Attracting Gen Z talent into US public service

This year has been characterized by generational disruption to the American workforce—from the proliferation of AI to a national emphasis on domestic manufacturing. The public sector faces unique challenges. Recent federal policies have sought to reshape the public sector—and with it, the federal workforce—with cascading effects on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and state and local governments (whose employees total roughly 20 percent of the American workforce).¹“Spotlight on statistics: For-profit, nonprofit, and government sector jobs in 2022,” US Bureau of Labor Statistics, October 2023. As the United States embarks on a paradigm-shifting recalibration of its labor needs, public service organizations will have to overcome historically low recruitment. But with a future workforce that is resilient to destabilization, digitally proficient, and intent on values-driven careers, they may stand a chance if they are deliberate about how they restructure, recruit, and retain the workforce of tomorrow: Gen Z.²The population that was born between 1997 and 2012; “Generations defined by name, birth year, and ages in 2025,” Beresford Research, 2025.

In this article, we discuss the results of two surveys that we conducted to explore the factors that increase—or decrease—Gen Z’s interest in public service (see sidebar, “About the research”). Our research validated the common refrain that young people tend to distrust government.³Nadzeya Shutava, “Voices of tomorrow: Young adult perspectives on trust in government,” Partnership for Public Service, May 2024; Jaclyn Doherty, “Low confidence in U.S. institutions—especially political institutions—among young people,” Springtide Research Institute, July 8, 2024; Zach Hrynowski and Stephanie Marken, “Gen Z voices lackluster trust in major U.S. institutions,” Gallup, September 14, 2023. Our survey results showed that Gen Z perceives public service institutions as less effective than did older generations (and less effective in 2025 than in 2024). Yet our findings indicate that Gen Z is both more likely than other generations to report being aligned with public service values and more motivated to apply. This suggests that if public service organizations can overcome barriers to entry and improve perceptions, they may be able to tap into a motivated talent pool.

Public sector recruitment and retention challenges

The recruitment challenge for public sector organizations is evident across the US federal government, state and local governments, and nongovernmental public service organizations. Though federal government and state and local government annual vacancy rates (4.0 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively) have fallen in the past couple of years, they exceed vacancy rates from nine to ten years ago by about 25 to 50 percent (versus a difference of about 15 percent in the private sector over the same time period).⁴Annual rates calculated as average of seasonally adjusted monthly rates. Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (January 2015 to July 2025), US Bureau of Labor Statistics. And this is despite substantial government investment in initiatives such as the CHIPS Act, the U.S. Digital Corps, and the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office of the Department of War (formerly the Department of Defense)—which require the technological fluency and digital innovation that Gen Z has demonstrated interest in.⁵Jobs on the rise in 2021, LinkedIn, 2021.

Furthermore, military applications have risen year over year since the COVID-19 pandemic but remain well below peaks of the 1980s,⁶“How has military enlistment changed?,” USAFacts, updated June 27, 2025. and applications for formal volunteering opportunities such as AmeriCorps and Peace Corps have yet to return to prepandemic levels.⁷“Volunteer experts discuss consequences and impact of U.S. decline in formal volunteering and ways to reverse the trend,” Points of Light, June 21, 2024. While planned reductions in the federal workforce could help shrink the number of open vacancies overall, they could disproportionately affect younger workers and may not address the challenge of an aging workforce.⁸While less than 9 percent of the overall federal workforce is less than 30 years old, about 27 percent of probationary employees—who are more vulnerable to workforce cuts—fall within this age group; “Federal workforce reductions—potential impacts,” The Conference Board, March 21, 2025; “Probationary period for federal workers,” Partnership for Public Service, February 2025; “Status employment by age level” in FedScope Employment Summary Data (March 2025), US Office of Personnel Management, July 1, 2025.

