real fear around spontaneous conversation. It’s so bad, Nottingham College runs coaching sessions on phone confidence.

Remember, communication is a skill like anything else, so plan training around any communication tools you use in your business. Areas could cover:

1. Writing emails: subject lines; introductions; language; signoffs 

2. Using the telephone: tips for making a call; how to answer professionally; take messages; transfer calls

3. Video conferencing: use of professional backgrounds; meeting etiquette

4. How to use communication systems: such as Teams, Slack, Google Chat, Zoom etc.

You might also want to consider having a conversation around language. Each generation has its own way of saying things but telling a client a situation is ‘boss’ may not be ideal, especially if they don’t know what it means! 

This isn’t about asking people not to be themselves but rather making them aware that communicating too casually might not be appropriate and they should try and reflect the culture of your business. 

Explain the importance of workplace norms

If you’ve been working for a few years, it can be easy to forget there are countless unwritten work rules that are implicitly understood but rarely recorded; however, for someone just starting their career some of these will be completely alien.

While you don’t need to have in-depth discussions on these areas, they are worth flagging to minimise the risk of new starters getting them wrong and feeling unnecessary embarrassment.  

Think about providing guidance on:

• The appropriate work attire for different settings

• How to behave in meetings

• Boundaries around humour

• Tone of voice in messaging aps such as Team or Slack

• Not oversharing personal information

• Not pinching food, especially as Gen Z have been found to be the biggest office food thieves!

  
  

It might also be worth having a conversation about small talk. One of the disadvantages of growing up surrounded by digital communication tools is younger workers are more comfortable communicating online rather than having in-person conversations. In fact, 74% struggle to make light conversation with co-workers.

Small talk can be a great ice breaker, so think about how you can help them get over the fear of that water cooler chat.   

Provide tips on how young people can get the most out of their job

A young person who is new to the workplace may not just lack experience but may also lack maturity, so businesses should be prepared to offer more supervision and tailored training to help them get the most out of their job.

• As well as training around their specific job role, think about providing guidance around self-management and initiative to help empower them to work autonomously and boost their confidence. This could include things such as:

• How to manage and prioritise workload

• What to do when they’ve finished a task such as asking for more work rather than waiting

• Understanding feedback isn’t personal but an opportunity to learn

• Why they should own mistakes rather than hiding them.

  
  

This will also help you create a good working relationship with them and an environment where they feel valued and able to voice their ideas and opinions.

Your safeguarding responsibilities for under 18s

If you’re employing anyone under the age of 18, you will have legal safeguarding responsibilities that go beyond standard employment law.

• Younger workers are 40% more likely to suffer injuries requiring hospitalisation than older employees, so you must carry out a separate health and safety risk assessment for their role that takes into account their age and lack of experience.

• Under the Working Time Regulations, they can’t work more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week

• They must receive a 30-minute break if they work more than 4.5 hours.

• They must have at least 12 hours’ rest between shifts.

You should also:

• write or review safeguarding policies and procedures

• appoint a safeguarding lead

• provide training to all staff, so they know what to do if a young employee shares something which raises concern for their physical or emotional safety.

In conclusion

Hiring a young person is exciting. Gen Zers bring genuine strengths to any team from digital fluency to a fresh outlook and with the right support in place, it can be hugely rewarding for both of you.

If you need advice on training or are unsure of your legal obligations, get in touch and we'll be happy to help.