Is The Lack of Career Growth Losing You Valuable Hires?

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Latest posts by Laurenzo Overee (see all)

Is The Lack of Career Growth Losing You Valuable Hires? - November 20, 2025
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A potential candidate shaking the hand of a recruiter with the words “Good Vibes Only” in the background.

Source: https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-in-black-long-sleeve-shirt-had-a-job-interview-5989927/

Career growth is usually a top factor when it comes to retaining the most outstanding talent. Oftentimes, growth at work conjures images of lofty promotions and the winding paths to achieve these accolades. That’s why it is essential to include a clear career trajectory in winning job descriptions to keep talent engaged for the long term.

However, a closer look at the concept of career growth would reveal a much deeper reality. Traditional promotions are what’s considered vertical growth opportunities. These linear opportunities enable talent to accept additional responsibilities justified by higher salaries and additional employee perks.

That’s the common workplace narrative, but in this fast-paced, competitive job climate, there’s an emerging demand for a different type of career progression: horizontal growth. While these career growth offerings may lack the prestige and remuneration of promotions, they are pretty telling in a talent’s longevity within an organization or industry.

Job market data reveals that the average cost of a bad hire amounts to roughly $17,000, though costs could be much higher for more senior roles. So investing in quality talent keen on growing and within a company (in every possible way) could be a major hiring advantage.

Why Include Horizontal Growth Opportunities?

Horizontal growth opportunities equip individuals with the knowledge to learn and grow in fresh environments with leeway for error. Rather than facing the pressures of a promotion, horizontal growth allows employees to accrue cross-functional expertise in a more forgiving environment.

It is also necessary to consider the number of promotional opportunities within a company. Unmoderated promotions would lead to a type of title inflation, where roles risk losing their inherent value and purpose.

Picture a small office with a flood of senior managers within the same department – a title’s credibility would soon take a nosedive. In other words, it wouldn’t be logical (or financially feasible) to go against the frequency and headcount for promotions. Yet, it is still necessary for employers to keep talent motivated despite the lack of promotional opportunities.

That’s where companies can implement horizontal growth offerings that introduce healthy competition among team members while keeping them engaged. Exposure to new tools, methods, techniques, and responsibilities across various departments strengthens workplace dynamics while employees refine their skillset for promotion.

Perhaps most importantly, horizontal growth empowers talent with transferable skills that provide a holistic boost to their careers. These are in line with the workforce’s increasing need to navigate the workplace with the rise of AI adoption. Gen Z and millennial employees (comprising a majority of the modern workforce) have listed time management, soft skills, and project management skills as leading priorities.

These cross-department capabilities improve employee resiliency by familiarizing them with multiple facets of the organization. As a result, they can forge a deeper understanding and appreciation of company values, improving the flow of internal talent pipelines while reducing turnover rates.

In the simplest terms, any move or progress along the career ladder is better than none. LinkedIn discovered that 75% of employees who made an internal move in the last two years are likely to remain in the company compared to 56% of those who did not experience any changes in their roles.

How Horizontal Growth Compares to Promotions (Vertical Growth)

Perhaps the best way to put things into perspective is to compare the pros and cons of each talent growth strategy.

We begin by looking at traditional promotions:

Promotions are appealing because they present a formal celebration of accomplishment that’s topped by a pay raise. However, as a major trade-off, promoted talent could experience a disruption in their work-life balance that comes with the added stress and commitments.

As such, burnout could become a real issue, especially for recently promoted team members suddenly faced with a flood of new responsibilities and concerns.

Organizational research shows that burned-out workers are three times more likely to engage in active job searches. It is important to note that the emotional impact of work has a significant effect on the workforce. Affected employees may also exhibit irritability, exhaustion, and absenteeism that undermine work quality.

Now, let’s compare all of that with the horizontal growth side of things.

While horizontal growth opportunities may lack the prestige of traditional promotions, they provide a conducive setting for developing a personal niche, broadening professional networks, and deepening organizational understanding. These events offer hires the bedrock to develop a strong sense of belonging, which reduces the risks of burnout by 2.5 times, which could lead to greater organizational stability.

So the verdict is that you’ll probably need to promote both growth opportunities in your JDs to attract the most valuable talent that would stay for the long run. As with how inclusive hiring targets people of all backgrounds, you’ll need to make room for all types of growth opportunities. Titles and promotions should not be the only draw.

How Do You Incorporate Horizontal Growth in JDs?

An effective JD comprises multiple key sections that work in harmony, where we have highlighted ten must-haves in the past. Horizontal growth offerings should appear in the roles and responsibilities section of your JD and apply explicit language that emphasizes cross-functional collaborations.

Here are some examples of how you can integrate horizontal growth into your JD profile. We highlight the key language to drive the point across:

The opportunity to audit and restructure workflows for company-wide use.

Collaborate cross-functionally to integrate data into development.

Budgetary exposure in experiencing the practical challenges of managing a campaign.

Skill expansion opportunities for skill and tool mastery outside the regular workflow.

Mentorship and sponsorship opportunities with departmental leads in adjacent fields.

Quarterly knowledge-sharing initiatives with cross-departments.

Rotation options that provide internal opportunities for first-hand experience in customer retention strategies.

Dedicated professional development budgets for career progression.

A dual career track that focuses on technical expertise and specialized knowledge without requiring managerial duties.