The recruitment problem is particularly pronounced among Gen Z. This generation represents 18 percent of the United States working population⁹Ian Page, Kevin Reuss, and Zoë Zemper, “Changes in the U.S. labor supply,” Trendlines, Employment and Training Administration, August 2024, Number 11. (expected to increase to about 30 percent by 2030¹⁰Ang Richard, “Generation Z in the workplace,” National Association of Colleges and Employers, January 16, 2024.) but less than 9 percent of federal government employees as of March 2025.¹¹“Status employment by age level” in FedScope Employment Summary Data (March 2025), US Office of Personnel Management, July 1, 2025. Lifestyle preferences, concerns about eligibility, and competing private sector opportunities may have dissuaded many young people from pursuing public service jobs in the past.¹²According to 2024 and 2025 survey data: The three most cited reasons that would prevent Gen Z from applying to public service were concerns about eligibility, insufficient benefits or financial stability, and not allowing for preferred lifestyle. Furthermore, there is a gap in understanding and awareness of public sector opportunities caused by insufficient direct outreach when compared to the private sector. What Gen Z thinks about federal careers, Handshake, summer 2025. And mass federal layoffs, shifts in domestic and international policy, and general instability could challenge recruitment in the near future. In addition, with the private sector playing a larger role in government,¹³Mike Driscoll, “The evolving role of the private sector in protecting our national security,” FTI Consulting, September 11, 2024; Marti Flacks and Barbara Smith, “A good business model: Commitments the private sector can make to support democracy,” Center for Strategic & International Studies, October 28, 2021; “Private sector commitments to advance democracy,” US Department of State 2021-2025 archived content, March 29, 2023. even young people who are particularly interested in public service may opt for private sector jobs such as government contract work or policy at private companies—especially if the private sector offers better lifestyle and compensation or is more flexible around education or experience requirements.

Increasing Gen Z’s propensity for public service jobs requires more effective, data-driven strategies to attract and retain early talent and contribute to the reshaping of the US public sector.

12 solutions for attracting Gen Z candidates

Based on our research, we have identified 12 solutions across three areas that public service organizations can use to capitalize on Gen Z interest and support both recruitment and retention (Exhibit 1). Together, these solutions make up a comprehensive strategy that combines innovative approaches with time-tested traditional methods.

1. Lean in on purpose and satisfaction

Gen Z survey respondents are most likely to report that a sense of enjoyment in their day-to-day work (84 percent) would make them more interested in public service (Exhibit 2). While about 76 percent of Gen Z respondents noted in both 2024 and 2025 that they were motivated by a belief that their work can make a tangible difference in the world, 2025 saw a significant increase in focus on Gen Z’s own long-term professional well-being: a network of colleagues that they can rely on in the future, and specialized knowledge and subject matter expertise they can leverage in future jobs.

Because of this increased focus on short- and long-term professional benefits, public sector entities could focus on the mission value proposition and underscore the professional benefits such as networking and skill development that Gen Z is seeking. Fortunately, many public service programs have set a precedent, including the Presidential Management Fellows program, the U.S. Digital Service, and the Energy Conservation Corps, all of which successfully recruited talent in the past by demonstrating their programs’ clear link to mission, accelerating the careers of their participants, and providing structured learning opportunities for their employees.¹⁴Based on an expert interview, conducted by McKinsey in July 2025.

Our survey responses suggest that solutions that aim to both show and tell young talent what public service jobs are about may have a significant impact on Gen Zers’ interest in public service. This could include the following actions:

