This cohort of workers in the U.S. is seeing a steep decline in engagement. Find out what can be done about it.

Tuesday: Return Driven Strategy FROM THE DESK OF MILES EVERSON: Welcome to “Return Driven Strategy (RDS)!” Today, we’re thrilled to share another case study as seen through the lens of this framework. As someone with over 30 years of experience in the business and consulting industries, one of the things I’ve found to be a game-changer in managing my team is RDS. If you’re not yet familiar with this, RDS is a pyramid-shaped framework that’s composed of 11 tenets and 3 foundations. When applied properly, these enable businesses to achieve high levels of performance. Today, let’s take a deep dive into the 9th tenet of RDS: Engage Employees and Others. Continue reading to know the importance of retaining and attracting younger talent. CEO, MBO Partners Chairman of the Advisory Board, The I Institute

This cohort of workers in the U.S. is seeing a steep decline in engagement. Find out what can be done about it. Skills gap, talent scarcity, and an uncertain economic situation aren’t the only problems the U.S. labor market is currently facing. The U.S. has an employee engagement problem too. According to Gallup, engagement among older millennials and Gen Z workers is in a dramatic decline. Employee disengagement is a serious problem because it can lead to lesser productivity and lower quality of work. In 2023 alone, actively disengaged employees accounted for approximately USD 1.9 trillion in lost productivity in the U.S. Unfortunately, it seems like employee disengagement will continue to be an issue for the U.S workforce in 2024. According to a February 2024 Gallup report, the share of older millennials who are actively engaged in their work plummeted from 39% to 32%. Meanwhile, the rate for Gen Zs dropped from 40% to 35%. Moreover, the rate of actively disengaged older millennials went up from 12% to 17%. As for younger millennials and Gen Zs, the rate is at 14%. The Gallup report revealed that older millennials and Gen Z employees have seen the greatest decline in: Feeling cared about by someone at work Having opportunities to learn and grow Feeling connected to the mission of the organization Being given opportunities to develop Having progress discussions with managers Feeling that their opinions count These findings indicate that younger workers feel more detached from their organizations and are less likely to see a future for themselves in their current roles. This poses an issue because today’s younger workers are much more invested in their growth and look for jobs that give them a sense of fulfillment or purpose. In fact, Gallup says this generation of workers want to work for employers that they can relate to or share a purpose with. Given these realities, it’s common to see younger workers look for new work or switch jobs if they’re disengaged with their current role. However, in today’s business landscape, organizations can’t afford to keep losing talent in that age group. Retaining Employee Engagement The downward trend in the engagement rates of younger workers can be explained through RDS’ 9th tenet: Engage Employees and Others. According to Professor Joel Litman and Dr. Mark L. Frigo in the book, “Driven,” monetary compensation isn’t the sole guarantor of generating engagement levels that propel firms to the highest level of performance. High levels of employee engagement stem from non-monetary sources as well. So, how can firms cultivate and retain high levels of engagement especially in the younger cohort of today’s workers? Below are a few suggestions: Provide workers with a clear and compelling vision of the firm’s purpose, values, goals, and culture. Establish clear expectations for in-office working arrangements. Younger workers generally seek growth and mentorship, and want to feel connected to the larger organization. Have managers create flexible learning and development opportunities that align with a worker’s strengths and goals. Foster a collaborative and innovative culture by listening to and acting on younger workers’ ideas and opinions. Implementing these measures will not only enable business leaders and managers to increase the engagement levels of younger employees, but also lead to higher worker retention and better company performance. — If you’re looking to gain a better understanding of Return Driven Strategy and Career Driven Strategy, we highly recommend checking out “Driven” by Professor Litman and Dr. Frigo. Click here to get your copy and learn how this framework can help you in your business strategies and ultimately, in ethically maximizing wealth for your firm. Hope you found this week’s insights interesting and helpful.     Great marketers understand the importance of knowing how to segment various customer groups depending on their common needs, target the right customer groups, and position a business’ offerings in ways that can generate interest and purchases from customers. Learn more about why you should segment, target, and position your future workforce in next week’s article!