Young employees want to feel pride in their work — or they'll quit

Organizations are struggling to crack the code on how to recruit and retain young talent. As it turns out, they just need to be proud of where they work. 

Thirty-one percent of employees 30 and under would choose to remain in their current roles — even if offered a better salary elsewhere — if they felt proud of their company, according to a recent survey from employee engagement and recognition agency WorkProud. Additionally,  43% would be more likely to consider a long-term career with their present company.

"Pride is really an emotional driver and we know that people are emotional by nature," says Rick Garlick, a consulting partner at WorkProud. "Employees like the idea of having pride in what they do and the companies they're doing it for; they want to feel that sense of a job well done at the end of a day." 

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Employees like to feel as though they're working towards a shared purpose, Garlick says, and feel pride when their values are aligned with their company's on issues like diversity, equity and inclusion, sustainability efforts, political stances and affiliations. The most important factor, however, is the pride employees feel when they're recognized for their work. 

Fifty-nine percent of young professionals who are consistently recognized at their jobs have high company pride, compared to only 13% of those who receive little or no workplace recognition. Even those who receive moderate recognition at work are more than twice as likely to have "high" pride in their companies. Employers should lean on these strategies to recruit and retain this demographic. 

"Recognition programs are a strategic imperative for delivering business results," says Michael Levy, CEO of WorkProud. "Leaders need to make significant investments and make recognition an important part of the dimension — giving out gift cards at the end of the year just won't cut it anymore." 

For employers, this means figuring out what recognition means to their workforce, according to Garlick, and making adjustments to personalize those experiences. For example, earlier data from WorkProud found that older employees appreciated extra PTO in recognition of their work. Younger generations, however, were more driven by the overall culture of their organizations. 

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"To attract young people, leaders will need to lead with ethical values, governance and transparent communication because those are the kinds of things that are going to keep them," Garlick says. "They have to stress that their workplace is a space where young people's values fit into their culture, and then reinforce that culture with recognition." 

Both Garlick and Levy urge employers to begin surveying their employees — particularly younger generations and new hires — about their experiences and expectations. Getting ahead of what Gen Z and millennials want out of their workplaces is the only way to encourage company pride and successfully retain young talent. 

"This is a generation that has high expectations and a lot of choices," Levy says. "While deploying solutions and strategies can be done quickly, building a genuine culture of recognition and pride takes time. Leaders should be starting the process now."