A Reflection on Career Patterns

Context and Disclaimer

This is the second entry in a series of blog posts delving into modern career psychology concepts. The goal is to present research in a way that is clear and accessible to both professionals and the general public. I hope the insights shared here will support you in your career and self-discovery journey. Please remember, this content is intended for educational purposes and is not personalised advice. If you need personal assistance, feel free to reach out to me using the contact information provided on my website.

Introduction

During a morning meeting, my supervisor discussed an employee’s career path to illustrate the various roles within an organisation. The employee was positioned as a specialist rather than a generalist or manager. He remarked that this may have been disappointing to her, as she had been expecting promotional opportunities and increased responsibilities. However, this did not diminish her value to the company or the potential for her expertise to yield a comfortable income. It seemed she either had different expectations for her career or mistakenly believed that success must follow a linear, upward trajectory. In a similar vein, my career psychology lecturer once shared her own frustrations while working as a psychometrist in the banking sector. Her aim was to earn a higher salary and enhance her lifestyle, but she came to realise that her specialised role did not align with the path to management, as she had been hired for her specific expertise rather than leadership potential.

Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, faced the opposite challenge. He stepped down as CEO to pursue his passion for engineering and software development within the company. Similarly, many management consulting firms are now working to equip specialists with management skills—even though these individuals may not necessarily aspire to, or thrive in, managerial roles.

The above examples highlight an important point that everyone, especially career development practitioners should reflect on - what are typical career patterns and what believes do we have about them?

What is a career pattern?

While the 21st century has seen a proliferation on the many different types of careers one can have, a career pattern is the enduring trend underlying your career choices and is guided by your internal definition of success and your underlying motives. Career patterns can also be indicative of your career anchors, a concept that will be discussed in another post. Broadly, career patterns can be grouped into four distinct clusters as described below.

Linear career pattern

This pattern is most aligned with managerial staff, where individuals thrive within a hierarchical structure, and where leadership and generalist skills are valued. They respond best to rewards such as promotions, bonuses, salaries, and incentives.

Expert career pattern

Traditional occupations like lawyer, psychologist, doctor, and engineer follow an expert career pattern where quality, technical competence, reliability, and stability is valued. In the generation of artificial intelligence and big data, it is particularly important for these individuals to continuously upskill themselves.

Spiral career pattern

These professionals tend to change careers periodically, with a major shift between fields. They focus strongly on transferrable skills and value the ability to learn new skills. Individuals who find themselves in this career pattern value creativity above all else and enjoy working cross functionally.

Transitory career pattern

Similar to the spiral career pattern, the transitory pattern is characterised by career changes. However, these changes are more frequent than the spiral pattern, and is often motivated by the need for variety, and independence. Below is a summary of each career pattern along with their motives.

Summary of career patterns

Note: Adapted from Schreuder, D., & Coetzee, M. (2015). Careers: An Organisational Perspective. Juta and Company Ltd.

Career Pattern	Frequency of field change	Motives
Linear	Infrequent within field	Power, competence, achievement, recognition, self-development.
Expert	None, aside from subspecialisation.	Expertise, security, competence, stability, autonomy, achievement.
Spiral	Every five to ten years, often into a new field	Personal growth, creativity, developing others, prestige, recognition.
Transitory	Every two to four years, into new fields	Variety, independence, creativity, involvement, achievement.

Conclusion and Practical Application

Admittedly, the research on career patterns is sparce, and caution should be used when applying the model in practice. However, through practical experience, I have noted that it is valuable to critically reflect on our believes about what a successful career looks like. This process encourages us to think more broadly about our careers and to consider alternatives to the conventional career path. Below are some reflective questions to ask yourself:

• What does a successful career look like for me?

• Is my concept of a successful career genuinely mine, or has it been shaped by others?

• If I choose an unconventional career path, how can I tailor it to suit my needs and adjust to the evolving job market?

References

Biemann, T., Zacher, H., & Feldman, D. C. (2012). Career patterns: A twenty-year panel study. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 81(2), 159-170.

Janice L. Hall, Latanya Robinson & Alexandra Coso-Strong (21 May 2025): Engineering careers in “fragments”: Understanding career pathways across diverse groups, Australian Journal of Multi-Disciplinary Engineering, DOI: 10.1080/14488388.2025.2498773

Schreuder, D., & Coetzee, M. (2015). Careers: An Organisational Perpsective. Juta and Company Ltd.

Schreuder, A. M. G., & Coetzee, M. (2002). The relationship between career patterns and personality types. SA Journal of Industrial Psychology, 28(1), 53-59.