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Most people, at some point in their careers, have been or will be stuck in what feels like a stagnant career. A job that may be repetitive, unfulfilling, or unaligned with an employee’s overall career objectives, with no options for promotion or lateral movement. Career stagnation is a real thing and it negatively impacts both employees and employers.
Employee happiness has hit a four-year low in a period deemed “The Great Gloom” by BambooHR. Factors such as a rising cost of living, looming layoffs, and the prevalence of career stagnation all contribute to a demoralized workforce that erodes the positive team culture you’ve worked so hard to build.
So, how can you help create a more satisfied, loyal, and growth-minded workforce? By addressing career stagnation and turning it into career mobility. In this blog, we’ll go over what career stagnation means for the year ahead, what is career mobility, and how HR and L&D teams can help prevent career stagnation and promote internal career mobility.
Career stagnation will be top cause of turnover in 2025
Recently Together sent a survey to HR and L&D professionals across multiple industries and 33% predict a lack of growth opportunities will be the top cause of turnover in 2025. Career stagnation refers to that frustrating feeling of working a job where employees feel like they’re going nowhere fast, with no real opportunities for advancement or to develop new skills. This, along with other retention factors such as engagement and compensation, lead to employee turnover.
As the workforce keeps changing and The Great Gloom persists, employees are hungry for roles that help them grow both personally and professionally. They’re willing to jump ship for it—86% of professionals said that they would change jobs if a new company offered them more opportunities for professional development. The growing trend of job stagnation highlights the need for organizations to take a good hard look at their development and retention strategies and ensure employees have a reason to stick around.
What does career stagnation mean for companies?
Career stagnation causes a ripple effect in organizations. When people feel stuck in a stagnant career, it leads to higher turnover rates, which in turn leads to higher recruitment and training costs. The ripples are felt even further through disrupted team dynamics and the loss of important company knowledge and experience. Taking it a step further, it’s damaging to your company’s reputation as an employer, so recruiting the right talent becomes even more challenging.
What is career mobility?
Think of career mobility as an employee’s journey. It’s not just about climbing the ladder, it’s about exploring new avenues such as lateral transfers, a promotion to leadership, or acquiring and honing new skills. It broadens horizons and expands capabilities. Internal career mobility is the practice of creating flexible career pathways within your company that mesh personal goals with company needs.
Why career mobility and professional development are so important to employees
Work is a huge part of everyone’s lives, and 39% of employees say their job or career is very important to their identities. Feeling stagnant at work can negatively impact how an employee sees themselves, so succeeding and growing is a large driver.
While the demand for professional development most often comes from a desire to learn, grow, and contribute more at work, there are some less than ideal motivators as well. Understanding the pressures on your employees is just as important as knowing their drivers. Rising costs of living and layoff fears mean employees could feel the need to pursue skills and promotions to increase their compensation while making themselves harder to replace. For some, this is part of the reason internal career mobility is so important.
Gen Z: The growth-minded workforce
Growing up in a world where every piece of information is just a click or tap away, younger workers have a hunger for knowledge and know what skills they need to succeed—and they’re not interested in a stagnant career. They want to stay and grow with one company long term but will leave if they start feeling stagnant at work. 43% of US college seniors and recent graduates want a long-term career with an employer that offers growth opportunities, hence why internal career mobility is so important. If your company doesn’t offer or doesn’t clearly communicate growth and development opportunities, retention among younger employees may suffer for it.
6 ways HR and L&D can facilitate career mobility
So, how can you in HR or L&D promote internal career mobility among your employees? It may seem a daunting task—especially if you work for a large company—but it is possible. Here are six initiatives that help prevent job stagnation and enable career mobility:
- Implement structured career development plans: Develop clear and transparent pathways for advancement so employees understand what progression looks like in your organization. A structured internal mobility program can help with this.
- Offer job rotation or shadowing programs: Give your employees the opportunity to experience different roles within the organization to broaden their horizons and explore new skills.
- Create a mentoring program: Creating a workplace mentoring program builds relationships between senior and junior employees to help guide career and skill development.
- Allow for flexible career paths: Recognize that all career paths are going to be different and be flexible by allowing employee-led development, facilitating internal transfers, etc.
- Provide targeted training programs: Offer specialized training aimed at identified skill gaps such as digital skills or training on AI use.
- Offer educational assistance programs: By supporting employees pursuing further education, skill development, or certifications, you foster their personal and career growth while also increasing their overall value to the organization.
Career mobility benefits both employees and employers
Promoting career mobility is a win-win for everyone involved. It boosts employee satisfaction and engagement while opening up opportunities for workers to reach their full potential. When workers feel valued, invested in, and can envision a future with the company, they’re less likely to jump ship for another opportunity. On the other side, when employers invest in career mobility it results in better retention, higher productivity, and a workforce that’s passionate and committed to the cause.
Prevent career stagnation with Together
Addressing career stagnation and promoting career mobility are going to be key parts of your 2025 retention strategy. When organizations put real effort into people development it not only gives you a competitive edge in recruiting, it also creates a place where employees want to build their futures.
To support these strategies, technology will be your partner. With Together’s suite of mentorship software, peer learning, and employee engagement tools, you can build programs that suit your company’s goals and employees’ learning needs at scale while lightening the administrative burden for your L&D team. Our tools help you create a culture of continuous growth to prevent career stagnation and strengthen your team—contributing to a positive, collaborative learning environment and company culture.
Get started with Together today! Book a demo with one of our experts.
