Ambition is more than climbing the career ladder and talent’s motivation is not necessarily driven by promotions. Randstad’s latest Workmonitor found that ambitioning is no longer viewed in its traditional sense of career progression. Work-life balance, flexibility, equity and skilling are now at the heart of career decisions. 

The research, which surveyed 27,000 workers in 34 markets across Europe, Asia Pacific and the Americas, shows that while over half (56%) of workers consider themselves to be ambitious, rising to 69% for Gen Z, this doesn’t correlate to the traditional understanding of career aspirations. Half (47%) of workers are not focused on progression at all, and the same proportion are willing to stay in a role that they like, even if there’s no room to progress or develop. Meanwhile, a third (34%) of workers never want to take on any managerial roles. 

Talent is also more likely to consider work-life balance (93%), flexibility of working hours (81%) and mental health support (83%) as important – more so than career ambition (70%). 

However, the research indicates that not wanting career progression does not mean employees have no interest in self-improvement, with nearly three-quarters ranking training and development opportunities as important. Meanwhile, nearly a third would quit a job if they weren’t offered learning and development opportunities to future-proof their skills, such as training on AI.

“Organizations must demonstrate that they truly understand workers’ ambitions, their desire for balance and the need for connection. By learning the new talent ABC, they can set themselves apart as employers of choice and drive the talent agenda of tomorrow,” Sander van ‘t Noordende, CEO at Randstad, concludes.

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Source: Workmonitor