The way Gen Zs and millennials think about success at work marks a fundamental shift from previous generations. Now in its 14th year, the Deloitte Global Gen Z and Millennial Survey serves as a call for business leaders to examine their practices, processes, and policies to address gaps and understand how to meet the needs of these generations in the workplace.
This year’s results reveal that many Gen Zs and millennials are not determined to reach the top of the corporate ladder, instead seeking to optimize the right balance of money, meaning, and well-being while building the technical and soft skills they believe are needed to prepare them for the workplace of the future. As the world of work shifts rapidly around them, they are reevaluating the capabilities they need to succeed and the support they want from their employers. And as employers rethink how to best meet the evolving expectations of these generations, it is important to understand how they can help Gen Zs and millennials get the learning, development, and balance they seek while keeping them motivated to become tomorrow’s leaders.
Success means more than reaching the top—and managers have a key role to play
Only 6% of Gen Zs and millennials say their primary career goal is to reach a leadership position. But this doesn’t mean they lack ambition. Learning and development is one of the top reasons that both generations chose to work for their current employer, alongside good work/life balance and opportunities to progress. Most of them want mentorship and guidance along with on-the-job learning and practical experience to help build the skills they feel are most helpful for their career growth. And they believe their managers have an important role to play in providing mentorship, inspiration, and guidance—but most feel their managers are more focused on closely overseeing day-to-day tasks. This highlights a wide gap between what Gen Zs and millennials expect of their managers and their actual experiences. According to Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends report, many managers see this gap themselves. They say that they spend their time solving immediate problems rather than developing the people who work for them. And many don’t feel sufficiently prepared to be people managers. This highlights the need to prioritize learning and development across each stage of a person’s career, in addition to finding ways to structure work in a way that provides more time for growth.
Higher education holds value, but some are starting to question its return on investment
Although a traditional university or college degree remains valuable to most Gen Zs and millennials, some seem to be reexamining how the higher education system prepares them for the job market. Nearly one-third of Gen Zs and millennials in this year’s survey say they decided not to pursue higher education. The most commonly cited reason? Cost. But beyond the financial burden, their responses also reveal doubts about the return on investment, with many Gen Zs and millennials questioning if the education provided at universities would give them enough practical skills. Some say that trade or vocational school is a more viable alternative to gain hands-on experience and build those skills. As some employers have trouble finding talent that meets their experience requirements, there is an opportunity for business leaders to rethink strategies to widen the talent pool and build a pipeline of well-prepared candidates.
Soft skills are vital in the age of GenAI
Gen Zs and millennials are largely positive about GenAI, but they do have some significant concerns. More than half of them are already using the technology in their day-to-day work. Many say that it helps them improve their work quality, frees up time to focus on strategy, and helps to improve work/life balance. But, more than six in 10 also worry it will reduce the availability of jobs and say it is motivating them to seek career paths that they perceive as safe from GenAI-driven disruption. To combat this, they’re focusing on training and skills development. More than half of respondents have already completed some GenAI training or plan to within the next year. And as they work alongside GenAI, more than eight in 10 Gen Zs and millennials say developing soft skills, like empathy and leadership, is even more important for career advancement than honing technical skills. This focus on training and skills development is critical—to achieve sustained growth and maximize return on investment from GenAI adoption, organizations will need to prepare their people to work alongside the technology.
Money, meaning, and well-being: The “trifecta”
When asked about the factors that influence their career decisions, respondents gave answers that fell into three key areas: money, meaning, and well-being. The results of this year’s survey show that these three areas are highly interconnected, forming a trifecta that is sometimes difficult to attain.
- The money factor: Cost of living has topped the list of concerns for these generations for the fourth year in a row. Nearly half of Gen Zs (48%) and millennials (46%) say they do not feel financially secure, up from 30% of Gen Zs and 32% of millennials in last year’s survey. The survey results reinforce that financial insecurity has a ripple effect: without it, Gen Zs and millennials are less likely to have a positive sense of mental well-being and are less likely to feel their work is meaningful.
- The meaning factor: Many Gen Zs and millennials want to find meaning in their careers and often seek out work that allows them to derive a broader sense of purpose. But purpose at work is subjective. Some Gen Zs and millennials say it’s about having a positive impact on society. Others say their purpose is to earn money, find work/life balance, or to learn new skills so they have the time and resources to drive change outside of working hours. No matter how they define it, purpose is profoundly important. Roughly nine in 10 Gen Zs and millennials consider a sense of purpose to be important to their job satisfaction and well-being.
- The well-being factor: Gen Zs and millennials who say their leaders support their mental health, who have opportunities to grow within their organization, and who are satisfied with their work/life balance are more likely to say they have positive well-being. And positive mental well-being supports a sense of purpose at work. Among those who report positive mental well-being, 67% of Gen Zs and 72% of millennials feel their job allows them to make a meaningful contribution to society compared to 44% of Gen Zs and 46% of millennials who report poor mental well-being.
So, what can business leaders take away from this survey?
By modernizing the way work is structured and empowering leaders to respond to the needs of employees, business leaders can advance their organizations towards building a happier, more resilient workforce. This should start by recognizing the value of investing in learning and development at all stages of the employee lifecycle. Business leaders should consider the role managers can play in driving workforce success and supporting workers as they are being asked to learn new skills and ways of working, adapt to new technologies, and pivot in response to unexpected change.
But, perhaps most importantly, business leaders should keep in mind that financial stability, sense of purpose, and well-being are interconnected and vital to employee satisfaction in the workplace. Gen Zs and millennials in today’s workforce are striving to find the right balance of all three. It is up to us as business leaders to be thoughtful about how we can best meet their needs as we work to attract top talent, reduce turnover, increase engagement, and create the workplace of the future.
Read the 2025 Deloitte Global Gen Z and Millennial Survey to learn more.
