Equipping the Gen Z Employee

Businesses of all sizes rely heavily on their CRM software to simplify data management and provide powerful tools for tracking leads, clients, and customer interactions. But there’s a big problem: Many staff are frustrated by their employers’ CRM software, which plenty find overly complex, user-unfriendly, and difficult to learn and use.

Indeed, many experts say the biggest failure in CRM adoption for new employees is the complexity and lack of user-centric design. More than three in four employees feel that their employers’ CRM software feels outdated, overwhelming, and difficult to use, per a 2023 HubSpot survey.

Conversely, a recent study from Salesforce showed that when CRM systems are optimized for ease of use, businesses see a 30 percent increase in productivity and a 15 percent increase in employee satisfaction. Ponder, too, that businesses with well-designed CRM systems have observed a 50 percent rise in overall employee performance and a 25 percent decrease in training time, according to a McKinsey report. Also, three in four new hires are more likely to remain with employers that provide effective tools and training, per Forbes data.

The fact is, a cumbersome and unsatisfying CRM platform can make any job harder, especially for fresh hires who can quickly become dissatisfied and either flee the company or underperform because they’re disincentivized from maximizing the capabilities of the software.

Today’s employees, especially those just beginning their careers, have significantly higher expectations when it comes to technology. Accustomed to intuitive, user-friendly platforms in their personal lives, they expect a similar experience in the workplace. If their employers require them to navigate outdated or cumbersome systems, retention becomes a challenge.

Additionally, with the rise of remote work in recent years, staff often must be more self-reliant. Gone are the days when many could simply ask a colleague for assistance in person. As a result, all of the software they use must be straightforward and dependable.

“This is a critical issue because the modern workforce, especially younger generations, have high expectations when it comes to tech,” says Phil Portman, CEO of Textdrip, an SMS marketing software provider. “A clunky or outdated CRM can be a major turn-off for top talent. But when employees are happy with their CRM, they’re more productive, engaged, and likely to stay with the company, which ultimately can lead to improved customer satisfaction, increased sales, and reduced turnover.”

Conversely, neglecting CRM-related challenges can result in dissatisfied employees who could become less efficient, causing attrition rates to rise and company reputation as a preferred employer to drop.

What Workers Want

The experts agree: Companies need to take a harder look at worker CRM wish lists.

“New employees want ease of use, intuitive interfaces, and AI-assisted automation to simplify their workflows,” says Tim Peters, chief marketing officer of Enghouse Systems. “New hires, particularly in sales and customer service, expect CRM systems to automate mundane tasks and provide real-time data for faster decision making.”

Portman echoes those thoughts.

“Especially those fresh out of college or in early-career stages are looking for a CRM system that doesn’t make them feel like they need to learn a new language,” he says. “Moreover, they value automation features. Nobody wants to spend hours manually entering data.”

Ask Lucas Botzen, CEO of Rivermate, a human resources platform provider, and he’ll tell you that fresh recruits prefer CRM systems that require minimal training and have interfaces similar to the consumer apps they’re likely to be using.

“This is very important because complicated learning can become a huge barrier to productivity,” Botzen notes. “They also want a system that is mobile-enabled to access customer data anywhere and at any time. In addition, real-time collaboration features are in demand for the ease of seamless collaboration they provide, particularly when one is working in a hybrid or remote mode.”

Staff newcomers also appreciate process checklists to help them learn and remember how to perform business processes according to their employer’s expectations and best practices, especially as they take on new responsibilities, per Christian Wettre, chief of staff at SugarCRM.

“Additionally, they often have to learn and access multiple systems, so they value when these systems are integrated,” Wettre adds.

Whether interacting with customers or handling sales opportunities, the CRM system should give employees guidance, too, insists David Trzupek, executive director of CRM solutions at TTEC Digital.

“I expect the CRM system to do a lot of the work for me. This is also what most executives and management teams desire from their CRM: They want new employees to be highly productive without a long tail of training or onboarding,” Trzupek says.

The bottom line is that CRM software should work for the employee, not the other way around, many pros concur.

“They want these systems to be relevant to their particular needs, with only the information that they require and nothing extraneous,” Andy Campbell, director of solutions marketing at Certinia, explains. “For example, project managers should have a dashboard designed specifically for their role, with everything they need to manage their team and deliver projects successfully for clients. And these curated dashboards need to be personalized, with alerts and notifications that tell the user where to focus their energies.”

Overcoming CRM Challenges

The growing difficulties that companies encounter in attracting, recruiting, and retaining employees highlight the critical need for technology that is simple and can be implemented quickly. Companies are placing greater emphasis on how quickly new hires can derive value from CRM systems and how effectively these tools are adopted. With employee tenure often shorter than in the past, ensuring new team members can reach full productivity quickly has never been more essential.

Marketing teams grapple daily to gain deep insights into their customers—who they are, how they engage with the brand, their buying behavior, and which products or services might capture their interest. However, a CRM system that doesn’t allow users to easily track and move this rich data between systems for activation purposes can exasperate new marketing hires.

“A strong CRM system should allow marketers to be effective, showcase ROI, and progress to modern marketing models, which can assist in keeping new employees excited and invested in their respective marketing roles,” recommends Brandon McCormick, group director of CRM at VML, a marketing and communications company.

Marketers can perform their jobs best when they have access to comprehensive data about their customers and markets, Wettre concurs.