Adapt advertising to Gen Z’s priorities. Working with social media influencers or other trusted messengers to create targeted content can promote a realistic yet attractive pitch to young followers. Companies across the private sector (such as Hilton, Intuit, and Chipotle¹⁵Hilton has leveraged social media to boost Gen Z applications through catchy hashtags and applicant-focused pages (such as on TikTok) where they have employees and creators interacting to build brand awareness. They also invite applicants to post short videos to the page; see Ruth Hogan, “Exclusive: Hilton HR director reveals why the company is turning to TikTok to build teams,” Hotel Management, November 9, 2023. Cisco Systems, Intuit, and United Airlines are training employees to act as in-house corporate influencers for recruiting on social media—some going so far as to create leaderboards for those with the most engagement; see Emmy Lucas, “Bosses are training employees to be influencers—after long discouraging social media posts about work,” Forbes, April 7, 2023. Chipotle and Target have advertised open roles on TikTok and encouraged young applicants to create a video resume. The companies then invited those who entered particularly standout clips to start a formal hiring process; see Morgan Smith, “‘TikTok got me a job I love’: How Gen Z and millennials use the social media platform to launch careers,” CNBC, June 4, 2024.) are leveraging social media. And some members of the military have taken to social media to increase recruitment,¹⁶Sergeant First Class Tyler Butterworth, a National Guard recruiter, has gained more than two million Instagram followers by posting lighthearted videos about military life, and about 90 percent of his enlistments come from social media alone. Liberty Simmons, “Virigina National Guard member rises to social media stardom,” DC News Now, November 11, 2024; Sarah Sicard, “The secret behind this soldier’s hilarious Instagram Reels, TikToks,” Army Times, October 20, 2023. and the US Army and Navy have launched major marketing campaigns that promote their missions.¹⁷In 2023, the Army also relaunched its “Be All You Can Be” recruiting campaign from the 1980s, and from fiscal year 2023 to fiscal year 2024, the Army saw a 10 percent increase in new recruits. Other marketing campaigns have likely contributed to this success, including the Navy’s “Sailor VS” YouTube series that shows sailors and social media influencers going head-to-head in skills- and strength-based competitions. Frank Dolberry and Charles McEnany, “‘Be All you can Be’—the U.S. Army’s recruiting transformation,” Association of the United States Army, January 22, 2024; “Facts and figures,” US Army Recruiting Command, updated February 2025.

Offer opportunities to experience public service work. Internships can help, but allowing for student shadowing can offer a broader set of candidates insight into the day-to-day work. Shadowing programs such as that offered by the Joint Civilian Orientation Conference¹⁸The Joint Civilian Orientation Conference is a program that provides business and community leaders an immersive experience with the military. could be adapted to allow for participation from young talent.

2. Meet Gen Zers where they are

Gen Z survey respondents are most likely to report that having a close connection with someone who has worked in the position (85 percent) would increase their interest in the public sector. In fact, in 2025, this became more important to Gen Z than flexible interview options and shorter applications, which were previously top priorities for this generation (Exhibit 3).

To attract more Gen Z talent, organizations could consider several ways to meet them where they are.

Shorten recruitment timelines. Organizations could remove redundant components of the application process where appropriate (for example, conducting two rounds of interviews instead of three), automate resume screening, allow for remote interviews, address medical backlogs, begin background checks for new employees sooner in the job-seeking process,¹⁹Some intelligence organizations have already begun to start the security clearance process during the interview phase, and the military is piloting programs aimed at reducing medical evaluation wait times for new recruits. and allocate more hiring personnel to avoid unnecessary delays caused by a lack of resources. Earlier direct outreach, which can develop a network of candidates ready for immediate engagement, may also shorten recruitment timelines.

Use innovative hiring technology. New technologies—such as AI-powered resume-screening tools, scheduling-assist technology, and gamified assessments that test for critical skills—could help organizations augment their teams’ capabilities and ultimately accelerate hiring processes where desired.²⁰For example, the Army’s new Go Recruit app for recruiters, an app similar to what private sectors use for applicant tracking, allows recruiters to upload new recruits’ information faster than ever before and even call, text, and email candidates without logging into the full recruiting system.

Hire students earlier in the recruitment cycle. Doing so could help organizations compete with private sector employers who often hire undergraduate students in the fall of their senior years or earlier.²¹Teach for America has taken this approach: The organization has multiple recruitment waves and allows applicants to choose what time of year they would like to apply to accommodate their schedules. Depending on the application wave, candidates can learn about their admission decision as early as October in their senior year or as late as March.

Create talent pipelines. Public service organizations can establish internships and experiential-learning opportunities—for example, NASA’s Pathways Internship Program offers a direct path to full-time employment at NASA upon graduation. The intelligence community has also experimented with this lever: The National Security Agency offers high school and cooperative education programs. Partnering with academic institutions can help the public sector establish a formal infrastructure earlier in the recruitment cycle through which students can secure public service jobs, creating a seamless transition to the workforce after graduation.²²For example, the Wyoming state government partnered with the University of Wyoming for a week of on-campus programming to promote public service careers across industries such as agriculture, engineering, healthcare. “UW and state government collaborate to host hiring activity for state agencies,” University of Wyoming, October 11, 2024.

