For generations, employees have been climbing the corporate ladder to be successful — but young workers are over it.
According to a new Glassdoor report, Gen Z is beginning to reject the traditional idea of career progression in favor of the “career lily pad.”
Rather than pursuing a single upward trajectory, this generation prefers to jump from opportunity to opportunity, landing where it makes the most sense for their personal and professional goals at the time.
While some critics may label the shift as lazy or aimless, the reality is far more strategic — and possibly even healthier for the future of work.
“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,” Morgan Sanner, Glassdoor’s Gen Z career expert and founder of Resume Official, said in a statement.
The Glassdoor survey, which polled more than 1,000 professionals across the U.S., found that 68% of Gen Z respondents wouldn’t pursue a management role unless it came with a bigger paycheck or a more prestigious title.
That marks a stark difference from the career ambitions of millennials and boomers, who often saw leadership as a goal.
For Gen Z, management is no longer viewed as an achievement in itself.
If the rewards are meaningful, they might take the job; if not, they’re content to stay where they are.
Interestingly, Gen Z isn’t actually avoiding management entirely — they just do it differently.
Data from Glassdoor’s biannual Worklife Trends report shows that the youngest generation is stepping into leadership roles at the same rate as previous generations, with Gen Z now accounting for roughly 10% of all managers.
However, when Gen Z professionals do find themselves in leadership roles, they’re managing differently than generations before them. Instead of replicating rigid hierarchies or micromanagement styles, they tend to embrace flexibility, prioritize work-life balance and emphasize collaboration.
Glassdoor data shows that 58% of Gen Z employees report easing up at work during the summer, compared to just 39% of workers age 45 and older. Additionally, 31% of workers say they expect flexible work hours to be the top benefit offered by Gen Z managers.
But many young workers feel the job market simply isn’t working for them, and the traditional paths to success don’t offer the same guarantees they once did.
That growing skepticism may help explain why Gen Z is increasingly turning toward stability rather than status.
In the wake of layoffs, economic uncertainty, and rising anxiety about artificial intelligence, younger workers are gravitating toward fields like healthcare, education, the skilled trades and government — sectors often known for their reliability.
According to Glassdoor research, 70% of Gen Z workers say AI has made them question their job security, and that concern is pushing many to seek out career paths less susceptible to disruption.
The result is a generation that’s not less ambitious, but one that is choosing a sustainable path.
Perhaps the clearest expression of this is in the side hustle economy, where Gen Z leads all age groups. According to a Harris Poll, 57% of Gen Z workers currently have a side hustle, compared to 48% of Millennials, 31% of Gen X, and just 21% of Boomers.
These aren’t just hobbies or backup plans — they’re central to Gen Z’s identity. For many young professionals, the day job exists primarily to pay the bills, while side hustles allow them to express their passion and creativity.
They’ve grown up in the shadow of millennial burnout and economic instability, and they’ve seen firsthand what happens when workers tie their identity too closely to their job.
“Gen Z is reconsidering what it means to be successful at work in this moment,” Daniel Zhao, Glassdoor’s chief economist, said. “They’re not rejecting ambition — they’re redirecting it toward sustainable career paths that prioritize both financial security and personal fulfillment.”
While it may look like a step away from traditional ambition, it might actually represent a step toward a more sustainable and fulfilling professional life for a generation often depicted as unfocused or lazy.
