Virgin Group CEO scrolls TikTok daily to keep up with Gen Z: ‘The zeitgeist is not with people in their 50s’

As Gen Z finds itself increasingly consumed by social media algorithms and doomscolling , they’re not the only ones glued to their feeds.

Increasingly, Gen X CEOs are scrolling right alongside them.

Virgin Group CEO Josh Bayliss regularly turns to TikTok —not simply for a mid-afternoon dopamine hit, but to better understand how younger generations think, what they care about, and where new business opportunities may be emerging.

“The zeitgeist is not people in their 50s like me,” Bayliss, 53, told Fortune .

“The zeitgeist is 20-something year olds who are shaping the culture that we have an obligation to serve.” But unlike CEOs like McDonald’s Chris Kempczinski or Costco’s Ron Vachris , who have frequently appeared on their companies’ social media accounts, Bayliss isn’t trying to make himself part of the content.

Instead, he simply sees keeping up with trends as a viewer as an increasingly essential part of his job.

With more than 49.5 million Gen Zers on TikTok alone, viral moments can reshape consumer behavior overnight.

And as the leader of a conglomerate spanning an airline, gym chain, hotel group, telecommunications giant, and commercial space-tourism business, Bayliss said he can’t afford to lose sight of what younger consumers care about.

“The way that Gen Z or millennials think about social justice, think about equality, think about inclusion, think about environmental issues—they are our target audience, and that’s where we have an obligation, I think, to listen all the time,” Bayliss said.

For brands, it’s also a way to interact directly with consumers and get ahead of trends that could make or break their business models.

“You’ve got to have the volume turned up 24/7, honestly,” Bayliss added.

Keeping up with younger consumers is getting harder—and more important Staying up to date with younger consumers is hardly a new business imperative.

But as technology and culture move faster, executives face a growing pressure to understand what’s happening around them—before they have to rely on a younger employee to explain it.

“Audiences want to interact with brands that are socially aware and respectful in their messaging,” wrote Evan Kropp, an instructor at the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications.