In a time of TikTok side hustles and post-pandemic pivots, the playbook for what makes a good job “good” is unraveling, being stitched back together, and sometimes, tossed out entirely. At the center of this workforce recalibration is Gen Z, a generation uniquely pragmatic in its ambitions yet skeptical of traditional promises of stability and advancement.
Against this backdrop of shifting expectations around work, the insurance industry finds itself at an inflection point. Long seen as a paradigm of stability, it is now in the midst of its own upheaval: at once compelled to respond to a new generation’s demands, which are upending legacy models of work, it is also in the thick of a massive talent exodus, as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that 400,000 insurance professionals will leave the industry by this year.
According to our recent research at Cake & Arrow, what’s happening in insurance may not be an isolated issue but rather a microcosm of the changes every organization must confront as Gen Z redefines what stability, meaning, and growth look like at work. Small businesses in particular can take valuable cues from how these expectations are reshaping one of the country’s most traditional sectors.
Stability Isn’t What It Used to Be
To Gen Z, stability is non-negotiable, but it comes with an asterisk. When asked what the most important thing in work is, 66% of Gen Z said financial stability, a stat born of pandemic-era lessons and economic volatility. Yet this version of stability is not synonymous with previous generations and no longer necessarily means following a set corporate path until retirement. Instead, Gen Z approaches stability like a risk-management plan, with side hustles as supplements rather than acts of rebellion.
On paper, insurance careers should appeal strongly to Gen Z: the sector offers security, benefits, and predictability. But something isn’t clicking. Nearly half of Gen Z (49%) claim they have zero interest in working in insurance, despite 55% holding a positive view of the industry. This disconnect coincides with broader industry trends pointing to an aging workforce and difficulties attracting younger talent, as many in the insurance sector retire without significant replacements.
For small businesses, this tension between stability and autonomy is increasingly showing up in hiring conversations. Stability matters to Gen Z, but only if paired with the freedom to shape how, when, and why they work—flexibility that smaller employers are often better positioned to offer.
Values & Ethics: Non-Negotiable, Not Just Nice
For Gen Z, a good job isn’t just about climbing or even skipping the corporate ladder; meaningful work is the real currency: 41% rank it among the most important job factors. But “meaningful” isn’t code for passion alone. It’s shorthand for ethics, alignment, and doing work that feels net-positive for the world.
Interviews reveal a profound unease with industries perceived as profit-driven or ethically compromised. Insurance, with its legacy of fine print and complex claims, faces harsh scrutiny. As one interviewee put it: “I just don’t want to be a part of that,” referencing what she saw as systemic efforts to deny claims. The skepticism isn’t exclusive to insurance; it’s emblematic of how Gen Z judges organizational credibility, transparency, fairness, and authenticity are now baseline requirements, not aspirational goals.
For small businesses, this dynamic presents both pressure and opportunity. With fewer layers and more transparent decision-making, smaller teams often create the kind of transparency Gen Z seeks when evaluating employers. Organizations that make their values and processes visible can earn trust faster than larger, more opaque counterparts.
How Perceptions Are Made and Misunderstood
Insurance is a hard sell. Not because Gen Z has tried it and found it lacking, but because most of their exposure to it comes during moments of frustration, and touchpoints with the industry—such as denied claims, long waits, and opaque processes—skew negative. An astonishing 67% dismiss insurance jobs as boring.
The roles that exist behind the scenes in data, tech, and innovation are practically invisible to job seekers. What comes to mind are call centers and cubicles, not cutting-edge modern digital problem-solving. This misperception highlights a broader challenge for employers, since people who encounter an industry only at its most stressful moments are unlikely to imagine a fulfilling future there. The rigidity and formality of the industry act as signals that reinforce Gen Z’s doubts about how much room there really is for creativity and change.
Small businesses face a similar visibility challenge, but they often have a distinct advantage in culture. With fewer layers and closer proximity to leadership, culture is lived day to day rather than abstracted into value statements. Making that culture visible—how decisions are made, how work evolves, and how contributions are recognized—can help small employers counter narrow perceptions of the work and signal real opportunities for growth, creativity, and impact.
Growth and Agency Replace the Corporate Ladder
Whereas previous generations may have accepted “paying dues,” Gen Z is more interested in fluid, dynamic job experiences than in predictable, stepwise progression, as evidenced by only 16% wanting to work in large corporations. In qualitative interviews, many describe the insurance industry and corporate work in general as places to “get stuck” rather than grow.
What brings Gen Z in is a culture that values every voice regardless of tenure and provides room for creativity: not a playbook to follow, but a platform to shape. If the modern workplace is a game, Gen Z is looking to rewrite the rules and have more say over the controls.
Small businesses can capitalize on this expectation. With flatter hierarchies and more opportunities to contribute across functions, small employers can offer the kind of visible impact and agency Gen Z craves.
5 Ways Employers—Especially Small Businesses—Can Respond
1—Show, don’t tell the work
Demonstrate how roles create impact and experiential value. Small businesses can lean into storytelling here more easily than large corporations.
2—Make your values unmistakable
Be transparent about ethics, decision-making, and how the organization handles tough moments. Smaller teams have a natural advantage in making this visible.
3—Modernize roles and workflows
Ditch redundancies. Update job design and create adaptive, meaningful daily experiences.
4—Flexibility is mandatory
Building flexibility into workplaces, schedules, and even job trajectories is not just about policies, but about practice. For small businesses, flexibility can be one of the most powerful differentiators.
5—Share agency
Let Gen Z shape workplace experiences, not just execute someone else’s playbook. Small businesses can excel at fostering broader employee ownership and should highlight this.
Understanding Gen Z Is No Longer a Differentiator. It’s Table Stakes
The continued push-and-pull between Gen Z and the insurance industry is an early signal of a much broader reckoning. If an industry long synonymous with stability can no longer rely on its traditional strengths to attract and retain talent, employers across every sector—especially small businesses—should take notice.
A future-ready workplace will not be sustained by legacy reputations or inherited job descriptions. It will be built by organizations that act with speed and conviction to meet new standards for transparency, flexibility, and meaningful growth. Small businesses that lean into these expectations are often well-positioned to turn them into a competitive advantage in attracting the next generation of workers.
Emily Smith-Cardineau is the Director of Content & Insights at Cake & Arrow, where she leads research-driven storytelling at the intersection of human-centered design, insurance, and financial services. She translates qualitative and quantitative research into clear, actionable insights that help organizations understand shifting customer and workforce expectations—and respond with confidence.
With deep expertise in research synthesis, analysis, and narrative framing, Emily specializes in making complex systems and data legible, credible, and compelling. Her work spans original research, industry analysis, and thought leadership designed to challenge legacy assumptions and advance more human, future-ready experiences.
Photo courtesy Getty Images for Unsplash+
