Navigating Bureaucracy: Gen Z Adjusts to Civil Service

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, By: Aglaya Qaulan Sadida

The first thing Rafif Qardhawi noticed was the pace. As a civil servant in the Manpower, Transmigration and Energy Subdivision under the Bureau of Economy and Finance at the Jakarta Regional Secretariat, he had expected a new environment. What he had not fully anticipated was how different the rhythm of government work would feel from everything his generation had grown up with.

“Gen Z usually wants things to be fast and practical, while bureaucracy demands systematic processes that follow regulations,” he said.

Sabrina Rahmadhanty Maghfira, a civil servant in the Tourism and Creative Economy Division at the same institution, found herself facing a similar adjustment. Her generation tends to associate an ideal workplace with speed, flexibility and efficiency. Bureaucracy, she quickly learned, moves differently.

“It has a more structured workflow,” she said. Neither of them left, and by current demographic trends, that makes them part of a relatively small group.

Data from the National Civil Service Agency’s (BKN) November 2025 Civil Service Journal shows Gen Z makes up only around 8.6 percent of Indonesia’s ASN workforce, compared to Generation Y at 56 percent and Generation X at 35 percent. Around 32 percent of current civil servants are between 41 and 50 years old, pointing to a looming retirement wave with relatively few younger replacements entering the system.

The contrast becomes even more visible against Jakarta’s demographics. Statistics Indonesia’s (BPS) 2025 Intercensal Population Survey shows Gen Z accounts for 24.12 percent of the capital’s population, while Millennials make up another 24.82 percent. Together, they represent nearly half of Jakarta’s residents, yet remain underrepresented within its government institutions.

The gap matters as the government continues pushing digital transformation across public institutions. Yet the generation most familiar with digital tools remains limited in number within the bureaucracy itself. Over time, both Rafif and Sabrina said they began to see the procedures they once considered slow from a different perspective. Behind each stage were regulations and public responsibilities that could not simply be bypassed. The rigid seniority culture they had expected also proved less dominant than they initially imagined, with responsibilities increasingly divided based on competence rather than tenure alone.

“I hope the ASN can become more adaptive so government programs can create a greater impact and bring more benefits to society,” Sabrina said.

For both of them, job stability, work-life balance and the opportunity to contribute directly to public policy ultimately outweighed the challenges of adjustment. But they also believe adaptation cannot happen from only one side. Younger employees must understand the responsibilities attached to public service, while institutions themselves need to become more open to a generation shaped by technology and digital culture.

The generational gap inside Indonesia’s bureaucracy may be real, but both believe it is still possible to bridge. For now, both sides are still learning how to meet in the middle.