Generation Meh:
Gen Z isn’t vibing with retirement savings.

Plan sponsors may seek new ways to engage Gen Z, including climbing inside their video games.

A new survey from the TIAA Institute of more than 1,000 18- to 24-year-olds depicts a generation in which many have started saving but reject traditional ideas of retirement. Facing high housing costs and student debt, it is no surprise that retirement seems other-worldly to this young generation. In fact, TIAA research shows that one out of five Gen Zers say they don’t expect to ever retire.

The good news for plan sponsors is that this tech-savvy cohort—despite their headwinds—is off to a good start and offers a digital map of how to find and connect with them.

Who is Gen Z and what do they want?

Generation Z—those born after 1996— makes up 20% of the U.S. population, and is the most educated and diverse generation to date. They’re digitally savvy, many just graduating from college, living paycheck to paycheck, and jaded from a global pandemic and environmental angst.

If the retirement industry thrived on a generation of career-motivated Alex P. Keatons in the ’80s, it now encounters its antithesis with a generation whose life goals embrace job mobility, career breaks, exploring the world and learning new skills that don’t require neckties. No doubt Gen Z is a product of their inherited environment and fears that they will miss their opportunity given the pace of climate change. A plurality of Gen Z (19%) says they prefer to save for travel over other things such as building up savings, housing or living expenses.

Winning over Gen Z will require finesse and meeting them where they are. The majority of this generation gets its financial advice from home and online, with a third (33%) saying that so-called “finfluencers” are a part of their financial education. Online communities such as Reddit and Robinhood became popular engines for meme stocks such as GameStop, where social media fanfare brings disproportionate attention to a stock.

Successful solutions will have to vibe with this generation’s characteristics: digital, social media forward and mobile. Platforms with the best technology will appeal to a generation that influences algorithms and vice versa. Future messaging that frames retirement as deferred financial freedom to travel and have more experiences will resonate.

Some of the most creative consumer and automotive brands are beginning to meet Gen Z in its signature safe place—inside the world of top video games. French carmaker Renault and American toymaker Hasbro are cutting-edge examples of companies slipping inside gaming worlds to connect branding and messaging to this screen-time generation.

Could the retirement industry also meet Gen Z in their happy place of gaming? In-game awards of matching contributions? Earning points for an advice session with an advisor? Updated financial roadmaps from your advisor, should you choose to accept it? Gen Z invites plan sponsors to help them discover their future lives by finding them where they are.