Cognizant: “Ever since the first millennial employees stepped foot in the office of their very first job, the idea was hatched that there’s a relationship between “purpose” and “work.” Today, it’s one of the key business themes of our age. At the same time, purpose is also one of the most overused and more loosely defined terms around. In the context of work, purpose encompasses all the values that drive people’s choices, actions and attitudes — from wider social and environmental goals, to professional and personal objectives such as a healthy work-life balance. Helping employees fulfill their purpose at work, while more important than ever before, remains a highly elusive endeavor. The global events of the past year-plus — from the pandemic, to unprecedented natural disasters, to outcries against social injustice — has pushed people worldwide to question their life and work choices. And amid the “great resignation,” where record numbers of employees have quit their jobs, often without a destination in mind, employers are scrambling to fill gaping talent gaps. Moreover, as older millennials reach their early 40s and Gen Z joins the job market, the career moves of these “purpose-led” generations are increasingly central to businesses’ ongoing viability. However, our recent study reveals a widening gap between what workers expect from employers when it comes to purpose and what they believe their employers are actually delivering. Gen Z tends to be even more skeptical than their millennial peers in some key areas, such as business ethics and sustainability. In September 2021, we conducted a study to explore the purposes that motivate younger generations of workers, and the extent to which employers are delivering purposeful experiences. The picture that emerges should spur business leaders to reexamine their playbooks. While most workers give their companies some credit for their ethical, social and environmental positions, few believe these to be very genuine.”