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Gen-Z Is Taking Courses On How To Send An Email and What To Wear In the Office, According to a WSJ Report (businessinsider.com) 203

Posted by BeauHD from the cultural-gap dept.
Recent graduates from Generation Z, who have primarily experienced virtual classes and remote internships during college, may need to improve their soft skills such as email writing, casual conversation, and appropriate work attire. According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, companies like KPMG, Deloitte, and PwC are offering training programs to help these employees adapt to the office, focusing on in-person communication, eye contact, conversation pauses, and professional dress. Insider reports: KPMG is offering new hires introductory training that includes how to talk to people in person, with tips on the appropriate level of eye contact and pauses in a conversation, the company's vice chair of talent and culture, Sandy Torchia, told the Journal. Deloitte and PwC also began offering similar trainings earlier this year, the Financial Times reported in May. Similarly, the consulting company Proviti said it expanded its training for new hires during the pandemic to include a series of virtual meetings that focus on issues like how to make authentic conversation, according to the Journal. Scott Redfearn, Protiviti's executive vice president of global human resources, told the Journal the company has had to remind new hires to avoid casual attire like blue jeans with holes in them.

Some universities have also stepped in to bridge the gap. Michigan State University's director of career management, Marla McGraw, told the Journal that companies need to be more direct when it comes to telling new hires what to wear and how to act in the office. The school now requires many of its business majors to take classes that foster soft skills like how to network in person. The Journal reported that one course breaks down a networking conversation by reminding students to pause after they introduce themselves in order to let the other person say their name, as well as respond to signs the other person might be looking to end the conversation. While it's common for companies to host onboarding sessions that cover office dynamics like attire and rules for interpersonal relationships, some experts say younger employees need these reminders now more than ever.
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Gen-Z Is Taking Courses On How To Send An Email and What To Wear In the Office, According to a WSJ Report More

Gen-Z Is Taking Courses On How To Send An Email and What To Wear In the Office, According to a WSJ Report

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  • University? so must buy suit and tie from them at the textbook markup? as part of the class?

  • Appropriate work attire (Score:5, Funny)

    by PPH ( 736903 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:03PM (#63616822)

    If they've been attending virtual classes or meetings, this shouldn't be a problem. Tailored suit jacket over an Italian fitted shirt. Expensive class tie. Bermuda shorts and flip-flops.

  • KPMG, Deloitte, and PwC dress code is not the tech (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Joe_Dragon ( 2206452 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:03PM (#63616826)

    KPMG, Deloitte, and PwC dress code is not the tech / casual dress code

    • This entire article is stupid. Consultants have throughout all of history coached their employees on presentation in office environments and communicating in an influencial way. Every generation working for a consultant will have experienced this. This has nothing to do with GenZ or returning to office.

  • Not knowing that stuff won't matter after a while. They'll learn.

  • doing some weird dance moves to convey the message...

    • Sorry, learning to dance your name in your Waldorf school isn't a skill that's transferable into real life.

  • Generational divide (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Rosco P. Coltrane ( 209368 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:12PM (#63616844)

    It's funny how the pandemic fucked things up for all generations.

    So apparently 3 years of inadequate social interaction simulacrum through the internet at a crucial age turned a certain younger demographic into socially inadapted individuals.

    And yet this gen-Xer too is impacted: throughout my life, I've always been to evening schools, to learn new things. I've always considered continued education to be an important part of any adult's life. After I left University in the early 90's, I never spent a single year out of school, regardless of what I chose to learn.

    But not this year: all the classes I'm interested in that I haven't been to yet at community college take place online. Yep, they decided that reopening a physical classroom and asking a teacher and students to physically gather there was too much bother for certain curriculums such as language classes.

    And you know what? I don't know how younger people ever managed to learn anything with a headset and a webcam in front of a fucking computer screen with the teacher and fellow students appearing in tiny tiles, with the jerky video and unbearable audio lag, but I sure can't. I need real 3D people to interact with in real-time in front of me. Learning is like sex: it's just not the same in front of a screen with your dick in your hand. I need the real thing. And in any case, I can't stand more than an hour of crappy laggy audio without getting a massive headache. So it's just not a viable option for me anyway, even if I did make the effort to learn how to learn online.

