We hear a lot about “Gen Z taking over the office” these days. WSJ and other outlets tell us they want meaning, mentorship, and matcha lattes. Older folk are naturally horrified by all this rainbow and unicorn stuff.
It’s easy for the older generations to scoff. Is “mentorship, mattering, and matcha” really our responsibility? Can’t you make yourself happy and do the job we pay you for? Did I forget to mention how when I was your age, I had to walk five miles to school, barefoot in the snow?
We invariably act like this is a new problem, but as we all know, nothing really changes. Gen Z just wants the same things we all want – to make enough money, and to thrive without feeling like our life has no meaning.
Interestingly, before his sad demise in 2021, our old friend and client, Zappos CEO, Tony Hsieh, had already cracked this problem.
Before selling to Amazon in 2009, Zappos had become a large and successful company by selling shoes exclusively online. It wasn’t all that much – they had a big website, a call center, a warehouse near an airport, and the payroll. Nothing fancy.
Tony’s big insight was that if you look after the culture, the rest will look after itself.
His strategy was that it really didn’t matter what they were selling. What mattered was creating a culture where people felt like they mattered. Like they belonged. What he understood better than most of us at that time, was that culture isn’t just how you do things, it’s THE THING itself.
He subscribed to the principle that business is the art of creating an experience for both your customers AND your employees. Create a space where people feel like they matter, they can grow, and they truly belong.
Do this and exceptional work will be delivered, not because people are told to, but because they want to. Do this well and culture becomes your product.
Which is exactly what happened for Tony. It was genius. It made Zappos famous. It made him a billionaire.
The reality is, we don’t have a Gen-Z problem, we have a culture problem. If we get that right, we won’t have to worry about attracting top people and catering to their idiosyncrasies- they’ll find us instead.