Leverage role models with public service experience. Gen Zers’ interest in applying to a public sector job is higher for respondents who have close friends or family in public service, but there is still a gap between reported interest and reported likelihood to apply.²³McKinsey survey data: percent change in Likert scale rating. As Handshake points out, “The strongest predictor of whether a student will apply to a government role is whether they were engaged first—through messaging, an event, or hearing from a peer.” Like other young generations of the past, Gen Z is excited about mission-driven work that leaves an impact on the world and communities around them, and public service organizations should leverage the influence of direct outreach in shaping their career decisions.²⁴What Gen Z thinks about federal careers, Handshake, summer 2025.

Adapt recruiting strategies to match the platforms and sources Gen Z uses. Fifteen percent of Gen Zers report not being able to find a job posting as a top reason for not applying to a public service job they are otherwise interested in. Our survey results show that across all generations, people are most likely to use online job listing sites to find jobs. However, Gen Zers—the first generation of digital natives—are more likely than other generations to turn to social media for information about new jobs, and they are two to three times more likely to take advantage of university career resources. Indeed, 13 percent of Gen Zers report using social media as a top way to find jobs, and 12 percent report using university resources (Exhibit 4).²⁵Handshake, for example, has become the official system of record for career services across more than 90 percent of the top 500 fouryear institutions in the United States, with more than 18 million college students using the platform to apply to jobs. Full-time jobs with public service organizations accounted for only 12 percent of total jobs posted on Handshake in 2024, while the federal, state, and local workforce alone (excluding uniformed service members and public service NGO employees) makes up about 17 percent of the United States workforce, presenting an opportunity for public service organizations to expand their pool for young professional talent. “Benefits across campus,” Handshake, accessed September 15, 2025; Abigail Tierney, “Total number of government employees in the United States from 1982 to 2023,” Statista, March 27, 2025; Abigail Tierney, “Monthly number of full-time employees in the United States from October 2022 to October 2024,” Statista, November 2024. Public service organizations could consider diversifying where they post job openings to target Gen Z on their preferred apps and expand their pool of young professional talent.

3. Align opportunities and benefits to Gen Z priorities

Our survey results suggest that what Gen Zers care most about in a job (interesting work, career development, and workplace flexibility) is not aligned with what they currently believe are advantages of public service (benefits, job stability, and the organization’s mission or impact). Public service organizations could consider whether the jobs they are offering are mismatched with the type of positions their candidates are seeking or if there are misperceptions about the career development opportunities that the public sector offers.

Gen Z survey respondents are most likely to report that more flexible working arrangements (90 percent), better healthcare (89 percent), better retirement benefits (87 percent), and long-term job security (87 percent) would make them more interested in public service, with flexible working arrangements and better retirement benefits becoming significantly more important to Gen Z in 2025 (Exhibit 5).

Increase workplace flexibility. While not all jobs may be suitable for flexible work, organizations could consider a mix of in-person and remote days to increase workplace flexibility. For jobs that can never be fully remote (such as law enforcement, the military, and the National Park Service), organizations can highlight the sense of adventure that these positions can offer through onsite work. Moreover, as more private sector companies enforce return-to-office policies, public service organizations may once again be able to distinguish themselves as exciting nontraditional jobs when compared with the “daily grind” of a corporate nine-to-five.

Leading companies are also introducing flexibility to specific roles and responsibilities, redefining what work looks like by embedding career development and learning opportunities and introducing better tools and automation so employees can maximize time spent on core tasks. These changes not only improve attraction and retention for Gen Z employees but are also proven to increase productivity and efficiency of the workforce overall. For example, one manufacturing company found that a key driver of attrition for their younger frontline employee population was workplace experience, including time spent waiting in line for tools and excessive delays due to lack of supervisor coverage—essentially, anything that took them away from the task they were hired to do. A consumer goods company found that workplace satisfaction increased when their younger employees were empowered to innovate marketing techniques.²⁶For example, according to Tarang Amin, CEO of e.l.f. Cosmetics, Gen Z is averse to being put in a box and previous, rigid working models do not appeal to them. Instead, they gravitate toward jobs that empower them and offer them flexibility to reinvent their roles. Ray A. Smith, “The 60-year-old beauty exec who’s cracking the code on Gen Z,” Wall Street Journal, July 18, 2025. By reducing these barriers and providing what Gen Z employees want to make their job more interesting, both companies were able to improve morale and retention as well as increase the output of their workforce.

