HBR IdeaCast How to Manage—and Motivate—Gen Z
220 snips
Dec 30, 2025 
Tim Elmore, a leadership coach and author of 'The Future Begins with Z,' dives into understanding Gen Z in the workforce. He discusses their uniqueness, emphasizing their craving for connection and meaningful work. Elmore highlights the importance of organizations shifting from control to guidance, advocating for empathetic leadership and mentorship. He also introduces the A-L-E-G feedback method and suggests reframing tasks as hobbies to increase motivation. Ultimately, he stresses creating a sense of belonging to cultivate resilient leaders.
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Peter Pan Paradox Shapes Gen Z
- Gen Z combines greater agency with higher anxiety shaped by their formative years.
- Tim Elmore calls this the Peter Pan paradox: less deference to authority but delayed maturity.
MIT Grad's Ideas Blocked At GM
- Colin Webb, an MIT grad at GM, emailed CEO Mary Barra with improvement ideas after his supervisor dismissed him.
- The ideas were adopted but blocked by middle management, and Colin left to become a serial entrepreneur.
Gen Z As Cultural Radar
- Gen Z offers intuition about emerging culture and consumers that older leaders often lack.
- Elmore says younger hires act as 'sandpaper' refining leadership by refusing to tolerate BS.
