How these creators are helping Gen Z navigate the workplace — blog.dropbox.com


 
 Enter creators like @MissBot, @icuwatchen, and @Emily.the.recruiter and their endlessly scrollable accounts that are chock-full of frank career advice. They’re just some of the many contributing to an ever-expanding digital conversation about the changing world of work—one that’s only getting more interesting as remote work cements itself as the new gold standard for many desk workers. And it’s giving younger generations the tools they need to demand more.   Search on the platform and you’ll find job search tips, interview dos and don’ts, scripted conversations of how to ask for more money, signs you should quit, signs your employee is going to quit, and more. This information is all the more powerful in a globally-altered work culture, and one where those outside an organization are given an opportunity to weigh in on the culture without fear of reprisal.  We know employees would rather quit than stay at a job that no longer meets their needs—they just need either the confidence to leave, or the know-how to help them change their circumstances. Among other features, TikTok encourages replying to videos with ones of your own, or stitching, which creates a natural, conversational dynamic between users—it builds trust in an area where uncertainty reigns. Objective call-outs from strangers who know what they’re talking about may just be the push we all needed.  “We’re in a new age of hiring here, guys,” said advisor and employee advocate @MissBot in a December 2021 video responding to a comment asking if it was OK to talk about compensation at the beginning of the interview process. “Don’t let anyone tell you your basic human instincts when exchanging your services for money are a faux-pas. We don’t want to work for companies like that.” It’s OK to break the rules when the whole game is changing Turns out most people don’t want to work for companies like that—least of all Gen Z. According to Forbes, “Data shows that by 2025, Gen Z workers will make up 27% of the workforce.” What they bring to that workforce is a whole new set of expectations: Born between 1997 and 2012, Gen Z is values-driven, focused on equity and inclusion, and not shy about transparency—particularly around money.  Importantly, 50% of TikTok’s one billion monthly users are under the age of 34—meaning the majority are either entering the job market for the first time or only just entering more serious levels of their careers. Throw in the fact that many young people started their first jobs from home, possibly still never having met a coworker face-to-face, and you’ve got a recipe for disruption. TikTok career advice is telling this slice of the workforce they are right to be skeptical and are handing them the tools to undo some of the bad habits from the inside.  Many of the TikTok coaches are millennials who remember all too well the days of “that’s how it’s always been done.” You can see solidarity in the back and forth of the comments. “When a recruiter asks if you’re interviewing anywhere else, say yes. Every single time,” cautions @Emily.the.recruiter in a January 2022 video. “Did this and they upped their offer 15k to compete!” says a commenter, to which Emily replies “QUEEN.” 

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