Managing Gen Z

[Amy8]

I’m an experienced senior manager who took some time out to work as a consultant – partly to avoid exactly these kinds of situations!

Something happened last week that’s made me question my management style, which I’ve always thought was fair. The CEO asked me (quite urgently) to get something done. I was in a meeting, so I asked a junior team member to help out. It would’ve been easier to just do it myself, but I genuinely needed the support.

He replied that he needed to check with his line manager first because it wasn’t in his work plan (I manage his manager), and then added that he was logging off shortly for a long weekend which had been pre-agreed.

I stayed polite on Teams and explained that sometimes we have to be reactive to senior requests — but honestly, inside I was thinking, just do it! At his age, I’d have just cracked on.

It’s not the first time I’ve had this kind of pushback — others in the team (same age group) have also been quite firm about working from home and not wanting to come in when asked.

I’m genuinely wondering: is this just how the workplace is now — a generational shift and new boundaries — or is it a bit of a disregard for authority and should I be adapting better ?

Sounds like you need to clarify what happens when a line manager is on leave so staff are informed who to 'take orders' from should it happen again. As the junior obs wasn't sure what he should do.

Don't really see what generation z has to do with it.

Understood. Can’t edit now and think the principle still comes across

in any case, it’s just made me think I can’t really rely on this chap.

I think the difference in previous times is that we spent so much time physically in work around our colleagues that we were very invested in those relationships, in the team, and in pleasing those in authority.
If we pissed off a manager in times past there was no getting away from them. We had the discomfort of noticing their displeasure (I am trying not to say ‘microaggressions’, but it’s what I mean!) day-to-day, or at the least never knowing if they were going to walk into the office at any moment. Conversely, the rewards of pleasing the ‘higher-ups’ were also as immediate and satisfying.
Working from home changes all that completely. The social and emotional pressures and dynamics that come with physically facing people day in, day out, are pretty much all removed.

This sort of thing is why many organisations have helpdesk type systems.

eg, you are senior and your laptop stops working. Are you allowed to simply direct someone in IT to fix it? No, there’s a system you are supposed to go through. You raise a ticket and they’ll get back to you.

lots of big companies now do this for a lot of stuff that is not it because senior people randomly redirect their resources (people) and then they have to answer to the big bosses when people are constantly messing with their ways of doing things.

now for 15 mins I personally would have done it.

but even I know if I want IT to do something outside the ticket system I’d better bring a packet of biscuits at a minimum.

Surely Gen Z can see other Gen Z enthusiastic for work and coming in to the office and twig that that might increase promotion chances

Did you ask at 5 to 5pm and 5pm was the close of play, or 11am and 5pm was the close of play?

Why would you be relying on him, if you're not his immediate boss?

I’m the head of department and when I was a gen z in the industry we are in, hierarchy trumps all else not because a seniors asking but because it’s urgent and routine tasks need to be put on hold.

The ask also wouldn’t have taken him over his planned earlier finish - if he just got on with it

the questioning may have

I think it's likely down to inexperience rather than him being Gen Z. A more experienced person (whether manager on leave or not) would simply have kept their LM in the loop via Teams and got on with it.

I don't think you can blame him for not encroaching on his holiday! It is role-dependent to some extent but generally junior staff aren't paid enough to give up their holidays at a moment's notice.

What is the point in a staff member whose job it is to be in charge of a system if they refuse to do the thing that is needed by the CEO on that system? You may as well not have that person employed in the first place.

Yes, exactly. I’m not sure how that’s different from what I posted.

In the case the OP describes where she was asking him to do a fifteen minute task I think checking with his line manager and waiting for their permission was complete overkill, it wouldn’t have needed anything more than a quick heads up that he’d be unavailable for a short while as he was working on something urgent for a senior manager.

It's not about what used to happen though, it's about what happens now.
He doesn't normally take orders directly from you, and suddenly being told to do so when his immediate boss is away would seem underhand.

It doesn’t. They were just trying to get out of it.

i’m 48. I did the whole being helpful to senior people thing and my god they’ll screw you over and you’ll never see a promotion or even a thank you

This. I've also been there.... last straw for me was a redundancy where everyone in the department had to re apply for the reduced number of jobs available. Long story short: upon feedback for interview I was told by Senior Managers that the person they gave the job to had more experience - fine...... Exept: I recruited & trained this person!
I'm glad Gen Z is standing up to exploitative senior management!

Because it’s his job ?

Sounds like he isn't aware of the expectation so just inform them. Reflect, act and move on.

She's not his immediate boss, he already had tasks given by his immediate boss.

maybe not paid enough now, but surely is working towards pay rises and promotions. Showing willing is very very important

I work in a school so a little different but if a member of slt directed one of my department to do something like an emergency cover lesson then they would do it unless there's was a specific reason they couldn't, for example part time hours finishing at 2 pm for example. So it doesn't sound like your request was unreasonable but it was fine for him to push back given that he had already agreed to leave early and clearly had his own work to complete before that. I wonder if he could've been a little more diplomatic in his response.

That said, I managed a younger teacher last year and was constantly having to explain that yes they had to mark their own assessments and yes they had to do break duty and parents evenings and plan lessons. They had rocked up expecting everything to be done for them.

It's his job to do tasks that you take credit for?

Take it as a training opportunity:D

They she could smooth it over with his immediate boss.

Hierarchy matters, that’s what it’s there for

If he had time to do it without running it by your manager then yanbu but if it did mean he’d be late then it was a long weekend and unfair.

Also article on how gen z approaches things differently in the workplace. I’ll admit I’ve heard colleagues (in retail) say to managers ‘I’ll need someone to help me’ or ‘I won’t get that done’ which I thought was very different to the way I’d have gone about it- I think it’s a good thing but would guess it will make life difficult for managers

www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2025/1103/1541782-generation-z-workplace-work-life-balance/

Don’t all senior people benefit (credit) from junior people’s work?

You weren't prepared to drop your meeting to do whatever the CEO required of you so I'm not sure you can complain that the junior wasn't prepared to drop whatever tasks they were doing to do it.