Generation z i IT-branschen - en studie om arbetsgivarens föreställningar och employee retention strategier

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyse what perceptions companies within the Swedish IT sector had about generation z and how they used employee retention to keep the generation within their organisation. The reason generation z and employee retention were our topic of focus in this study was primarily due to the fact that the previous research was lacking in this particular area. The choice of topic was also motivated by the high relevance from a HR perspective. Previous research has generally focused on comparing characteristics of generation z to previous generations, and not on the way companies should manage and retain generation z. Subsequently, our purpose with this research was to analyse what conceptions of the generation different companies had and look at their methods of retaining a generation notorious of having a high mobility on the labour market. To investigate the matter, we used an abductive method and semi-structured interviews with six people with HR responsibilities from 6 different companies within the IT sector. We classified 3 of them as smaller companies and the other 3 as larger companies. That way we could also see if there were any differences in conceptions or way of work based on the size of the company. The result showed few differences between the different sized companies, both regarding conceptions and the way these companies worked with employee retention. Some of the similarities regarding conceptions of generation z where flexibility, high self-confidence and fun at the workplace. One of the differences were that smaller companies had it easier to 3 communicate and adjust to the generations demands than the larger companies. Our conclusion was that there were few differences between the smaller and bigger companies regarding both conceptions and how they work strategically with employee retention. The reason why the companies work similarly regardless of size could be that their conceptions of generation z are similar one another and have adapted their way of working according to that. The few differences that showed could possibly be explained by the bigger companies having more resources, attracting employees from generation z with a global perspective. Henceforth, it could also be affected by how shorter communication channels within the smaller companies which opens to more flexibility.