PECULIARITIES OF RECRUITING PERSONNEL AMONG DIFFERENT GENERATIONS

Abstract. In the modern world, where private companies are becoming larger and everyone can develop their business, the question of how people of different generations interact with each other in one company becomes especially relevant. It is especially interesting to know how exactly people of different generations recruit personnel. In this article, we will consider generational trends in recruitment.

Keywords: generational theory, baby boomers, generation X, millennials, generation Z.

In our days, where rapid technological development and globalization define new business strategies, recruitment issues are of particular importance. A significant aspect that influences the recruitment process is the difference between generations of workers. Each generation – from baby boomers to millennials and generation Z – has its own unique traits, values ​​and expectations, which in turn influences their preferences in choosing employers and working conditions. Understanding these features not only allows companies to successfully attract and retain talented specialists but also contributes to the formation of a harmonious working environment in which each employee can realize their potential. In this article, we will analyze the main points related to hiring employees from different generations, as well as determine their needs and preferences.

The purpose of this study is to identify and study the characteristics of personnel recruitment in an organization among HR employees and directors of different generations: from baby boomers to generation Z, identify the requirements for candidates and draw up a portrait of the "ideal candidate" for them.

It is worth telling a little about the theory of generations. The authors of this theory are American writer and playwright William Strauss and historian and demographer Neil Howe. They identified recurring cycles in American history and proposed a theory according to which people born in the same period have similar values ​​and behavior patterns formed due to the same social and cultural factors. In their book "Generations" they described cycles, each of which lasts approximately 15-20 years and identified the main generations in American history of the last century: "Rise" (Boomers), "Awakening" (Generation X), "Recession" (Millennials) and "Crisis" (Zoomers).

If we briefly describe the generations, we can highlight the following characteristics described by them:

• Baby boomers (1946-1964): tried to build a career, started a family early, were distinguished by their determination and patriotism.
• Generation X (1965-1980): pragmatists who look for practical benefits in everything. More individualistic than boomers.
• Generation Y, millennials (1981-1996): technologically savvy, value self-expression and try to prolong their youth. Do not want to start a family early and pay a lot of attention to their career.
• Generation Z, zoomers (1997-2010): can hardly imagine their life without the Internet, creative and tolerant, attentive to their psychological state.

In order to identify and study the peculiarities of recruitment among representatives of different generations, a survey was developed, which contained questions about biographical data (gender, age), personal experience (what recruitment techniques a specific respondent used), about the questionnaire and its application by the respondent, as well as a creative question, in the answer to which the respondent should imagine the ideal candidate and describe his qualities. This survey was sent by mail to several respondents or was completed orally at a personal meeting.

When analyzing the responses, we were able to compile the following statistics: 50 percent of respondents were representatives of Generation X, 10 percent were from Generation Z, and the remaining 40 percent were divided equally between millennials and baby boomers. The ratio of men to women was equal. As for the field of activity and position, the majority of respondents (33 percent) were employees of the education sector. And officially, slightly more than 33 percent of all respondents are engaged in hiring, the rest either convey their opinion regarding candidates for the position to HR specialists, who are officially engaged in personnel selection, or are unofficially present at the interview.

We asked respondents to answer the following question: "What do you pay attention to first when hiring personnel?", to which we received the following answers:

• work experience: 21.7% of respondents
• appearance: 17.4% of respondents
• education: 13% of respondents
• speech and openness of the applicant: 26% of respondents
• recommendations from previous job: 13% of respondents

Thus, we can conclude that the most attention during the interview is paid to the candidate’s ability to talk about himself, present himself and behave openly and without constraint.

We formulated the following conclusions based on the survey results:

• Baby boomers value education and experience, often ignore personal characteristics, and act on the principle of "it doesn't matter who the person is, the main thing is that he works well." Representatives of this generation were least interested in the candidate's family status, work goals, or lifestyle. For them, the most important thing was the person's ability to do his job and not violate discipline.
• Generation X values ​​openness, responsibility, willingness to learn, shares their experience most openly, is familiar with the technique of situational interviews, has a negative attitude towards stress interviews, shows more interest in a person as an individual, unlike baby boomers, values ​​interest in work and a desire to learn new things.
• Millennials value the openness of the candidate and the presence of recommendations, experience and stress resistance, often use the questionnaire method at work, and are more interested in the personal life of the candidate. Thanks to their generation, such techniques for conducting candidate assessment as questionnaires, stress interviews and situational interviews have become widespread. They evaluate the candidate from all sides: how old the candidate is, where he lives, whether he is married or not, what hobbies he has, what experience he had at his previous place of work, what characteristics his previous bosses gave him. They are concerned with literally everything about the candidate's life. They are the most demanding and like to criticize subordinates or compare them with "standards".
• Zoomers value well-delivered speech, the desire to work in a specific company, recommendations from a previous place of work, responsibility, and pay special attention to the personal characteristics of the candidate. There were the fewest Zoomers among all respondents, since people of this generation are only in the process of building their careers and have not yet managed to occupy higher positions to gain experience in hiring personnel. However, they turned out to be the most understanding managers. They value the personal characteristics of the candidate in the same way as workers, but they treat the weak points of candidates with understanding and respect. They understand that everyone is not perfect, and that you need to consciously make a choice in favor of a certain person.

It is worth noting that the most interested in completing the survey were the representatives of Generation X. They spoke in detail about their views, easily shared their experiences, were happy to answer additional questions and complete a creative task. They were the most talkative.

Unlike Generation X, the representatives of Generation Z were the least open and spoke the least about their experience. They preferred to answer questions briefly and did not give more than three characteristics of the ideal candidate.