Shadowing programs with departmental leaders for a clearer understanding of organizational complexities.

Most importantly, your growth opportunities should leave a strong impression on candidates. Vague or lengthy JD phrases could lead to hesitation and poorer candidate conversion rates due to reduced time-on-page.

Clarifying the career pathways for each vacancy using horizontal and vertical growth descriptions promotes a highly supportive culture that goes beyond titles. Candidates can refer to these ads to expect an environment that encourages learning, skill mastery, and self-growth.

Workforce reports reveal that learning and development remain one of the top three reasons for staying at a company. 70% of Gen Zs and 59% of millennial employees actively develop career-advancing skills once a week or more.

By enhancing JDs with these employee growth trends, your organization can consistently attract top-tier hires with a greater charge over their future successes.

Notable Examples of Prioritized Horizontal Growth

Horizontal growth has steadily garnered the attention of talent decision-makers worldwide for its transformative impact on employee engagement and retention. The following points highlight the shifting perspectives of talent leaders on horizontal growth strategies.

Head of HR at IndiaMart, Madhup Agrawal, shares that horizontal growth eases vertical growth by providing employees with the educational environment to collaborate with cross-functional teams and acquire the essential people skills necessary for senior roles.

Verizon’s Chief Talent Officer, Christina Schelling, stresses that every career move, scope expansion, and development investment should contribute toward creating the most capable and competitively positioned leadership bench. Tracking these movements enables organizations to analyze and reduce attrition risks.

Leading HR recruitment agency Robert Walters notes that embracing a career lattice approach to career development for talent offers a strategic approach to aligning opportunities with employee values and aspirations. Doing so prevents employees from feeling a sense of stagnation in their roles, which can lead to dissatisfaction and increased turnover.

Executive leadership coach and speaker Paul Corke believes that organisations need leaders who can operate beyond the constraints of conventional thinking in a climate of constant disruption. Here’s where the interplay of vertical and horizontal leadership development becomes invaluable.

Blending Holistic Career Growth With Inclusive Hiring

Employers can boost jobseeker engagement by making career growth a pillar of their inclusive hiring strategy. Essentially, through transparency, organizations can effectively tell a more personable employer narrative.

It’s about inviting talented people regardless of their background, to continuously grow their careers in meaningful ways beyond the limitations of promotions (although that’s offered too!).

A powerful JD should ultimately tune out all limiting views while encouraging growth at every possible turn.
It is worth noting that corporate public DEI messaging and communications are undergoing a legal- and risk-driven reframing in recent times. There’s an increasing need to recalibrate DEI messaging while maintaining inclusive hiring efforts.

A shift in focus to “holistic career growth available to all” could be paramount in maintaining a fair hiring position while reducing explicit, potentially politically sensitive terms.

Optimizing JDs with AI

Updating JDs in bulk can be a real hassle, especially for large-scale companies that source hundreds of candidates each month. The smallest signs of JD biases (e.g., exclusionary language) or missing sections could compromise jobseeker response, especially in a competitive job market.

That’s where a trusted AI solution like Text Analyzer can come to the rescue by optimizing the inclusivity and readability of your JD content. Text Analyzer applies the most advanced AI algorithms and natural language processing (NLP) to track and replace the subtlest biased terms that might be pushing away your next star hire.

The automated solution’s data-based approach can also help hiring teams update their JDs according to legal changes and trending jobseeker terms, such as “horizontal growth opportunities.” The Text Analyzer generates comprehensive JDs based on your company’s unique hiring requirements while accounting for key sections and DEI components such as anti-discrimination pledges and EEO statements.

With Text Analyzer, your hiring team can leverage JDs as an integral part of your DEI ecosystem. These may include mentions of internal mobility policies and cross-functional project opportunities available to an inclusive workforce. You can effectively leverage job market keywords with Text Analyzer to update job vacancies, reframing mundane descriptions as long-term career growth opportunities.

Expedite Horizontal Growth JDs With Smart Templates

Through Text Analyzer, you can consistently manage and publish impactful JDs across job boards, career sites, and ATS with confidence. The automated system’s smart template function enables you to quickly save and apply JDs according to specific roles or departments based on organizational structure and employer branding.

Text Analyzer’s smart template reorganizes sections to highlight job requirements and other key sections to keep the flow consistent across all of your related job openings.

Putting it All Together

As the modern workforce trends have it, talented hires seek hybrid career paths these days. As such, it is advantageous to integrate vertical and horizontal opportunities into your JDs when you’re charting out your next hiring campaign.

Essentially, the volatility of job markets resulting from the post-pandemic climate and rapid technological advancements has led to the need for a more resilient workforce. Horizontal growth opportunities lead to resilience by making candidates more adaptable across various departments and roles for greater career longevity.

Through Text Analyzer, you can constantly create bias-free JDs that tie in with the latest jobseeker trends, boosting talent acquisition outcomes with an agile and motivated workforce.

Why I Wrote This?

The world of hiring continues to shift with the rise of technology. At Ongig, we believe in empowering employers with data-driven tools to attract the most qualified hires. With Text Analyzer at your corner, you’ll respond to the latest job seeker trends without missing a beat, while tapping into the power of inclusive hiring. Request a demo with Ongig today to discover how you can boost your ATS and job ad performance starting from today!

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November 20, 2025 by Laurenzo Overee in Hiring