Change healthcare and related benefits to ensure competitiveness. Nearly as much as flexible work, Gen Zers report being motivated by better healthcare for themselves and their dependents. Gen Z has some unique characteristics when it comes to their health and wellness, including lower levels of emotional and social well-being than older generations, higher likelihood to use mental health solutions, and tendency to seek out multiple sources of healthcare information, including through digital resources.²⁷McKinsey Healthcare Blog, “Principles for provider investments in 2025,” blog entry by Amit Kunte, Gunjan Khanna, Rupal Malani, and Zahy Abou-Atme, October 14, 2024. With that in mind, public service organizations could appeal to Gen Z by offering healthcare plans with mental health coverage and plans or reimbursement for digital wellness tools such as wearable devices, health apps, and telehealth.²⁸Based on an expert interview, conducted by McKinsey in July 2025.

In 2025, Gen Z’s focus on long-term benefits such as job stability (87 percent) and larger retirement contributions (87 percent) overtook preference for short-term benefits such as competitive leave policies. This could be a short-term reaction to perceived economic instability in the private sector or a natural result of Gen Z aging into different priorities, but it’s worth highlighting that in the near term, Gen Z may respond well to recruitment materials that clearly outline long-term benefits such as retirement and pensions. Recruiters can also highlight that public sector benefits follow Gen Z even if they leave the public sector—for example, the Thrift Savings Plan can be rolled over into a corporate 401(k), and pension contributions can be withdrawn—demonstrating the long-term benefits of public service while dispelling anxiety that Gen Z will have to commit to several decades of service.

Provide structured development opportunities. In 2025, Gen Z’s focus on support for developing specific skills and for career development increased significantly, with 83 and 84 percent, respectively, saying these levers would increase their interest in public service. Development opportunities take many forms and may include rotational programs that offer exposure to other roles at the organization, formal upskilling, or award certifications.

Advertise on-the-job benefits. To ensure that potential applicants are aware of and understand these opportunities, organizations can define and communicate them clearly. For example, Gen Zers perceive that the public sector lacks advanced technology²⁹According to our 2024 and 2025 surveys, no more than about 5 percent of Gen Z identified access to cutting-edge ideas or technology as a benefit of public service, making it the least selected benefit. and are inclined to view public service as a delay to their careers and not a stepping stone. Public service organizations can expose Gen Z to cutting-edge technology—from local government use of AI models to build better communities,³⁰For example, see Ece Yildirim, “A Kentucky town experimented with AI. The results were stunning,” Gizmodo, August 10, 2025. to federally funded research centers using world-class supercomputers and cutting-edge algorithms for scientific innovation³¹“Artificial intelligence,” US Department of Energy, accessed September 25, 2025.—and teach Gen Z to build and operate advanced technologies. Public service organizations can also expose Gen Z to soft skills that are invaluable to professional success. The military teaches discipline, organization, and success under pressure, and other, nonmilitary public service jobs can teach collaboration across organizations (such as state agencies, community groups, constituents)—all soft skills that enable success in any career. Such roles also give young people meaningful leadership responsibilities much earlier than in other industries. And public service organizations can teach Gen Z these transferable hard and soft skills without them having to make a full career commitment to public service.

Recruiting and retaining a talented workforce is paramount to ensuring that government organizations can keep pace with rapidly advancing technology and avoid falling further behind, eroding essential public services, citizen trust, and national advantage. AI may soon limit the need for entry-level white-collar jobs in the private sector,³²Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei claimed that AI could take over up to 50 percent of entry-level white-collar jobs. Mike Kaput, “Anthropic CEO: AI could wipe out 50% of entry-level white collar jobs,” Marketing Artificial Intelligence Institute, June 3, 2025; The future of jobs report 2025, World Economic Forum, January 7, 2025. but the need for public service will endure. Now, more than ever, it is critical to bring in the technologically savvy talent that will help shape public sector institutions for the future.

Public service organizations can tailor the 12 solutions laid out in this article to increase Gen Z representation in their workforce, improve their organizational resilience, and emerge as attractive, effective American employers.