Causes of Career Plateau

The causes for a professional plateau are specific to each person’s situation. These causes can be broadly divided into two groups: internal and external causes.

1. Internal Factors: These may include a lack of trust in an employee’s professional abilities or, conversely, an excessive amount of confidence. Lack of interest in and feeling challenged by the work may be another internal factor causing career stagnation. If it applies to the personnel of an organisation, it should plan for development training that will help the employees advance and overcome stagnation.

2. External Factors: These include the type of company, size, and level of seniority. Career paths to senior management are much less challenging in privately owned or family-run enterprises than they are in large multinational corporations. In these businesses, top management usually remains in place for decades with little to no turnover.

3. Other Factors:

• Repetitive Labour and Responsibilities: Repeating the same work can lead to boredom and a lack of motivation. This can cause your career to stagnate.
• Lack of Lateral Mobility Opportunities: Employees may feel stuck in their existing roles and unable to advance in their careers if there are no opportunities for growth.
• Lack of Training and Development: Employees can not advance in their jobs without access to training and development opportunities.
• Reaching the Top of the Present Role’s Hierarchy: If there is no further possibility for growth when an employee reaches the highest point of their current position, their career may plateau.