Children’s hospitals and health systems are powered by as many as five generations of employees. Understanding what motivates and fulfills each generation is essential to recruiting, retaining, and engaging the workforce. Children’s Hospital Association has tapped the expertise of generation guru Jason Dorsey and the Center for Generational Kinetics (CGK) for a first-of-its-kind national workforce survey to discover trends the current and potential pediatric health care workforce.
The survey will explore the most important aspects of Gen Z and millennials, and Dorsey will present the findings at this year’s Annual Leadership Conference in November. “Leading a statistically accurate national study at exactly this moment is incredibly exciting because people need actionable data specific to them in children’s hospitals,” Dorsey said. “I’m confident its going to be filled with a lot of surprises.”
In 2020, you wrote the definitive book on Generation Z, “Zconomy.” What were the major findings and how have they shifted?
Gen Z is now the fastest growing generation in the United States workforce, which makes it incredibly important. We donʼt want to think about them as teenagers anymore but as people well into their 20s who may already have five years of work experience. We also found that Gen Z depends on technology. They trust technology, which I think is very important. That has only grown over the last four years as technology has continued to find its way into every aspect of their lives.
Why is it important to understand generational differences?
We want to use generations as behavioral, research-driven clues to better understand how other people see and engage with the world. It gives us a better sense of where people are coming from, and then we can decide how to bridge that divide. We can do that through communication, workforce strategies, technology, and more. We find that leaders really love to separate myth and truth through data, which is what the survey will allow us to do, so they can better connect across these different generations. Childrenʼs hospitals are in a unique position because of how many different generations they interact with every single day.
What are you most excited about as you approach the workforce survey?
Pediatric health care is different from other industries. Having statistically accurate, current data on what works for recruiting, retention, and developing talent in pediatric health care is massively valuable. The study will uncover what actually drives the perception, recruiting, retention, and talent development of these emerging generations within pediatric health care. This has never been more important than right now.
Join the event
Hear the survey findings live and experience other transformative keynote speakers at Children's Hospital Association's Annual Leadership Conference Nov. 4-6 in San Antonio, Texas. The exclusive member event brings together hospital leaders to share and discuss new possibilities in pediatric health care.
