Progress on New Terms: How Young Professionals Are Reshaping Careers and Leadership
Generations Balancing Ambition with Sustainability
One of the most striking findings is that Gen Z and millennials are not becoming less ambitious. Rather, they are redefining what success looks like.
Financial pressure continues to shape both personal and professional decisions. For the fifth consecutive year, the cost of living remains the number one concern, cited by 38% of Gen Z respondents and 42% of millennials. More than half of both generations report delaying major life decisions, including marriage, starting a family, pursuing further education or launching a business, because of financial constraints. Specifically, 55% of Gen Zs and 52% of millennials say they have postponed such decisions, while 47% in both groups report living paycheque to paycheque.
Housing affordability is an especially powerful factor influencing career choices. Nearly seven in ten respondents, including 69% of Gen Zs and 64% of millennials, say housing availability or affordability directly affects where they can work. Furthermore, 51% of Gen Zs and 40% of millennials believe they cannot afford to own a home.
For employers in insurance and actuarial fields, these findings reinforce the growing importance of competitive compensation, flexible working arrangements and benefits that support broader financial wellbeing.
Leadership Remains Attractive, but Only Under the Right Conditions
The report challenges a common misconception that younger workers lack leadership aspirations. In reality, the issue is not leadership itself but the perceived cost that often comes with it.
Only 6% of Gen Zs and millennials identify attaining a leadership role as their primary career goal today. However, 76% of Gen Zs and 67% of millennials indicate that they are interested in pursuing senior executive positions at some point during their careers. Likewise, 80% of Gen Zs and 73% of millennials express interest in supervisory or management responsibilities.
The hesitation stems largely from concerns about wellbeing. Among those not actively pursuing leadership roles, the most frequently cited barriers are:
- Stress and burnout (50% of Gen Zs; 49% of millennials)
- Excessive responsibility (50%; 48%)
- Poor work-life balance (41%; 46%)
When respondents described their preferred career trajectory, only 25% of Gen Zs and 21% of millennials favoured rapid promotion and title progression. By contrast, around 45% preferred a steadier and more sustainable path of advancement.
For actuarial employers facing succession challenges and a growing need for technical leadership, the message is clear: future leaders are available, but leadership models must evolve to offer greater flexibility, clearer development pathways and stronger organisational support.
AI Adoption Is Accelerating Faster Than Organisational Readiness
Artificial intelligence emerged as another defining theme of the survey. AI usage has become mainstream, with 74% of both Gen Z and millennial respondents reporting some level of AI use in their daily work, up dramatically from 57% and 56%, respectively, just one year earlier.
Importantly, AI is not viewed primarily as a threat. Most respondents see it as an enabler of productivity and growth:
- 79% use AI to identify learning and development opportunities.
- 72% of Gen Zs and 69% of millennials use it for career advice.
- 67% of Gen Zs and 65% of millennials use it to help manage work-related stress.
Many also report tangible workplace benefits. Around 68% to 69% say AI has improved the quality of their work, while a similar proportion believe it helps free up time and improve work-life balance.
Yet a significant readiness gap remains. Around 30% of respondents do not believe their organisations are prepared for the changes AI will bring, and roughly one-third feel their employers provide insufficient AI training. Lack of knowledge and experience emerged as the most common barrier to effective AI adoption.
For the actuarial profession, where AI-driven analytics, predictive modelling and automation are increasingly influencing business decisions, the challenge is no longer whether to adopt AI, but how to integrate AI responsibly while simultaneously developing the necessary human and technical capabilities.
Wellbeing Is Becoming a Business Imperative
The survey also reveals encouraging progress regarding mental health. Today, 63% of Gen Z respondents and 66% of millennials rate their mental health as good or extremely good, representing a substantial improvement from 52% and 58%, respectively, in 2025.
However, significant challenges persist:
- 34% of Gen Zs and 30% of millennials feel anxious or stressed most or all of the time.
- 48% of Gen Zs and 45% of millennials report feeling burned out.
- 58% of Gen Zs and 54% of millennials experience digital fatigue resulting from constant alerts, multiple platforms and technology overload.
Financial concerns continue to be the leading source of stress. Long working hours, inadequate recognition and workload pressures are among the most prominent workplace factors contributing to anxiety.
These findings suggest that wellbeing is increasingly viewed not as an employee perk but as essential organisational infrastructure. Companies that proactively address workload management, psychological safety and managerial support may gain a measurable advantage in attracting and retaining talent.
Purpose and Connection Matter More Than Ever
Perhaps the strongest signal from the report concerns the importance of purpose. An overwhelming 96% of Gen Zs and 97% of millennials say that having a sense of purpose at work is important to their overall job satisfaction and wellbeing. Furthermore, approximately 40% have rejected an assignment, project or potential employer because it conflicted with their personal values or beliefs.
Many are already seeking roles that allow them to make a meaningful contribution to society. This sentiment is particularly relevant for insurance and actuarial professionals whose work directly supports financial resilience, risk management and long-term societal stability.
The importance of workplace relationships is equally noteworthy. Around two-thirds of respondents say they have at least one close friend at work. These social connections strongly influence retention:
- Gen Z employees with close workplace friendships are 15 percentage points more likely to stay with an employer for more than five years (48% versus 33%).
- Among millennials, the difference rises to 18 percentage points (61% versus 43%).
The Future Workforce Will Demand New Leadership Models
As older generations approach retirement, knowledge transfer is becoming a critical business issue. Only 54% of Gen Zs and 60% of millennials believe their teams could maintain performance if a key expert left tomorrow. Common obstacles include insufficient incentives for knowledge sharing, lack of time and high staff turnover.
At the same time, organisations must prepare for the arrival of Generation Alpha later this decade. Deloitte argues that future success will depend on preserving institutional knowledge while simultaneously developing human capabilities such as judgement, communication, empathy and collaboration in increasingly AI-enabled workplaces.
Conclusion
Deloitte’s findings reveal a workforce that is not stepping back from achievement but changing the equation by which success is measured. Gen Z and millennials remain ambitious, interested in leadership and enthusiastic about technology. However, they increasingly expect careers to be sustainable, purpose-driven and aligned with broader life goals.
For the global actuarial and insurance community, the implications are significant. Future talent strategies will need to balance technical excellence with wellbeing, leadership development with flexibility, and AI adoption with human-centred skills. Organisations that adapt to these expectations are likely to be best positioned to attract, develop and retain the next generation of actuarial leaders.