Career Plateaus

A career plateau defines a period when you or your employee’s career path feels blocked. In other words, there is little chance for career progression or climbing the career ladder. Career plateauing occurs when there are no professional development programs or promotions. Key symptoms of a career plateau include: 

• Feeling “stuck”
• Lower levels of job satisfaction
• Being unable to pinpoint your next career stage
• Low engagement or productivity
• Job burnout

It may be time for an engagement survey if you notice a high turnover rate in specific roles. This can help you pinpoint if you need a development training program. 

Why is the career plateau important to a small business? 

Employees leave when they feel they have little chance to advance within their company. Small business owners and HR professionals who effectively manage career plateaus can: 

• Reduce turnover intention
• Boost the bottom line
• Promote a healthier workforce

Workers want to be seen as partners in the workplace. At the same time, employers and human resource management teams are finding it more challenging to maintain a productive workforce. Due to the pandemic and its aftermath, 81% of the workforce is at risk of job burnout. 

Workforce struggles 

More than half of executives are struggling with: 

• Hiring the right talent
• High employee absenteeism
• Remote work fatigue
• Loss of talent

Both employer and employee can meet these challenges through professional development. Drafting a clear and concise path for career development builds employee loyalty. Using this approach in your organization can also: 

• Decrease the likelihood of burnout
• Keep top talent
• Improve productivity

What is the history of career plateauing? 

The term “career plateau” was first coined in a 1977 paper, “Managing the Career Plateau,” by Thomas P. Ference, James A. Stoner, and E. Kirby Warren. This study found that while career plateaus were inevitable, they could be managed. According to the original paper, there is nothing negative about this career stage — it’s perfectly natural. Since each step in the career ladder has fewer positions, it only makes sense that there would be fewer positions for career advancement as people go higher on the ladder. The paper categorized workers into four categories: 

• Stars: individuals performing outstanding work who are likely to be promoted
• Learners: employees who are still integrating into the organization or need to undergo training
• Solid citizens: people who perform well but have little chance for career advancement
• Deadwoods: workers who have regular low performance

Out of these four categories, the “solid citizens” are said to be the largest group and the most likely to hit a plateau. 

Definition variations 

The original paper stipulated that there were two types of plateaus: 

• Career plateau: there are no positions for career advancement.
• Personal plateau: the organization does not recognize an individual’s ability or desire for a higher-level position.

However, this is far from the only study on career plateauing and organizational behavior. Some other theories define career plateaus as: 

• A state in which your current job doesn’t align with your age and experience
• The time expected before your next promotion

A plateau can be a subjective experience. An organization can feel that an employee is stuck, while that employee may believe they are still growing. 

Over time, the single career plateau concept has also split into two different types: 

• The hierarchical plateau: the traditional definition of career plateauing — there aren’t enough roles for a promotion.
• The content plateau: a focus on the lack of new challenges or experiences within a given role. For example, you could be on the senior management team or the board of directors and still feel dissatisfied with your job due to the feeling that you have nothing more to learn, despite achieving career success.

Managing the Career Plateau 

HR professionals help employees with career progression through professional development programs. To successfully manage the career plateau, you need to: 

• Identify high-value employees. First, acknowledge that some employees are just there for the paycheck — they don’t care about their role, and that’s okay. Most people, however, want to progress professionally and personally but feel limited. A high-value employee typically gives satisfactory to outstanding job performance and has a positive attitude about their work or organization. Ensure that these individuals are aware of the organization’s professional development training programs.
• Tap into their career goals. Once you’ve located potential candidates for your training program, sit down with them. Let them know about the purpose of the professional development program and ask about their career aspirations. This can happen during a performance review or at a separate appointment.
• Design a custom professional development map. Help your employee design a professional development plan. This can involve figuring out how to become eligible for a promotion and identifying upskilling opportunities.
• Follow up regularly. Catch up monthly or quarterly with your employee — even a 5–15 minute chat to ask if they need anything or have questions about their current development training.

Developing a partnership with your staff demonstrates that you value them and is another factor in employee retention. 

The career plateau in a nutshell 

In short, the career plateau is one way to describe an employee’s stalled career goals. The consequences of a career plateau can be challenging for the individual as well as for the organization. However, the professional plateau can also be an opportunity to retain top talent and strengthen your organization’s capabilities. By providing career advancement and training opportunities, companies can save on turnover costs, capture a competitive edge with their skilled workforce, and inspire employee productivity.