Most retail talent development programs have not adapted to today’s digital marketplace and are not cultivating the right talent. Whether the industry can reverse this is unclear, which may only give way to more tech optimization and retail becoming less human. Add to that, the technology reshaping the store is moving faster than the talent systems can respond to it. If that gap widens, the store of the future may have fewer people in it, both customers and employees.

Next gen managers prioritize transparency and workplace flexibility, and their aversion to top-down management models means they’re empathetic and amenable to listening to an employee’s concerns. Asking “why” isn’t frowned upon by Gen Z managers because the query is not seen as criticism; it’s seen as an intellectual investment in the company’s success.