Gallup says Gen Z is the least engaged generation at work. The data isn't pointing at them.

A Note from the Roots

Before we get into this month's newsletter, we have to ask you something.

Think back to your very first job. Not your first real job - your first job. The one where you had absolutely no idea what you were doing, you were terrified of doing something wrong, and you were pretty sure everyone around you could tell.

Got it? Good. Hold onto that feeling, because we're going to need it.

If you were with us last month, you know we've been deep in the Gen Z conversation - unpacking why this generation gets such a bad rap in the workplace and what the data actually says about who's responsible for their disengagement. (Spoiler: it's not them.) If you're new here — welcome. You picked a good month to show up.

Here's the thing about us: we didn't arrive at this work from the corner office. Amy's first job was waiting tables at Pizza King, not exactly planning on a career in education - until her strengths kept pulling her in that direction, no matter how many times she tried to look away. Sarah was stretching every dollar as a first-gen college student, working retail, waitressing, and factory shifts until midnight to pay tuition, before landing internships that changed everything. We were them. We were Gen Z — just with different technology and worse hair.

And this May, as a new wave of graduates and interns walks through your doors for the first time, we want to offer you something more useful than a list of management tips. We want to offer you a mirror.

Because the data is clear, and we'll get into it, but what it's really saying is this: the gap between Gen Z and the leaders managing them isn't a work ethic problem. It's a connection problem. And connection? That's something we can actually fix.

Let's get into it. That's the root of it all.

Amy & Sarah ​
Aspen Root Collective

This month on the blog, Sarah is getting personal. Like, pulled-out-her-actual-internship-binder personal. What do you remember feeling during your first job? From factory shifts with her dad to a couture department in Dallas, she had no business being in, she's tracing the thread between her own early career experiences and what Gallup's latest data is telling us about Gen Z right now — and the picture it paints isn't flattering for those of us in leadership. Spoiler alert- we might be the problem. The good news? We are also the solution. Click Here to Read the Full Blog Post

Download the Guide Here

Free Resource| The First 30 Days: A Gen Z Onboarding Checklist A Practical Resource for Improving Employee Engagement from Day 1 Internship season is here. New grads are walking through your doors. And how you welcome someone in their first 30 days can make or break whether they stay. We built this checklist for exactly this moment — a practical, strengths-informed guide to onboarding your newest team members in a way that makes them feel seen, clear, and genuinely glad they chose you. And because feedback is the piece leaders most often skip, we included something extra: Feedback That Lands with Strengths — strengths-based feedback phrases you can use right now, whether you're welcoming someone brand new or investing in someone already on your team. What's the difference between feedback that lands and feedback that gets forgotten? Specificity. When you connect your words directly to someone's natural strengths, you're not just evaluating performance — you're telling them you see who they really are. For a generation that's desperate to feel cared about and developed at work, that changes everything.

🌱 Results Taking Root with Educators Across Indiana

Some moments feel like the Universe is paying attention.

This month, we had the privilege of visiting the Ball State University Foundation team again to review this year's Q12 employee engagement scores. As we walked them through what we always remind our clients — that the score is never the point, that the real value lives in the conversations and insights the data unlocks — we noticed something.

Every single person in the room was wearing a t-shirt. It read: "It was never about the number. It was always about the impact."

They were celebrating a major milestone — having just exceeded a significant donor engagement goal with the University President — and without even knowing it, they had perfectly captured everything we believe about employee engagement in eleven words. We couldn't have said it better ourselves. Honestly, we're considering stealing it. 😊

That same truth is showing up in our work with school partners through the Region 8 Educational Service Center, where Amy and I are helping students navigate some of the most important questions they'll ever ask themselves: who am I, where am I going, how do I get there, and what's my next step?

Whether a student walks away headed toward astronaut or architect, welder or writer, teacher or tech worker, the destination was never really the point. The process is the point. Because the student who learns to ask those four questions at seventeen has a framework they can return to at twenty-five, at forty, and at every career pivot in between. That's not career coaching. That's a life skill.

The number was never the goal. The impact always was. And that's exactly why we do this work.

Real People. Real Results. This month we've been talking about what it really means to show up for the people on your team — to see them, develop them, and tell them clearly that they matter. But here's the thing. You deserve that too. Building a strengths-based culture, navigating generational dynamics, and onboarding your newest team members well — none of it has to feel overwhelming or out of reach. That's exactly what we're here for. Don't just take our word for it; here's what Christie Browning, owner of Content By Request, had to say. If that sounds like something your team needs, we'd love to find out if we're the right fit. Book a Free 45-minute Discovery Call

​​​​

{3575 Braveheart Circle, Auburn IN 46706

​
​Unsubscribe · Preferences​