According to a recent survey conducted by global recruitment agency Robert Walters, Generation Z and millennial professionals are increasingly avoiding phone calls at work, preferring email and instant messaging instead. 

According to the report, 59% of Generation Z and millennials (born between 1981 and 2012) prefer digital communication, whereas 50% are uncomfortable making business calls. This shift has resulted in “phone anxiety,” a phrase used to characterise the worry and concern that comes with making or answering calls. 

While younger workers like the speed and efficiency of digital messaging, they perceive phone calls to be an inefficient use of time, with only 16% finding them productive. 

Older generations, such as Gen X and baby boomers, continue to prefer in-person and phone interactions, fearing that fewer calls and meetings will harm corporate connections.

Sean Puddle, managing director of Robert Walters in New York, noted that younger generations, sometimes referred to as “digital natives,” grew up with technology and are more at ease with it in the workplace. 

However, he did emphasise the importance of phone and in-person talks in terms of creating trust and maintaining morale, as they provide social indications and expressions that digital techniques lack.  

Puddle proposed that employers help young professionals by providing training to improve phone communication skills and establishing cross-generational mentorship programs. 

This, he added, may strike a balance between embracing the efficiency of instant messaging and preserving the benefits of face-to-face interaction, which is still necessary for developing ties in the workplace.

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