In recent years, the global workforce has witnessed an unprecedented generational transformation. The entry of Generation Z into professional life has redefined what work means, how it is experienced, and where its value lies. This cohort, born between the late 1990s and early 2010s, is not merely adapting to existing systems — it is questioning and reshaping them through an acute awareness of identity, ethics, and purpose.
For much of the 20th century, work was primarily a function of stability and structure. Today, for Gen Z, it has become a pursuit of self-expression and alignment with one’s beliefs. In many ways, their professional choices reflect the philosophical tension between existentialism and nihilism — between the need to find meaning and the refusal to accept inherited meanings without scrutiny.
From Security to Self-Actualisation
The traditional markers of professional success — stability, hierarchy, and linear progression — are gradually being replaced by flexibility, creativity, and self-direction. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs offers a useful frame here. With access to education, technology, and networks that ensure their foundational needs are largely met, many young professionals now seek work that affirms their sense of self and purpose.
This shift is not merely cultural but psychological. Studies such as Deloitte’s 2024 Gen Z and Millennial Survey reveal that this generation values authenticity, inclusion, and mental well-being as core determinants of workplace satisfaction. For them, employment is not a transaction but a platform for becoming.
The Existential Drive
Existentialist thought, most prominently articulated by thinkers like Jean-Paul Sartre and Søren Kierkegaard, asserts that meaning is not discovered but created through conscious choice. Gen Z embodies this principle in practice. They are less inclined to conform to rigid hierarchies and more interested in curating careers that reflect their individuality and ethics.
Their professional fluidity—seen in their openness to freelance roles, gig economies, and hybrid careers—is not indecision but a modern form of self-determination. They choose versatility over permanence and purpose over prestige, signaling a quiet revolution in how value is both perceived and produced.
Nihilism as Freedom
Yet, where existentialism seeks meaning, nihilism begins with doubt. For many young professionals, the rejection of traditional scripts does not stem from despair but from a radical willingness to rebuild. In this reinterpretation, nihilism becomes liberation — a refusal to inherit outdated notions of success. It is this intellectual independence that allows Gen Z to experiment, innovate, and challenge entrenched institutional cultures.
Reimagining the Social Contract of Work
For organisations, the emergence of this worldview demands reflection. Retaining and engaging Gen Z professionals requires more than compensation; it requires coherence between institutional purpose and lived practice. This generation looks for alignment — between words and actions, profit and principle, individual growth and collective progress.
Workplaces that recognise this shift stand to benefit not only from their talent but from their vision. The future of work will not be determined by titles or tenures, but by trust, empathy, and shared meaning. In navigating the space between existentialism and nihilism, Gen Z may, in fact, restore what modern work had lost — the deeply human pursuit of purpose.
– Ms. Nandana V B, Alliance University