Why do millennials stay in their jobs? The roles of protean career orientation, goal progress and organizational career management

• Published in: Journal of vocational behavior Vol. 118; p. 103366
• Main Authors: Holtschlag, Claudia, Masuda, Aline D., Reiche, B. Sebastian, Morales, Carlos
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia Elsevier Inc 01.04.2020; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Career development planning; Careers; Employee turnover; Goal progress; Millennials; Organizational career management; Protean career orientation; Social exchange theory; Turnover; Turnover intentions; Turnover intentions; Millennials; Organizational career management; Goal progress; Protean career orientation
• ISSN: 0001-8791; 1095-9084
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jvb.2019.103366

In this paper we report a time-lagged study over six months analyzing the indirect effect of protean career orientation on changes in turnover intentions via personal work goal progress in a sample of millennial employees. Consistent with protean career theory and social exchange theory, we found that protean career orientation indirectly leads to decreases in turnover intentions over time and this effect was moderated by organizational career management practices. This effect was observed because the relationship between goal progress and decreases in turnover intentions became less salient when organizations were perceived to offer high levels of formal career practices. We discuss the implications for research and practice. •Protean career orientation (PCO) is indirectly related to decreases in turnover intentions.•The indirect relationship is explained by protean careerists' higher level of goal progress.•Organizational career management (OCM) moderates the indirect effect of PCO to decreases in turnover intentions.•The less OCM millennials receive, the more pronounced is the indirect effect from PCO to decreases in turnover intentions.