“Do anything you can do to keep Gen Z focused and interested,” said Svitlana Khaikova, Head of Learning & Development at the International Business Group RedCore.
Khaikova shared these insights during her participation in the panel “Is working smart not hard the future?” at the 24th Leadership and HR Management Conference, held under the main theme “From Analogue Boomers to AI-Powered Zoomers.” The panel highlighted the cultural differences of younger generations, giving them the stage to describe their view of work and careers, while HR professionals joined in a dialogue aimed at more understanding and fewer generational myths.
A living lab for Gen Z
With an average age of 29 across the business group, RedCore has direct access to Gen Z expectations and behaviour. Khaikova noted that many Gen Z specialists prefer to build their careers quickly, often expecting a new role or step every few months. Rather than resisting this, RedCore has reshaped its approach to careers and learning to work with their preferences. Clear, short career roadmaps show concrete steps and options, including functions where it is possible to move to the next position in 4 to 6 months.
To satisfy their curiosity with low risk to the business, RedCore runs a short-term internship initiative, Swap&Work, where specialists keep their current position but temporarily join another team for 1 to 3 days to try different duties and understand other functions. A fast-growing mentoring programme pairs middle and senior specialists with juniors for three-month periods focused on practical skills, real projects and frequent feedback, matching Gen Z’s desire for visible, rapid growth.
RedCoins: digital currency for motivation and recognition
Supporting this learning programme is RedCore’s internal digital currency, RedCoins. Specialists can earn RedCoins in several ways, including successful completion of internal courses and participation in learning programmes. They can then use them to buy items in the internal merch store or send them to colleagues as a form of recognition and thanks. According to Khaikova, Gen Z specialists are the most active and enthusiastic users of RedCoins.
Designing learning for sprinters
Khaikova stressed that most Gen Z specialists are antagonists of routine, long-distance formats and longreads. They behave more like sprinters than marathoners: highly curious, but their attention disappears when learning feels slow or repetitive. Long-learning formats no longer work, so RedCore has made microlearning the standard, breaking content into short, focused segments that can be completed quickly and revisited easily, matching Gen Z attention patterns and work rhythms.
This microlearning is delivered in a blended format, where self-learning digital courses are combined with practice alongside more experienced colleagues or a Team Lead, ensuring that theory is immediately reinforced by hands-on experience. Internal courses include cases to solve, tests and quizzes to keep learners actively involved, while an AI assistant embedded in the courses supports participants, answers questions and helps them navigate content on demand.
“In my opinion, one of the most important things is to share common values,” Khaikova noted. “No matter the position or age, you should share and believe in the same core values. We promote direct communication and have programmes that help colleagues support each other, and it is a very good way to mix digital and human elements. Ultimately, we should focus on the strong sides of each generation in the organisation,” she concluded.
