Gen Z Abandons Corporate Ladder for 'Career Lily Pad,' Glassdoor Report Finds

A growing share of Generation Z workers are rejecting the traditional corporate ladder in favor of what career experts and a new Glassdoor report describe as a "career lily pad" — a pattern of lateral moves, short-term roles and selective opportunities that better match personal and professional goals.

Glassdoor surveyed more than 1,000 U.S. professionals and found that younger employees are prioritizing flexibility and fit over a single, steady upward trajectory. The approach has drawn criticism from some who label it aimless, but career advisers say the shift reflects strategic decision‑making rather than a rejection of ambition.

"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," Morgan Sanner, Glassdoor’s Gen Z career expert and founder of Resume Official, said in a statement included in the report. "In the long run, that kind of flexibility is more sustainable, more realistic and better suited to today’s workplace realities."

Respondents described the lily pad approach as a series of deliberate choices to pursue roles that provide skills, balance or income at different life stages, rather than a lifelong commitment to a single employer or linear progression. Employers and human resources professionals contacted for the report said they are seeing more candidates prioritize remote work, project-based assignments and rapid skill acquisition.

Analysts say the change has been accelerated by economic and labor market shifts over the past several years, including increased remote work, expansion of gig and freelance opportunities, and heightened attention to mental health and work–life balance. Those forces have made lateral moves and temporary roles more accessible and socially acceptable, particularly for younger cohorts entering the labor market.

Critics have sometimes characterized the trend as a generational reluctance to work hard or to commit. The Glassdoor data and expert commentary frame the movement differently: as an adaptation to a workplace that rewards transferable skills and agility, and as a response to organizational structures that no longer guarantee linear promotions.

The labor market implications are concrete. Employers that continue to rely on hierarchical promotion models may find recruitment and retention more difficult among younger applicants. Human resources leaders are experimenting with alternatives, including skills-based pay, micro-rotations, shorter-term contracts, and clearer pathways for lateral development. Those approaches aim to offer internal mobility and meaningful experience without forcing all employees into a single ladder-like progression.

Some companies have begun to formalize flexible career frameworks, offering tuition and credentialing programs, project assignments that build cross-functional skills, and policies that allow employees to move between roles with less friction. Observers say such strategies can satisfy the demand for variety and growth while preserving institutional knowledge and reducing turnover costs.

Glassdoor’s characterization of the "career lily pad" underscores a broader shift in how success is measured. For many Gen Z workers, career success increasingly means a sequence of roles that together deliver financial stability, skill accumulation and personal fulfillment, rather than steady rank advancement within a single organization. Employers and policymakers monitoring labor trends say adapting to that reality will shape hiring, training and retention strategies in the coming years.