Gen Z once again leading the charge in career design

A new career model is emerging for young workers in response to the cost of living, AI uptake, and an increasingly dynamic job market.

Younger workers are stacking the odds in their favour when it comes to career building and income, with flexibility and financial security driving a departure from traditional employment.

New research from the International Workplace Group (IWG) has found that younger professionals are creating “portfolio careers” featuring multiple roles, side hustles, and even entrepreneurship.

A career model that favours adaptability, entrepreneurial thinking, and high technological literacy, workers are being driven by an uncertain future, with 55 per cent of surveyed Gen Z professionals currently believing AI will shape their careers.

Statistics also tell the story of a generation preparing for unpredictability, with 33 per cent of surveyed Gen Z workers who already have, or are currently considering, a side hustle, almost half citing financial security as the main driver.

However, the entrepreneurial landscape is also tempting in its own right, with LinkedIn research finding more than half of Gen Z entrepreneurs have multiple income streams, signalling a growing appetite for self-designed employment. AI again comes into play, with technology providing more accessibility and greater opportunities.

This research also suggested that internal motivators are more powerful than a traditional definition of success, with personal freedom and flexibility polling highest, above even financial gain.

This aligns with ongoing coverage of sustainability and flexibility as the main priorities for younger workers – even at the cost of career progression and financial incentives.

In a similar vein, a “career lily pad’ trend is emerging, whereby younger workers are strategically moving between roles and industries rather than remaining where they are.

Another common thread emerging in the workplace is the rejection of long commutes, to a degree that is again impacting career decisions. However, this is no longer isolated to younger workers, with 93 per cent of surveyed Australian workers citing access to a local workspace as a top priority when job hunting, and 88 per cent seeing locations within walking distance as appealing.

What is the common thread among Gen Z, therefore, is not the preference itself, but the expectation.

Hybrid and flexible working is not just providing time for relaxation, however, with 24 per cent of young professionals using this time to reinvest in personal projects or additional income streams, and 20 per cent claiming the time allows them to test new career paths while in their current employment.

Savings made by Australian hybrid workers are also averaging $236 a month, providing another incentive towards this option.

In addition, Gen Z are impacting the next generation of workers, with additional IWG research finding that 75 per cent of surveyed Gen Alpha – those aged 11 to 17 – anticipate travel time will be a fundamental priority when structuring their working day.

IWF SVP and country manager Lisia Roth described Gen Z as “an ambitious and hardworking profession”.

She said: “More flexible ways of working [are] helping them to unlock greater potential. By reducing long daily commutes and allowing people to work closer to home, it gives young professionals the ability to upskill, collaborate and unlock new opportunities.”

“Gen Z are building careers in a time of pivotal change.”

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