“As a result, employees who use CRM systems seek tools that enable them to quickly test engagement with different market segments and validate the outcomes,” he says.

A new marketing employee would naturally anticipate that the company CRM delivers sophisticated segmentation and personalization capabilities. Yet ensuring that the CRM system offers a comprehensive view of customer interactions across every touchpoint remains a marketing challenge.

“However, if the CRM is too clunky or does not provide this view, the employee would find it much harder to create targeted campaigns and measure their effectiveness,” Botzen warns.

New sales department recruits, meanwhile, rely on modern CRM systems that track opportunities, prospects, leads, and existing customers.

“Understanding the pipeline, where people are in that pipeline, and what is known of those prospects all help sales teams target and personalize their sales approach and marketing efforts. When you pair a CRM system that tracks all these potential and existing customers with an activation platform, you can really start to tap into the power of multisystem marketing activation,” McCormick says.

But if your CRM is too slow, nonresponsive, or tricky to navigate, your latest salesperson is sure to lose opportunities and suffer decreased performance.

“Newer sales personnel need CRMs that immediately enable them to access customer data, predictive analytics, and automatic follow-up reminders,” Botzen suggests.

Providing checklists and process guides can help accomplish these goals, especially for new sales hires who are learning sales and company best practices, Wettre points out.

Customer service staff often spend their entire shift working within the CRM. That means the platform needs to be easy and intuitive to use.

“Remember that new employees are still getting up to speed, so they need the tools at their fingertips to help them effectively serve customers from day one. Customer service agents will quit if they don’t like their CRM,” Trzupek warns.

A CRM system should be able to retrieve a customer’s full history within seconds, enabling new employees to deliver fast, tailored support effortlessly.

“But if the CRM system is too complex to operate or doesn’t play well with other support tools, this will make resolution times longer and lower customer satisfaction,” Botzen says.

What Companies Need to Do

Want to better ensure new employee satisfaction with your CRM platform and reduce the risk of turnover? The pros recommend the following best practices:

• Implement a highly customizable CRM platform designed for easy onboarding.This means investing in a system that automates routine tasks and integrates with other productivity tools like email, calendars, and project management, Botzen advises. “Providing continuous support can help new employees become more comfortable and proficient within the system.”
• Prioritize CRM training.“This doesn’t just mean providing basic tutorials. Companies need to invest in comprehensive training programs that cover everything from advanced features to best practices. Also, offering CRM certification programs can be a great way to recognize and reward employees who go above and beyond and demonstrate the company’s commitment to professional development,” Portman says. Derek Bruce, human resources and operations director at Dunfermline, provider of the “First Aid at Work” course, insists that providing easy access to training resources is equally essential. “Instead of forcing new hires to consult their teammates for every little thing, training materials should be embedded in the CRM itself. It should include video tutorials, user guides, and FAQs so that new hires can find answers themselves.”
• Actively involve users in the development process.“Ask new employees what they need to do their jobs better. What will make their lives easier? It’s critical to approach system design through the lens of the user, not just the developer,” Campbell says. “Employees want simplification and automation. The more you can simplify processes and the technology itself, the more likely users are to engage with the system. If they use it, it’s a success; if they don’t, it’s a failure.”
• Enable CRM customization. Allow employees to personalize their CRM interfaces to suit their individual preferences, which can make the system feel more like a personal tool and increase user satisfaction, according to Portman.
• Integrate AI-driven automation. AI solutions have reduced onboarding time by 40 percent while improving user adoption by 20 percent, according to Enghouse’s Peters.
• Encourage collaboration.“Enable cross-team collaboration through CRM-integrated communication tools, making it easier for teams to share insights and customer data,” suggests Sahana Ramlugan, marketing and project manager at Adapteq, a provider of SharePoint, Teams, and Microsoft 365 solutions that empower businesses with collaboration, communication, and knowledge management.
• Make sure your CRM system remains relevant over time. “This is particularly crucial in a software-as-a-service world where technology updates frequently,” Campbell states. “You can’t expect employees to constantly retrain themselves for every update. That’s why it’s important to make updates easy to deploy and ensure systems are as intuitive as possible. Companies expect continuous improvements that make them better over time.”
• Enable a feedback loop for fresh employees.“Allow new hires to voice concerns or suggestions about the CRM to catalyze at least some improvements toward better usability. Also, encourage collaboration within the CRM: The more team-engaging features one uses, the more alive and interesting the system will be to a new employee,” Botzen says.

At the end of the day, though, companies that employ intuitive, innovative tools are the ones that win and get the best talent, according to the experts. “If you stay the same, you’re falling behind. Articulating this as a company philosophy instills trust in employees,” McCormick says. “So be sure to showcase a priority around customer data, connected multisystem integrations, and activation platforms to fuel customer experiences and engagement. And adopt a growth mentality. If companies can depict that modern CRM is provocative, cutting-edge, data-driven, and all around delivering engaging customer experiences, it will organically attract new hires.” 

Erik J. Martin is a Chicago area-based freelance writer and public relations expert whose articles have been featured in AARP The Magazine, Reader’s Digest, The Costco Connection, and other publications. He often writes on topics related to real estate, business, technology, healthcare, insurance, and entertainment. He also publishes several blogs, including martinspiration.com and cineversegroup.com.