By Henry Svendblad, chief technology officer of Company Nurse, LLC

Is your organization suited for the youngest members of the workforce? No, not Millennials — Generation Z.

While organizations still need to focus on creating a Millennial-friendly workplace, they also need to consider how they can attract and retain the newest generation of workers; especially considering Generation Zers will outnumber Millennials in just a few years.

And, with the arrival of a new generation, comes new technology and methods of communication.

To meet the needs of a variety of generations, we at Company Nurse transformed our nurse triage hotline into an omnichannel contact center. Rather than relying simply on telephones, we offer various methods of communication, so that workers can choose how they want to communicate.

Who Makes Up Generation Z?

As Generation Z grows and becomes a part of the workforce, it’s important to understand how this generation thinks, works, communicates, and what they expect from your organization.

Generation Zers are defined by Pew Research Center as anyone born in 1997 and onward. As children during the recession, many Gen Zers saw their parents suffer financially. Shaped by these struggles, members of Generation Z look for stability and control.

Part of this control is manifested in Generation Z’s relationship with technology. This generation isn’t just a more tech-savvy version of the Millennials. Generation Zers grew up with more access to technology than their predecessors and have never known a time without constant connectivity. While Millennials have easily adapted to this connectivity, those in Generation Z expect it.

Technology allows for Generation Zers to have simple access to what they want when they want it. If they’re hungry, they can order a meal from countless food service apps. If they want to see what their friends are up to, they can simply look at their social media. And, when it comes to communicating – whether it be with friends, family, or services – Generation Zers have their choice of a variety of communication channels.

Evolving with the Workforce

So, what does this mean for your workforce? That you’ll have to ensure all your employees, no matter their age, have access to communication channels that they are most comfortable with. This is true not only for your organization’s internal communications, but for the services you provide your employees. As a nurse triage service for injured workers, here’s what we experienced at Company Nurse:

When Gen Zers began to enter the workforce, we recognized a need for organizations’ employees to have the ability to access our service the way they wanted. That’s why we transformed into an omnichannel contact center.

Instead of simply offering a single channel – telephonic – for injured workers to access our services, we expanded our channels to include text and web chat. And to make it even easier to use these communication channels, we created an app to allow employees to efficiently access our service through their preferred channel with just a click of a button.

In addition to these new channels, we added a call back feature to our app. With this option, the injured worker can initiate the injury reporting process at a time they want. This is a great choice for members of Generation Z, who typically like to have more control of when they communicate.

This doesn’t mean employees who are not comfortable with new technology must use these new channels, app, or features. They can still connect to our service through our original channel – dialing a phone number.

The variety of communication channels and features exists to provide employees with methods of communication that they are most comfortable with.

Applying New Methods to your Organization

When evolving your technology for every generation of workers in your company, consider how you use technology with your vendors, support services, clients, and within your organization.

As an employer, you’ll notice different employees will want access to different technology. You’ll want to ensure that every generation has access to technology channels that they are comfortable with or that they can easily adapt to use.

Most importantly, have a plan in place to assist employees with these new channels. Offer training, designate team members to be available for support, and demonstrate patience. Like any new system you put in place in your organization, it can take time for your team members to adapt. Let them know these new technology channels exist to make their lives easier and that your organization is there to help.

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Want to learn more about the latest technology in nurse triage? Email sales@companynurse.com or call (888) 817-9282.