The Deloitte Global 2021 Millennial and Gen Z Survey
Marking the report’s 10th anniversary, the 2021 Millennial and Gen Z Survey reveals two generations demanding social change and accountability.
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Millennials and Gen Zs have long pushed for social change, but many survey respondents now feel the world is at a pivotal moment.
After a year of intense uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, political instability, racial discord, and severe climate events, millennials and Gen Zs around the world are determined to hold themselves and others accountable on society’s most pressing issues.
The events of the past year have shifted their top personal concerns. Healthcare, disease prevention and unemployment climbed up the list. But climate change and protecting the environment remains a top issue, coming in at No. 1 for Gen Zs and third for millennials. The survey also reveals that millennials and Gen Zs have serious misgivings about discrimination and inequality.
Millennials and Gen Zs believe in their individual power to drive change.
Respondents are channeling their energies toward meaningful action—increasing political involvement, aligning spending and career choices with their values, and driving change on societal issues that matter most to them. In turn, they expect institutions like businesses and governments to do more to help bring about their vision of a better future.
% that have done the following over the past two years
Donated to charities
Made choices over the type of work they are prepared to do or organizations they'd work for based on personal ethics
Been a volunteer or member of a community organization, charity, or nonprofit
Created social media content relating to an environmental, human rights, political or social issue
Participated in a public demonstration/protest/march
The Deloitte Global Millennial Survey:
Decade in Review
Over the last decade, Deloitte Global has kept a pulse on the attitudes of millennials and the key events and trends affecting them. Through the years, we have consistently identified several key themes. Millennials are resilient and values-driven. They strongly believe business must have a purpose beyond profit. And they will not accept the status quo. As a result, they’ve redefined the future of work and continue to push for societal change in order to create a more equitable and sustainable world.
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Millennial Survey, we interviewed and filmed six millennials from around the world to bring to life—through their own personal stories—the key themes that have emerged from our Millennial Survey since 2012. You can watch each film below and find more of their insights throughout the decade in review report.
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The oldest millennials are born.
The Cold War is coming to an end, and there is optimism about the future. Old geopolitical rivalries are fading.
Ronald Reagan is elected President of the US. The philosophy of trickle-down economics becomes more popular.
Debt crises across many countries in Latin America initiates the so-called “Lost Decade” or “La Década Perdida.”
The People Power Revolution leads to the election of the first female President of the Philippines, Corazon Aquino.
The first cell phone small enough to fit into a pocket is launched in Britain (cost 2,500 pounds).
The Berlin Wall falls; a revolutionary wave sweeps across Europe.
Computer scientists at CERN invent the World Wide Web.
The oldest millennials are now school age. The oldest Gen Zs are born in the second half of the decade.
Globalization is gaining steam, with the associated human migration, waves of tech innovation, and outsourcing from developed economies. Globalization helps increase the wealth of some emerging economies.
The asset bubble collapse leads to the start of the “Lost Decades” in Japan.
The European Union is founded, with the European Economic Area developing the following year.
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) comes into force.
Nelson Mandela is elected President of South Africa; apartheid comes to an end.
Dolly the Sheep is cloned in the UK; questions about the ethics of this new technology are raised.
IBM’s Deep Blue beats champion Garry Kasparov in a chess match.
Construction of the International Space Station begins.
The oldest millennials are now working age and must find jobs in a tough market.
In many countries, the home computer and internet usage become ubiquitous. Poor risk management and scandal shake the globalized economic system, preluding the 2008 “Great Recession”.
Many companies fear an oncoming Y2K software bug; the dot-com bubble bursts.
The 9/11 attacks occur.
The Netherlands becomes one of the first countries to legalize same-sex marriage.
The term “BRIC” is coined to define a group of emerging economies concurrently entering a new stage of advanced economic development.
The first SARS outbreak occurs in Asia and is ultimately mitigated.
The first-generation iPhone is released, deviating from the models of other major competitors with the prominence of touchscreen.
Years of poor financial risk management preluded by major accounting scandals ushers in the Great Recession.
Barack Obama is elected president of the United States on a platform promising change. He is the first black President in US history.
The oldest millennials are now young adults, potentially navigating major life events like their first promotions, marriage, and home ownership.
A wave of hyper-nationalism and populism begins to sweep elections around the world.
The Arab Spring begins sweeping the region into waves of protests fueled in part by a rise in social media use.
Microsoft Azure is released. Homes and organizations flock to the cloud.
A historic corruption scandal breaks at the Brazilian company “Petrobras,” disrupting not only the Brazilian economy and political landscape but also across those across Latin America.
The European migrant crisis reaches its peak. Refugee crises on scales not seen since WWII shake Eurasia and the Americas.
China’s one-child policy is relaxed.
The UK unexpectedly votes for a “Brexit” in a national referendum.
The Paris Climate Accord is signed by 195 UN member states.
#MeToo goes viral on social media, increasing the visibility of rape culture and workplace harassment as major scandals break in Hollywood and USA Gymnastics.
The oldest millennials are now mid-career, looking forward to their peak earning years.
As the world locks down and comes to a reckoning with the systemic inequalities, the spirit of optimism into which the oldest millennials were born feels long past. Younger generations are taking the future into their own hands.
The global pandemic results in 20.6M confirmed cases alone (as of 8/13), with some estimates projecting that the real number could be several times as high.
Founded in 2012, the Black Lives Matter movement explodes across the US in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder. The movement gains steam around the world as many countries finally begin to examine institutional racism.
Scientists race to find a vaccine, exhibiting unheard-of collaboration across fields in academia, industries, and borders to deliver on a condensed timeframe.
The Biden administration reenters the Paris Climate Accord
The world scrambles to inoculate populations with highly efficacious vaccines; questions about vaccine equity in the race to end the pandemic persist.