Causes of Career-Defining Moments: Development of a Typology

The purpose of this research was to develop a typology of career-defining moments in order to better understand the nature of this phenomenon. A career-defining moment is a point in time that substantially alters the trajectory of one's career. We conducted interviews with a diverse group of 18 executives to learn about their career-defining moments. A typology of five distinct categories of career-defining moments and their respective subthemes emerged from the interviews. The five major types of career-defining moments are as follows: (a) anticipated transition events, (b) unanticipated transition events, (c) insight experiences, (d) relationship experiences, and (e) spiritual experiences. This study adds to the theoretical understanding of career experiences and provides a foundation for a largely untapped stream of inquiry for future researchers. Career-defining moments are important as they influence future career decisions and have a tremendous impact on the individuals making those decisions and their organizations.