Bridging the Gen Z Gap with Emily Van Straten Artwork

The Small Business School Podcast

Ready to leave the small business struggle behind? The “School for Small Business” podcast supports small business owners in scaling a business that is profitable, purposeful, and doesn’t leave you burnt out. No matter whether you run your business online or you own a brick-and-mortar, you can expect our world class experts to support you with mindset, tactics, and everything in between so you can have the business you dreamed of. Based on our lived experience, we know that small business CAN be easy and we are here to show you how.The “School for Small Business” is hosted by Staci Millard, a CPA by trade with over 15 years of experience seeing the behind the scenes of thousands of small businesses. After growing and selling her first 7 figure business, Staci has been on the ground running - mentoring small businesses and working to increase success rates. Staci strongly believes you don’t need to have gone to business school to be successful so you can expect nothing but simple, impactful advice. Tune in each Tuesday for a new 30 minute or less episode of nothing but valuable advice to help you grow your small business. We are so excited for you to be on this journey with us!

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The Small Business School Podcast

Bridging the Gen Z Gap with Emily Van Straten

April 03, 2025 • Staci Millard • Episode 287

0:00 | 28:34

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Emily Van Straten, host of Your Gen Z Coworker and founder of Think HR. We dig into the generational shift happening in the workforce and how small business owners can better understand, support, and retain Gen Z team members. From honest conversations to evolving leadership styles, Emily brings a fresh perspective that’ll leave you rethinking how you hire and lead.

Key topics covered:

Emily’s “career bachelorette” journey and how trying 14 jobs led her to launch her HR consulting biz.
What Gen Z is really looking for in a job—and why it’s not just about perks or pay.
How “stay interviews” (not just exit interviews!) can massively improve retention.
Why business owners should stop expecting employees to care as much as they do—and what to do instead.
Practical tips for interviewing, onboarding, and creating impact—even if a team member only sticks around for a year or two.

If you’ve ever scratched your head wondering how to keep younger employees engaged, this one’s for you. Let’s stop making it “us vs. them” and start building better workplaces—together.

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