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For generations, employees have been climbing the corporate ladder to be successful, but young workers are moving in a different direction. Several, in fact.
A new Glassdoor report reveals that Gen Z is beginning to reject the idea of linear advancement in favor of the “career lily pad,” a model built around hopping between roles that fit personal and professional goals at any given time.
While critics might label the approach as unfocused, the report describes it as strategic and possibly healthier for the future of work.
Morgan Sanner, Glassdoor’s Gen Z career expert and Founder of Resume Official, said: “We’ve traded the rigid career ladder for the career lily pad - a path where we can jump to whatever opportunity fits best at the moment. In the long run, that kind of flexibility is more sustainable, more realistic and better suited to today’s workplace realities.”
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Pay and prestige drive choices
The survey, based on responses from more than 1,000 professionals across the US, shows that 68% of Gen Z workers would only consider a management role if it came with a higher salary or a more prestigious title, contrasting with millennials and boomers, who often regard management as a career milestone. For many younger employees, leadership itself is not a prize unless the rewards are tangible.
Even so, Glassdoor’s Worklife Trends data shows Gen Z is not absent from management. The generation now accounts for about 10% of all managers, similar to prior cohorts at the same age.
A new style of management
When Gen Z professionals step into leadership, they bring different values. Instead of hierarchical control, the report notes they tend to emphasize flexibility, collaboration and work-life balance.
Glassdoor data highlights the shift, saying 58% of Gen Z employees ease up at work during the summer, compared with 39% of those age 45 and older. At the same time, 31% of workers believe flexible hours will be the most common benefit offered by Gen Z managers.
Many younger staff remain unconvinced, however, that the job market works in their favor. Layoffs, economic turbulence and anxiety over artificial intelligence have led to growing skepticism about traditional paths to success.
Glassdoor research shows 70% of Gen Z employees say AI has also made them question their job security. That unease is steering them toward careers seen as less vulnerable to disruption, with healthcare, education, government and skilled trades all gaining interest.