    So for the first time in decades, I will have learned nothing in 2023, and it looks like 2024 will be more of the same. I'm just not compatible with post-pandemic, modern teaching methods and I feel super-sad about it.

    • Re:Generational divide (Score:4, Informative)

      by SeaFox ( 739806 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:22PM (#63616860)

      I don't know how younger people ever managed to learn anything with a headset and a webcam in front of a fucking computer screen with the teacher and fellow students appearing in tiny tiles, with the jerky video and unbearable audio lag, but I sure can't.

      The first thing you should do is adjust your group chat settings so you aren't seeing all your classmates. If you're there for a lecture you aren't going to learn anything seeing the bored expressions of everyone else, and in a live classroom your attention would be on the speaker, so you wouldn't be looking at everyone else all the time either.

      The audio thing is another issue, though. Maybe a case of internet problems on the instructor's end? I did work from home, which included occasional video meetings, on a 50 down/5 up service plan with no issue. I think not using wi-fi for my work PC connection is a big part of that.

    • âoeAnd you know what? I don't know how younger people ever managed to learn anything with a headset and a webcam in front of a fucking computer screen with the teacher and fellow students appearing in tiny tiles, with the jerky video and unbearable audio lag, but I sure can't.â

      I had to watch one of my kids finish kindergarten via Zoom. âoeZoomâ and âoekindergartenâ only belong in the same sentence if youâ(TM)re talking about zooming around a kindergarten playground. The

      • Re: Generational divide (Score:4, Informative)

        by gweihir ( 88907 ) on Tuesday June 20, 2023 @12:55AM (#63617278)

        I hope we never have to go through that shitstorm again.

        1. This was expected by the relevant experts for quite a while. It came _late_.
        2. This type of situation will repeat again and again.

        • They blew their wad and showed themselves to have little idea how to really handle such a situation. Just lock things down endlessly. The compliance next time is going to be low, same as it was toward the end this time.

          Which will really suck if it's super-airborne-Ebola next time. The steps taken this time might be useful against that, but getting pandemic round 2 going is going to require a lot of guns pointed at a lot of citizens. And will disappear when the guns go out of sight.

          Maybe in a generation

    • Re:Generational divide (Score:5, Interesting)

      by ugen ( 93902 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:59PM (#63616920)

      Speak for yourself.

      I am half a century old, started studying when internet wasn't much of a thing. I hated the classroom, the defined times, having to follow the wirting on the board, write things down, deal with distractions all around - people talking and being asses, as only people can be. Ended up a mediocre student, graduated with a mediocre GPA.

      15 years later, when online education became a thing, I went for my masters degree. 100% online, no classroom time, self-directed, hands on, no distractions (though there was a lot of group work - all online, and this was before Zoom was much of a thing, so written communication). Best few years of my life. Loved the experience, 4.0 GPA (and it was a better school and a tougher program).

      So, just because you can't (or don't know how to) study online - does not mean online education is in any way inferior. In fact, I claim that, to the contrary, it is superior in all aspects.

      • I didn't claim it was bad. I said *I* couldn't work with it. And apparently, now youngsters who did work with it just fine can't adapt back to normal pre-pandemic socializing canons.

        Perhaps it's time to revise how humans should interact with one another. I doubt it, but... why not: if people are meant to socialize through a cat6 cable now, it's a skill too I guess. All I said was, it's not for me, and apparently the old ways are not for younger humans anymore either.

        • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

          by Opportunist ( 166417 )

          And I can't work in a "normal" classroom. Never worked for me. Guess what: People are different.

          And until about 3 years ago, "we" were always told to just suck it up and deal with it. Payback's a bitch. Suck it up and deal with it.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by laxguy ( 1179231 )

            that is quite literally the point he is making - stop trying to argue and read and understand what he's saying.

      • 15 years later, when online education became a thing, I went for my masters degree. 100% online, no classroom time, self-directed, hands on, no distractions (though there was a lot of group work - all online, and this was before Zoom was much of a thing, so written communication). Best few years of my life. Loved the experience, 4.0 GPA (and it was a better school and a tougher program).

