Career Lattice

Definition

A flexible career progression model allowing lateral moves, not just vertical climbs. Corporate acknowledgment that not everyone wants to manage people.

Example Usage

The new career lattice let engineers move into architecture, design, or business roles without becoming managers—revolutionary for people who like technical work.

Origin

Evolved from the traditional 'career ladder' model in organizational thinking, gaining prominence in tech around 2010s.

Fun Fact

Career lattices sound flexible but still have invisible ceilings—laterally moved employees often hit promotion glass ceilings.

Source: Career development and organizational structure

Related Terms

Beginner

Learning and Development (L&D)

The department responsible for making employees smarter, usually with outdated online courses they completed at 1 AM on their last day of the quarter.

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

Return-to-Office (RTO)

Management's desperate attempt to get remote workers back to the office for 'collaboration' and 'culture.'

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

furlough

A temporary unpaid leave where employees remain technically employed but don't work or get paid, preserving benefits while saving the company money. It's the corporate equivalent of 'it's not you, it's the economy'—but actually, it's definitely the company's budget.

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

RSU (Restricted Stock Units)

Equity compensation that vests over time, converting hypothetical wealth into actual shares on a schedule designed to retain talent who can't afford to leave.

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

Comp and Benefits (or C&B)

The HR department's way of packaging salary, health insurance, and the promise of work-life balance into one tidy compensation package.

👥 Human Resources

Advanced

right to work

Laws that prohibit requiring union membership or dues as a condition of employment—deceptively named legislation that weakens unions while sounding like it protects worker freedom.

👥 Human Resources

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