It's graduation season, and this year's crop of graduates may never work in an in-office environment on a full-time basis. New research from NinjaOne, a modern, cloud-native IT management platform for managed service providers (MSPs) and IT departments, indicates that's exactly what the majority (55%) of Gen Z graduates in the Class of 2023 want.

"Today's college grads know just what they want in a job, including easy-to-use technology, flexibility, and the ability to work remotely and be digital nomads," said Shay Mowlem, NinjaOne's Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer. "Companies that want to attract and retain top new talent must take notice and provide a simple employee onboarding process and the technology that workers need to do their jobs efficiently and effectively wherever they are. NinjaOne empowers businesses to make that happen.  Our mission is to simplify IT management and make IT teams more efficient and users more productive."

The NinjaOne research is based on a national online survey of 1,000 Gen Z Americans between the ages of 22 and 25. Propeller Insights conducted the survey from May 25 through 31.

Gen Zers expect a positive IT experience from the start

Nearly a quarter (23%) of Gen Zers - the digital-first generation - prefer a remote work environment, and nearly a third (32%) favor hybrid work. Even more (38%) said that one of the biggest roadblocks to finding their dream job is the requirement to be in an office five days a week.

The digital-first generation also expects to have a great experience from the start. According to the research, the vast majority (94%) say a positive IT onboarding experience is "very" or "somewhat" important to them. 

Nearly as many Gen Zers (90%) say that they are comfortable having IT admins remotely work on their computer while they are working from remote locations - whether they are working from home or taking care of business from another locale.

Gen Zers demand modern tools that enable hybrid work and want fast IT turnaround

Clearly, access to the right IT tools to stay connected for work is paramount for these new grads.

Half of the respondents (51%) said they would quit a job if it didn't have the right technology, tools, and processes to stay connected in a remote, hybrid or traditional office environment. And some of the biggest turnoffs for Gen Zers are employers that provide outdated technology (30%) and poor IT (23%) support.

Gen Z grads don't have a lot of patience and expect speedy results. Nearly all (92%) of the Gen Z survey respondents said that it is very or somewhat important to work at a company that provides immediate and effective support to productivity challenges. Nearly a third (30.5%) expect resolution from an IT request/tech tool in less than a day, a quarter (25%) expect resolution in one to two hours and nearly a fifth (17%) expect resolution in less than an hour.

"Transitioning from college to the ‘real' world is an emotional time," said Andrew Lee, a recent graduate from University of Texas in Austin, and a newly hired Gen Z employee at NinjaOne. "That's why a positive onboarding experience is critical. People in my generation also want to know that we can work from anywhere, feel confident that we will be supported across the globe, and have easy-to-use tools and the ability to get problems resolved quickly. We are unwilling to settle for anything less."

Gen Zers want flexibility and employers that understand and support them

The future of work depends on how businesses integrate Gen Z into the workforce.

As businesses work to recruit and retain this generation of talent, Gen Zers advise those organizations to provide flexible work hours (54%), give their employees opportunities to expand their skills (49%), promote employee health and wellness programs (45%) and strive to understand what motivates the digital-first generation and what is important to them (36%).

"Our research shows that the workforce, and what work looks like, are changing," said Mowlem. "Gen Z grads, or any employees for that matter, need support to be successful working from anywhere and everywhere. That calls for businesses to modernize how IT supports a global hybrid workforce. NinjaOne is answering that call, enabling organizations to automate, manage and remediate IT tasks with a single platform that improves IT efficiency and drives employee satisfaction."