        While online offers a lot of flexibility and fewer distractions, you miss out on a lot of the advantages of in person learning. You can't just pop into a professors office to ask a question, hang out with your classmates and build friendships over common experiences. Multiple romances and a few marriages resulted from school as well. I recently went back to my 25 year B-School reunion and saw old friends again and the catch phrases we used back in school all came out again to much laughter, and one of my favorite profs happened to be teaching a night course so I dropped in and he remembered me.

        So, just because you can't (or don't know how to) study online - does not mean online education is in any way inferior. In fact, I claim that, to the contrary, it is superior in all aspects.

        Neither is superior in all respects, a lot depends on what yo want and how you learn. For me, the relationships and out of the classroom experiences are an important part.

    • pfffft. I'm just as fucked up now as I was before the bug spank you very much.

      Nobody even noticed neither. My Gen X cloak of invisibility must still be working.

    • How old do you think gen X is? You sound about 70.

    • Learning is like sex:

      Car analogies on this site.

      You need to think about your audience.

      • Learning is like sex. It works best in front of a screen by yourself.

        I absolutely get the analogy that guy makes, what's your problem?

    • It's funny how the pandemic fucked things up for all generations.

      No. You just got spoon fed by a shock headline. Consultants have given their staff those courses throughout all of history. Heck I don't even work for a consultant and I was put though training like that over a decade ago.

      This isn't GenZ or Covid. This is some "reporter" being suddenly surprised by something he didn't know companies did.

    • You say "socially inadapted", I say "dropping the pointless charade".

      Quite frankly, I never understood the need to play dress-up. Not as a child, and sure as all hell not as an adult.

    • VeryFluffyBunny has entered the meeting.
      VeryFluffyBunny: ...
      VeryFluffyBunny has left the meeting.
      VeryFluffyBunny has entered the meeting.
      VeryFluffyBunny: ...
      VeryFluffyBunny has left the meeting.
      VeryFluffyBunny has entered the meeting.
      VeryFluffyBunny: ...
      VeryFluffyBunny has left the meeting.
      VeryFluffyBunny has entered the meeting.
      VeryFluffyBunny: ...and that's why this meeting should've been a f**king email. Now, who's up for going out for a nice friendly drink this evening? Oh sorry, I forgot. You

    • People have been doing remote learning since the 70s. It works, if it is done correctly. For example, https://www.open.ac.uk/ [open.ac.uk]

      There are huge quantities of well-presented remote learning resources out there. Don't let one college's poor best attempt put you off.

  • Gaslighting by the uncomfortable (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Kris_J ( 10111 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:21PM (#63616858) Homepage Journal
    This is what happens extroverts and salespeople feel uncomfortable. They create ways for other people to be wrong so they don't have to look inwards.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by gweihir ( 88907 )

      Exactly. Form over function, the choice of those that could not create function if their lives depended on it.

  • It really is awful (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Baron_Yam ( 643147 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:34PM (#63616880)

    I have seen 'professionals' with spelling, grammar, and even the general composition skills of a teen who only communicates via SMS. The employment pool must be really bad for people like that to hold down a job where they routinely communicate with the public.

    My kids... are not so great at it either, but they can at least get the job done when they have to even if they resent having to put in the effort. Unless your child has a learning disability, letting them graduate into adult life unable to dress and speak appropriately is YOUR fault.

    The school dropped the ball? OK, why didn't YOU pick it up? Your kids should be pretty much your highest priority in life. It's not their fault you decided to have them, it is your responsibility to turn them into self-sufficient adults.

    • I have a ninth grader who hates to write emails. She says it's because email is supposed to be in formal written English, whereas most of the writing kids do nowadays is informal. Just emailing a teacher to ask a question about an assignment is a very stressful experience for these kids.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by narcc ( 412956 )

        Try making her templates for different kinds of messages. If nothing else, it should help with the uncertainty.

    • I have seen 'professionals' with spelling, grammar, and even the general composition skills of a teen who only communicates via SMS. The employment pool must be really bad for people like that to hold down a job where they routinely communicate with the public.

