Kenneth Brousseau

Kenneth Brousseau, Michael Driver, Kristina Eneroth, and Rikard Larsson introduced the idea that “successful” careers can follow forms other than “up or out” in a classic article in Academy of Management Executive, “Career Pandemonium: Realigning organizations and individuals.”

Michael Driver

They offered a “pluralistic career concept framework” that classified career “concepts”:

-Linear – Traditional upward movement, with variable tenure in job roles. Motivated by power, achievement and related promotions.
Behavioral competencies include: Leadership, competitiveness, cost-efficiency, logistics management, profit orientation, and this career concept is most seen in tall hierarchies with a narrow span of control.

-Expert – Little movement and long (sometimes life-long) role tenure due to deepening expertise in a narrow discipline.
Motives include mastery, expertise, and security, and meaningful rewards include continued training, benefits, recognition.
Competencies: Quality, commitment, reliability, technical competence, stability orientation, and most well-matched to flat functional organizations.

-Spiral – Lateral movement to broaden functional exposure, with 7-10 year tenure in role families. Motivated by personal growth, creativity, and suited to matrix organizations with cross-functional teams.
Rewards include cross-functional lateral assignments and training.
Key competencies include: Creativity, teamwork, skill diversity, lateral coordination, people development, found in loose, temporary team structures.

-Transitory – Lateral moves of shorter duration (3-5 years), motivated by variety, independence.
Most often found in temporary team structures, behavioral skills include speed, networking, adaptability, fast learning, project focus.
Meaningful rewards are job rotation, temporary assignments, immediate cash bonuses.

This team’s research, based at University of Southern California, was distilled into an assessment tool
This model focuses on career “fit” with an organization’s structure and objectives

Timothy Butler

A similar emphasis on cultural fit is found in Timothy Butler and James Waldroop’s CareerLeader Inventory, based on their research at Harvard Business School.

-*Which of the four career trajectories seems most like yours?

-*Which career assessment tools have you found most useful to determine your skills, interests, and best-fit organizational context?

James Waldroop

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