Abstract
Startup management teams are increasingly working with Generation Z employees (born 1997 to 2012) and yet there has been relatively limited research to examined how management interprets and makes sense of Generation Z workplace behaviours in emerging organisational contexts. This developmental paper examines management meaning-making in UK startups environments characterised by informality, resource constraints, and evolving work norms. Drawing on preliminary qualitative interviews with startup management, the analysis identifies recurring interpretive patterns through which managers evaluate Generation Z employees in relation to their own prior work experiences. These findings suggest the presence of “functional misalignment”, where management team adapts their practices to support younger employees while continuing to interpret certain behaviours through generational comparison. This study contributes to organisational and management research on generational dynamics by highlighting how managerial interpretations shape intergenerational working dynamics within startup organisations and offers early insights for leadership team to navigate generational diversity in fluid organisational settings.