Gen Z, millennials expect employers to help them upskill: survey

Younger generations are more likely to expect their employers to provide training and development programs, according to a new survey by getAbstract.

Almost all (93 per cent) survey respondents across generational cohorts said it was at least somewhat important for employers to provide these opportunities. But 84 per cent of generation Z employees and 74 per cent of millennials said it was either extremely or very important, while only 71 per cent of generation X employees and 63 per cent of baby boomers said the same.

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Younger cohorts are feeling more pressure to continually gain new skills compared to their older counterparts. More than half of millennials (58 per cent) and gen Z (52 per cent) said their career success depends on frequently updating their skills and knowledge, while just 34 per cent of baby boomers said the same. Also, more millennials and gen Z respondents (31 per cent) said they’re stressed out by the prospect of continuously updating their skills than baby boomers (15 per cent).

The cohorts varied widely on what skills they’d most like to learn. While millennials rated individual skills as important far more than other generations, with 63.8 per cent interested in UX design, 62.6 per cent in branding and 60.1 per cent in digital marketing, gen Z respondents most frequently rated persuasion (14. 7 per cent), UX design (13.8 per cent) and artificial intelligence (12.1 per cent) as important.

Gen X respondents were most interested in social media marketing (25.5 per cent), leadership (25.3 per cent) and time management (24.7 per cent). And baby boomers were interested in creativity (18.9 per cent), communication (18.7 per cent) and cybersecurity (18.4 per cent).

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