Young Founders Are Hiring While Older Owners Hold Back

Young Founders are the most optimistic bosses in America right now — at least when it comes to hiring. Almost half of Gen Z and millennial small business owners plan to add staff in the next year: 46 per cent, compared with 19 per cent of boomer-era owners, according to the Small Business Index published by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Justworks. For a generation often told there are no good jobs left, the finding flips the script: the employers most eager to hire look a lot like the applicants themselves.

The quarterly survey, conducted by Ipsos among 759 small business owners in August 2026, captures a split-screen economy. Overall, 36 per cent of owners expect to add employees over the next year, down from 44 per cent a year earlier. Yet 71 per cent describe their own business as healthy, while just 27 per cent say the same about the national economy, according to Inc.'s write-up of the findings. The index score climbed to 70.5, just below last year's record. Cash flow looks solid: 72 per cent of owners say they are comfortable with it, and the share rating their business health "very good" jumped to 35 per cent.

"The small business economy remains remarkably steady," said Tom Sullivan, the Chamber's senior vice president for small business policy. "Owners are telling us their businesses are healthy, cash flow remains solid, and many continue to plan for growth." Justworks chief executive Mike Seckler added that the industry is entering "a golden age of entrepreneurship," while acknowledging that inflation keeps biting into margins. Sullivan added that owners remain clear-eyed about the challenges ahead, with rising prices affecting everything from payroll and benefits to long-term planning.

The confidence gap is not a one-survey quirk. The National Federation of Independent Business reports a similar split: 68 per cent of owners rate their own business excellent or good, even as their expectations for broader conditions weaken, Inc. reported. What is new in the Chamber data is the generational edge — younger owners are not just confident, they are the ones planning to act on it.

Plans are not payrolls

The optimism of Young Founders comes with a catch that matters for anyone job hunting: the survey measures intentions, not hires. Only 17 per cent of owners said they had actually increased staff in the past year. And the generational gap should be read as directional — the overall margin of error is about four points, but the survey does not publish the size of each age group, so the youth figures carry wider uncertainty, as JobsnHire's breakdown notes. Separate payroll data from ADP showed small firms added about 23,000 jobs in September. Hiring expectations changed little from the previous quarter, suggesting the caution is entrenched rather than a blip.

What it means if you are looking for work

For Gen Z jobseekers, the practical takeaway is to aim where the hiring intent is: young-owned firms. Manufacturing and professional-services companies also report stronger hiring intent than retailers, according to analysts reviewing the data. Inflation remains the top worry, named by 54 per cent of owners for the third quarter in a row — so candidates who can show they control costs or drive revenue have an edge. Experienced-level roles still dominate postings, making up 70 per cent of openings, FlexJobs data shows — which means entry-level applicants should pitch growing small firms directly instead of waiting on big-company portals.

If Young Founders follow through on their plans, the next wave of small-business hiring will come from bosses under forty rather than established operators — a changing of the guard that mirrors how Gen Z already approaches work. Job hopping has become a deliberate career strategy for the generation, and many are turning side hustles into real companies rather than waiting for permission. The picture is not rosy everywhere — rising hiring costs are squeezing young people out of UK jobs — but on Main Street, the young bosses are betting on growth. The next reading of the index, due after the fourth-quarter survey, will show whether the generational gap holds as the year ends.