Understand what quiet ambition is and why Generation Z doesn’t want management positions

Losing hours of sleep trying to solve a work problem. Work several hours of overtime to move up in position. Swap the weekend with family and friends to finish a job, with the aim of gaining a new position in the company. This scenario, very common among millennials – born between 1982 and 1994 – seems to be increasingly distant from generation Z, made up of people born between 1995 and 2012 and who will represent 30% of the global workforce by 2030, according to Talent Trends. For many of them, becoming the boss or leader of a team does not represent a goal to be achieved nor does it mean synonymous with professional fulfillment.

The main justification is the possible burdens brought by management positions, such as physical health problems (exhaustion, headaches and sleep disorders) and mental health problems (depression, anxiety and stress). New professionals have, on the contrary, prioritized their personal life to the detriment of their work occupation. This movement even received a name. This is quiet ambition, in which the professional does not act to achieve a leadership position in the organization in which he works.

Research carried out by the company Visier, which interviewed 1,000 workers in the United States in 2023, revealed that 62% of those interviewed want to stay in the positions they are in, compared to 38% who aim for a management position. Furthermore, only 36% of those interviewed in the survey want to move up a position in another company, which suggests that it is not the organization that makes the difference in wanting to become a manager, but rather the perspective of the role and the associated responsibilities.

In fact, among the reasons for not wanting to change positions, expectations of increased stress and pressure were the most frequently raised (40%). Next comes the prospect of having to work more hours (39%), being satisfied with the current role (37%), lack of interest in leadership responsibilities (30%), prioritizing personal commitments (28%), among others. For results mentor Leila Said, this scenario is positive, as young people are able to recognize and impose their own limits within the organizational environment.

“I understand this movement as legitimate, given the historical experience that their parents had with toxic and insane leaders. Maybe the young people are right, and we have to give a new meaning to leadership so that this position is in their focus”, he indicates. For her, the new generation has questioned their employers more, at the same time, they also ask themselves many questions. “That is great. Perhaps it took us too long to question fundamental points for ‘happiness at work and beyond work’. We are seeing these young people place more value on quality of life, time with family, friends and travel,” she analyzes.

In Leila’s assessment, however, it is not yet possible to say that people are exactly less ambitious in relation to their careers. What actually happens is that there is a transformation in the way of dealing with work activities. “Ambition has to do with values, beliefs, future vision and choices. Rethinking work within life, and not life within work, could be a good reflection for all of us”, he points out.

Companies will have to adapt to the new reality

If quiet ambition really becomes a strong trend in the job market, who will be the future heads of companies? In the assessment of speaker Leila Said, a cultural redesign on the part of HR professionals will be inevitable for the training of new managers. “I understand that a new perspective on the company is necessary, seeking to understand what value really is for this generation and how they understand their professional career in relation to what they want, compared to what the company offers”, he predicts.

This type of movement is beneficial both for professionals and for the survival of organizations, in the evaluation of the results mentor. “I believe there will be many positive points, such as alignment of goals, purpose, values ​​and pillars of culture. This understanding can generate more flexibility, strengthen engagement and increase the employee’s degree of belonging. Furthermore, this change can provide a more inspiring environment, which always generates greater creativity, collaboration and, if the changes are actually implemented, greater talent retention”, he assumes.

She analyzes, however, that this movement could be harmful to professionals inserted in the conventional job market. “In the short term, I think this behavior could delay the advancement process a little, if this young person is working in a more traditional business. Leila also indicates that it is too early to “draw clear scenarios” when thinking about the possible consequences of the predominance of quiet ambition in the workforce. “I see that this trigger (of quiet ambition) will generate more positive consequences than negative, as companies will need to reinvent the role, purpose, style, journey and behavior of the leader”, she highlights.

Quiet ambition has also reached people with longer careers, who are prioritizing their personal lives. On the other hand, professionals who have worked longer have come into conflict with those who are arriving now precisely because of the different way they approach the working day. “I have noticed a lot of conflicts between generations in the corporate world, mainly due to the different forms and language nowadays”, he points out. The ideal, therefore, is the constant search for “a profitable and balanced work model.”