      No, the hiring criteria are really bad. I am constantly boggling at the kind of people who have jobs while so many people are unemployed. I am absolutely 100% certain that the best applicant is not getting the job even 50% of the time, in basically every area. Retail, mechanics, servers, you name it and the person has been chosen on some specious basis probably designed primarily to keep wages low.

  • Oh for fucks sake no they're not. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by rsilvergun ( 571051 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @08:42PM (#63616896)
    Did the WSJ start taking advice from the NYT Pitchbot?

    There's always been a handful of silly and stupid consultancy companies like this. They're mostly run by somebody's brother in law. I got stuck taking some of these "courses" over my career and they're older than dirt. The were mandatory and infuriating because we knew they cost the company thousands of dollars that could've been paid to us as bonuses.

    Years later I learned what a nepo-baby was and that these "courses" were just somebody's brother in law or buddy's son.

    So tired of corporate media "journalism".

    • Re:Oh for fucks sake no they're not. (Score:4, Funny)

      by byronivs ( 1626319 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @09:23PM (#63616964) Journal
      I'm pretty sure this is tradition porn for the inductor set. See? You do hafta do all that stuff that we also had to do (for no reason, other than to appear to join "the club" and belong, just like us.) In other words, we don't value individual or disruptive thinking. Anyways, all us old birds knew you'd fall into line. Consider carefully if working for an outfit like this is worth the "prestige."
      Bit of windowdressing to me. Wear clothes, don't smell, don't have a hard on (for some reason that came up earlier in the thread), do the job right and on time.

    • There's always been a handful of silly and stupid consultancy companies like this. They're mostly run by somebody's brother in law. I got stuck taking some of these "courses" over my career and they're older than dirt. The were mandatory and infuriating because we knew they cost the company thousands of dollars that could've been paid to us as bonuses.

      I find it very unlikely (although not entirely unbelievable) anyone would buy a class on how to avoid eye contact in an elevator. Or have a conversation. There are very few teenagers who haven't leaned to talk all four legs off an Arcurian Megadonkey.

  • A big irritation for me is that many reply to a complicated email with a few words at the top. It can be hard to work out which question they are replying "yes" to. So: please, please trim your reply to only quote enough of what you are replying to to give enough context, then put your reply underneath it.

    This discussion [w3.org] is old and some links are broken but it is worth reading.

    • Re:Will it teach them to trim & top post email (Score:5, Funny)

      by cstacy ( 534252 ) on Monday June 19, 2023 @11:28PM (#63617168)

      Agree.

      A big irritation for me is that many reply to a complicated email with a few words at the top. It can be hard to work out which question they are replying "yes" to. So: please, please trim your reply to only quote enough of what you are replying to to give enough context, then put your reply underneath it.

      This discussion [w3.org] is old and some links are broken but it is worth reading.

      • Agree.

        A big irritation for me is that many reply to a complicated email with a few words at the top. It can be hard to work out which question they are replying "yes" to. So: please, please trim your reply to only quote enough of what you are replying to to give enough context, then put your reply underneath it.

        LOL

    • That's by no means limited to Gen-Z. You have an even larger portion of Gen-X and older who treat email like some sort of snail mail system where they write elaborate addresses and salutations and whatnot.

      Learn to cut your verbal diarrhea and limit yourself to the essentials! "Hi" is an acceptable first line (if you have that pressing urge to include non-information in your mail at all). A signature that informs me of your phone number may be useful, but I sure as fuck don't need your mail address there. Gu

    • Really?

      A big irritation for me is that many reply to a complicated email with a few words at the top. It can be hard to work out which question they are replying "yes" to. So: please, please trim your reply to only quote enough of what you are replying to to give enough context, then put your reply underneath it.

      This discussion [w3.org] is old and some links are broken but it is worth reading.

