How Airtasker attracts Gen Z talent

Airtasker, a 2024 Hatch Hotlist winner, sees Gen Z hiring as investing in their future - playing an invaluable role in increasing the efficiency, productivity and longevity of their team.

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‍Why is Gen Z hiring important to Airtasker?

Hiring the best Gen Z talent is really important because they’re who will take Airtasker through our next 20+ years of growth. Airtasker is building a 100-year company, and to do so means engaging future generations on the journey. Currently that is Gen Z, but it won't be long before we see Gen Alpha join the workforce no doubt with an even further developed view of what they expect from employment.

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How do Gen Z talent find out about Airtasker?

To the best of my knowledge, which is based on conversations I have with people, one of the good things about Gen Z and Airtasker is that we play in the gig economy space.

This generation has grown up with that concept, so they are naturally quite aligned and invested in the product. We look for people passionate about the product, and this generation lends itself to that.

Marketing initiatives, both for the employer brand and product brand, also play a role in how Gen Z discovers Airtasker. Our brand awareness is strong in the market because we’re a scale-up business with some maturity. Gen Z sees Airtasker as a place where they can make an impact and benefit from growth.

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Compared to more senior roles or different cohorts, do you use different attraction strategies for Gen Z?

The approach isn't very different. We think of talent attraction and sourcing as a principle-driven problem-solving game. We’re currently ramping up how we amplify all that is great about our culture and experience through redesigning and rebuilding our careers site, creating more video content and crafting an EVP strategy.

If you have a structured approach, know where the talent exists, what interests them, and what appeals to them, you can target them effectively.

The process itself doesn't change, but I do think there’s more importance on fine-tuning and paying attention to feedback from the market and internally from Gen Z.

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What do you think is most attractive about Airtasker to young professionals?

I think it’s a combination of growth opportunities and the structure we offer. We promote both our maturity and the scope for people to come in and make a real impact. However, we know we’re not the only company at this stage. What does differentiate us from others is that we’re a purpose-driven business.

Our product solves real problems for individuals, and it's a community-based platform that is very tangible. When you tell someone you work for Airtasker, they show genuine interest and ask questions because many people relate to the product.

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How do you provide candidates with insights and information throughout the hiring process?

We recognise that the hiring process is a two-way street. We give candidates space to ask questions as much as we ask them. This helps us understand their genuine interest and passion. We’re currently working on publicising our employer brand more, including redesigning our career site.

We also map the candidate journey to understand their feelings at different points and provide relevant information to nurture them through the process. As someone moves through the hiring process we share one-pagers and content on different pillars of our people experience, such as learning, diversity and inclusion, rewards, and company vibe.

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What is unique about your hiring process?

We do a lot of upfront work before going to market for roles, identifying the fundamental skills we need and mapping them onto a skills matrix. We are upfront with candidates about the competencies we are assessing for each role and at each stage so they can prepare. 

Our hiring process is designed to set people up for success, not to trip them up. We ensure our interviewers are well-calibrated to remove bias. This structured approach leads to clear and actionable feedback for candidates.

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Do you provide feedback to all candidates?

We sure do! We have internal standards with SLAs requiring interviewers to provide feedback ideally within 48 hours. This feedback includes detailed assessments across competencies and personalised feedback for candidates. We believe it's important to provide tangible feedback that candidates can act on, rather than dismissive comments.

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Wrapping up

Airtasker’s focus on employer brand and company values throughout the hiring process is inspiring for many other high-growth teams.

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Read more about life at Airtasker and keep an eye out for new roles at Airtasker on Hatch.