Human Resource Management for Generation Z: Challenges and Strategic Responses

Abstract

Generation Z (hereafter Gen Z) is reshaping expectations of work, employers, and career development. This paper examines the implications of Gen Z's demographic, attitudinal, and technological characteristics for contemporary human resource management (HRM). Drawing together labour-market context, psychological orientation, and organisational design considerations, the paper identifies four principal problem domains: recruitment and selection misalignment; engagement, retention, and wellbeing tensions; skills mismatches and learning-design limitations; and outdated performance and leadership systems. For each problem domain the paper proposes concrete, evidence-informed interventions organised into four corresponding strategic pillars. Recommendations emphasise integrated design, pilot-based deployment, robust governance, ethical use of analytics, and measurement to ensure equitable, scalable outcomes. The paper concludes with a succinct implementation roadmap and calls for longitudinal evaluation of HR innovations targeted at Gen Z cohorts.