  • How to send an email (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Fons_de_spons ( 1311177 ) on Tuesday June 20, 2023 @12:14AM (#63617226)
    Just... talk... to... eachother
    God, how many times I dragged young teammembers from behind there PCs to talk to eachother instead of chatting through mail, jira,.... How many times I solved a big hurdle by just calling the customer.
    Informal communication with no records... loosens the tongues, gets creativity flowing, builds relations.
    If you do not like this message, you may want to reflect on it. Break out of your comfort zone, start with a few times a week.

  • Cargo pants, t-shirt, comfortable shoes of your preferred style. You're done.

    Now, Gen-Z-ers, if you've found this online tutorial helpful - send $20 to 93 Escort Wagon c/o Slashdot.

  • I'm in security. Not management, the tech side of things. If you show up in a suit here, you're wrong here. Try security management. They live on bullshitting people into thinking they're competent. We have to be competent here.

    If you feel the need to hide behind a smart attire, I have no use for you. I want you to be confident enough in your skills that you're absolutely convinced that your skills and your skills alone will tell me that I want you. If you don't have that confidence, don't bother applying.

    • I'm in security. Not management, the tech side of things. If you show up in a suit here, you're wrong here. Try security management. They live on bullshitting people into thinking they're competent. We have to be competent here.

      If you feel the need to hide behind a smart attire, I have no use for you. I want you to be confident enough in your skills that you're absolutely convinced that your skills and your skills alone will tell me that I want you. If you don't have that confidence, don't bother applying.

      Oddly enough, your post supports the premise of the topic - there are social norms in an organization that must be met in order to be accepted. Those norms differ from situation to situation, and learning them is part of being accepted and successful.

      A lot of posters are reacting to the "suit and tie," which is not surprising considering /.'s demographic; but are missing teh underlying message.

  • If you google âoegen zâ youâ(TM)ll see that there is now a torrent of articles and videos with clickbait titles that smear younger people - especially âoegen zâ folks whom they claim are âoelonelyâ and canâ(TM)t conduct themselves properly in âoenormal social interaction.â

    It turns out that most of these articles and videos are just using the ageist verbiage as clickbait to try to appeal to older folks to click on the media. âoeWow, a link that will take

  • I'm Gen X and I'm terrible at in-person communication, eye contact, conversation pauses, and professional dress. Working remotely has been a godsend for me for these reasons as well as many others.

  • At the same time companies want everyone back in the office because everything is so much better when people naturally mingle and talk to each other ...

  • This could be an opportunity to educate people in clothing suitable for nowadays.

    The "suit" and tie are hangovers from Revolutionary France. By wearing a 3-piece suit, you were distancing yourself from the aristocracy whose clothing style was closer to the Renaissance. In fact, the, 3-piece, suit was hugely more practical and affordable than its predescessors.

    Wearing a suit was part of a survival strategy in a turbulent time. We need to take a similar step. Wearing a jacket and a tie does not a professi

  • The topic is low-hanging fruit, but WSJ is just low.

  • I mean, "how to send an email" is a bit nebulous. I'm 41 - when I went to college everyone knew HOW to send an email but we still had portions of a our technical communications class explaining email etiquette and how to main professional demeanor in email communications.

    I highly doubt Gen-Z kids are having trouble figuring out where the send button is . . .

  • Let's go over the summary points:

    1. NO PRONOUNS
    2. No blabbing
    3. No "Inspirational quotes"
    4. No slang / swearing (unless appropriate)
    5. ALWAYS digitally sign an email with PGP
    6. USUALLY attach the public PGP key
    7. RECOMMENDED encrypt the email with PGP.
    8. Don't explain a concept instead of attaching a link.
    9. NEVER Use the Outlook proprietary format.
    10. NEVER Include additional tracking, of any kind.
    11. USUALLY ask for a read receipt
    12. ALWAYS have a tasteful and short signature.
    13 NEVER Use HTML, an email should be readable from a terminal!
    14. ALWAYS Keep to the point, get to the point, and don't waffle on.
    15. NEVER assume someone is going to wipe your butt, wipe it yourself.

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by tepples ( 727027 )

      1. NO PRONOUNS
      [...]
      15. NEVER assume someone is going to wipe your butt, wipe it yourself.

      A contradiction is apparent, as "your" and "it" are pronouns.

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