While we know all industries are facing generational issues when it comes to the workforce, the print industry is definitely feeling the weight of this now more than ever. From hiring to training and retaining talent, print companies and the printing industry as a whole are facing challenges bringing in and keeping on younger generations. 

There are so many factors at play here that affect the print industry workforce and hiring younger talent but there are also some actionable steps both print companies themselves and the industry as a whole can take to start to change this reality. 

Younger Generations Think Print Is Outdated

It’s no secret that the question “Is Print Dead?” has been tossed around for years but especially with younger generations who have been brought up and exposed to an almost exclusively digital world. When they think of marketing, they think of digital marketing, more specifically social media marketing, because it’s all they’ve consciously known. But when it comes to print, they have the belief that it’s an outdated or “dead” marketing tool and/or industry so why would they have any desire to be a part of that? They don’t. 

Lack Of Active Recruitment in The Printing Industry

The print industry hasn’t been known for its recruitment strategies. Until more recently, there hasn’t been a push for heavy recruitment, especially for young people. A lot of the talent coming into print shops and staying there had some sort of connection to the business or the industry and haven’t left but now there’s a need for young professionals to come in and fill roles and print companies are actively recruiting so those younger individuals may not even know the opportunities exist. 

Less Family Business Generational Hand Offs

Something super common in the print industry especially the smaller print companies and print shops are family businesses that are multi-generation passed down from generation to generation. And while there are still plenty of those businesses out there, there’s less of them now than in the last decade or so. While that poses an obvious ownership issue, it highlights the lack of younger generations in those facilities gaining the skills needed to continue the legacies of these print companies. 

While older generations have all of the skills and knowledge to keep these print businesses running and growing, they are taking all of that with them when they retire and it’s not being passed on to the next generation and so on. 

Less Exposure To Trades as A Career Option

There seems to be a big push in schools across the country to push younger students into industries such as Finance, Healthcare and Education and while those are incredibly important industries that will always need young and eager talents, there’s less encouragement for students to explore Trades of any kind as potential careers. So when they think of those types of jobs after school, they have limited beliefs about the opportunities that exist there. 

What Can Print Companies & The Print Industry Do About This?

All of these issues continue to feed the generational issues facing the industry but that doesn’t mean it has to stay that way. A lot of it comes down to changes the industry as a whole can and should make but it starts with individual print companies.

Promote Job Openings 

Rather than just hoping young professionals will come knocking at your door asking for a job, actively promote job openings you have on your social media profiles, Indeed, anywhere that jobs can be posted.

Share More About Who You Are

While you’re recruiting and promoting yourself, it’s not just about trying to find a person to fill a role you need, it’s about attracting the right person and a lot of what these younger generations are looking for is the culture of companies. Yeah you print cool stuff for your customers (which you should still share to get new business) but what makes your company great and what keeps your employees showing up everyday? Share those values on your job postings, on social media and anywhere else you’re trying to be seen. 

Evolve & Grow With The Times

Younger generations are looking to the latest and greatest technologies and advancements and unfortunately at its core, print doesn’t appear to be full of that but there’s still opportunities to peak the interest of those individuals. There’s so much evolution in technology with the print industry with digital printing, sustainable/eco-friendly print and now AI and those are the types of things young professionals get excited about. 

Be Flexible (& Generous) On Benefits If You Can

These generations have grown up believing that with any job comes great benefits and flexibility and while you need physical bodies in your shop doing the work, get creative on other benefits you can offer. Whether that’s PTO or pay, these types of things become very attractive to young professionals so be sure to also promote it.

Build Relationships With Schools & The Community

This is especially important for smaller print shops and businesses but to help combat the lack of interest in the industry, start building relationships with local schools to get them promoting the industry as a part of career fairs as well as the community to get parents and neighbors talking about the opportunities that exist within your business.

Focus on Retention As Well

If you’ve got great young people in your print business you’ve crossed the first hurdle! But the next step is keeping those individuals around. Solid training programs, mentoring, advancement opportunities, work-life balance and strong company culture is what is going to keep them coming back everyday. 

While the generational workforce gap within the industry isn’t going to be fixed overnight, there’s definitely so much opportunity to start bringing in younger talent and keeping them which will keep the industry growing for years to come.