When did ‘ambition’ become a dirty word?

From quiet quitting to quiet hiring, the idea of ambition at the workplace has evolved by leaps and bounds

In a world that is evolving at lightning speed, constantly changing action, acknowledgment and recognition is rewriting the meaning of words. No wonder we are a bit lost. 

Case in point—ambition. For the older Gen X, the idea of ambition largely meant having a corner office, a German car and a secretary. But a few years later, offices turned into open-plan layouts, managers were asked to manage their own work without PAs and the German car was traded for other symbols. Ambition once meant sacrifice at great personal cost to achieve something you deemed meaningful in life. But somewhere along the way, people questioned that meaning, upgraded it, dismissed it. And all we were left with was a loss that came with that earlier sacrifice. The ambition had evaporated into nothing. 

A collaborative process that fosters belonging

From apathy to anti-ambition—where does a young employee’s goal lie today? How relevant is ambition in an age where young people are taking more drugs because life sucks? “Our parents’ defined ambition as security,” says Feroza Engineer, performance coach and leadership development expert, founder and CEO of Feroza and Co. “We came from that cusp of an information and digital revolution. Our ambition [Gen X] is linked to a quality of life stationed around positions. Gen Z are focused not just on quality of life but also identity.” Engineer has been coaching and consulting with MNCs across the world, and has been in the ideal position to see this landmark generational shift.  

Engineer attributes a razor-sharp focus on identity that has upturned the way we approach ‘work’ and how we define ‘goals’. It’s no longer about what you, as an employee, can contribute towards the company’s top or bottom line. Instead it’s about what the company can do for you, to enhance your skills, learning and development. It’s a collaborative process but led by you, the employee. 

“I think what led to this is actually the way the world has been evolving,” explains Sabih Kidwai, director, learning and talent development, Schneider Electric, (SE) Greater India. The French multinational company specialises in digital automation and energy management but is equally known for its emphasis on employee development, a sector that’s been seeing rapid changes recently. “It got accelerated [over] the last few years but then started with open- plan offices, no EAs, not even titles. Digitisation and virtualisation amplified the impact of these changes. And how do you adapt? You succumb. Some of us can resist but that’s futile. It was bound to happen, and it’s going to change even more. We will become a lot more porous, with fewer boundaries, lesser structure. I call it the amoebic future organisation. We will pull in whoever we need to, and we will get pushed out when we are done.” 

Kidwai asks us to paint a verbal image of a ‘boss’. The New World Order doesn’t necessarily call for leaders–it’s all about collaboration and inclusion. It is about empathy, about understanding and relating,” he adds. To this, Engineer adds another key pillar—a sense of belongingness. But the onus to feel belonged lies in the hands of the company, not the employee. “This generation [Gen Z] focuses a lot on belonging. In the early 90s, the mood was—how do I include myself in this diverse pool of people? How do I stand out? So I focussed on creating skills that stood out. Now, Gen Z has entered the scene saying, ‘I am who I am. I’m not going to struggle to fit in. You need to find a way to make me belong.’”

Redefining happiness at the workplace

So it’s not really about apathy towards goals, or making ambition a dated sentiment. Instead the meaning of ambition has changed so drastically, it’s taking older generations a while to navigate the scene. But Kidwai believes Gen Z is struggling just as much. “The difference is we come with the baggage of experience to this change. They don’t have any baggage.” 

Not only do companies have to fine tune (and, in some cases, define for the first time) their core values, they have realised these matter more than bonuses and CTCs to a new generation entering their cadre. What led to burnouts for the previous generation have now become the framework of what not to do, to make sure new and future employees find their sense of self in the company too. 

Are you happy at work is now a legit question. Since the pay cheque is not the only goal, being ‘happy’ is being examined almost as part of your KRA. “The attitude of ‘I will see if I fit in here and if I don't, I will quit,’ is very valid,” says Engineer. It’s why moonlighting has become such an issue. Recently, tech giants Infosys and Wipro have dramatically labelled moonlighters as “cheaters” and “two-timers,” but it’s what keeps a lot amongst the younger generation ticking. “This is how people want to create meaning—'I dabble and then I get to decide what I can shine in’,” says Engineer. A month later, Infosys, however, allowed its employees to take up external gig work, but with consent from their managers, and on the condition that it wouldn’t impact their work at Infosys, or be in conflict with anything that Infosys does. 

Making work more meaningful

A recent study of the Indian workforce by American survey firm Gallup found that most employees might not be thriving but are more engaged at work. “Have you spent enough time understanding my identity?” says Engineer of the ways in which Gen Z wants to be engaged at work. “‘I need immediate feedback if you need to criticise something, and I want to be rewarded and acknowledged for whatever good I bring to the table. If I’m neurodivergent, will I be allowed to take enough breaks? Is the office environment ready for that? If I’m a person with a disability, is my laptop, IT infrastructure and so forth made available accordingly? If I am a single mother, what policies and procedures are going to be tailor made for me?’” 

Engineer’s questions point towards what SE and Kidwai have been trying to implement. “Predictability, structure, effectiveness and measurement are now out of the window,” he says. “There’s no five- or 10-year-plan. No one wants to make it or see it. Even if you made one, it will change the following year. Instead, we’re trying to make sure that the work that they do is meaningful. We’re making sure they are equipped and supported to do their best in what they're doing, and trying to move impediments (old ways of thinking) for them to be empowered. The advantage we get as a company is that we see people more engaged. And in the process, we are creating something meaningful, where each one of us in that project is learning and contributing.” 

Derek Thompson wrote in his column ‘Work in Progress’ in The Atlantic how your career is just one-eighth of your life. In which case, it leads us to question—how much meaning do we attach to it and its goals?  Maybe this time, ambition lies in the journey or the actual work itself, and not owning a German car. 

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