Work-Life Balance for the Generation Z Using the Example of the Adidas Group

Seminar paper from the year 2016 in the subject Sociology - Social System and Social Structure, grade: 1,0, University of applied sciences, Düsseldorf, language: English, abstract: The objective in this paper is the depiction of the work-life balance concept as a strategy of employer branding in order to finally improve intrinsic and extrinsic motivation as a result thereof. Focussing on the practical example of the Adidas Group and its workplace in Herzogenaurach - which is known as ¿The Adidas Campus¿ - the emphasis lies on the evaluation how the expectations of the ¿Generation Z¿ are met and what consequences are revealed.
The society nowadays undergoes manifold social alterations such as demographic change, globalisation or change of generations. The dynamics of these developments do not relate only to the people but also to the companies who have to accept
these challenges. The necessity to act upon the requirement of social and economic adaption lead to the formula of success. For instance, attracting young professionals by creating targeted employment conditions constitutes simultaneously the solution for lack of specialists and the aging workforce in an organisation.

According to a recent online survey conducted in Germany by the online statistics portal ¿Statistä, 81% of young professionals between 25 and 34 years consciously care about work-life balance. Focussing on the needs of junior employees, who also go by the term of ¿Generation Z¿ for people born beginning from 1995, represents the current strategic orientation of companies. The ¿Generation Z¿ or ¿Digital Natives¿ are to be distinguished from their predecessors in terms of expectations towards employer. In comparison to the ¿Babyboomers¿ or ¿Generation X¿, the present generation is surrounded by the omnipresence of Internet and thus social media. Respecting this fact by providing a complying digital work environment, can influnce employer branding and employee motivation in a positive way.