The New Definition of Career Success

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Men and women no longer define career success by the amount of money they make, new research shows.

A study by Accenture revealed that work-life balance — ahead of money, recognition and autonomy — is the key determiner for more than half of men and women on whether or not they have a successful career.

The majority of employees believe having a positive work-life balance is attainable. More than two-thirds of the employees surveyed believe they can "have it all" when it comes to a having both a successful career and a full life outside work. Work-life balance is so important that more than half of those surveyed have turned down a job offer because of the potential impact on it.

Adrian Lajtha, Accenture’s chief leadership officer, said that over the course of their careers, professionals regularly define and re-define what success looks like.

"For many, career goals and personal priorities will take precedence at different times," Lajtha said. "As today’s professionals strive to find the right balance, leading companies will find innovative ways to help them develop, grow and thrive."

The research revealed technology plays a large role in achieving work-life balance. More than three- quarters of employees think technology enables them to be more flexible with their schedules, while 80 percent believe having flexibility in their work schedule is important to achieving a positive work-life balance.

"The fact that finding the right approach to integrating career and life demands continues to be critically important to employees is significant for employers," said Nellie Borrero, managing director of global inclusion and diversity for Accenture. "Companies that can help their employees navigate both their professional and personal lives are likely to see strong employee engagement and enjoy an advantage as they recruit and retain high performers."

Overall, 53 percent of women and 50 percent of men say they are satisfied with their jobs and not looking for new opportunities, each up nearly 10 percentage points from a year ago. For those employees leaving, responsibilities not matching the job description, pay and uninteresting work are the driving motivations.

The research shows that when starting a job search, the first three things a jobseeker will do are look on job boards for open positions, contact friends and others in their networks and update online profiles and information.

The study was based on surveys of 4,100 business executives from medium to large organizations in 33 countries, including the U.S.

This story was provided by BusinessNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow Chad Brooks on Twitter @cbrooks76 or BusinessNewsDaily @BNDarticles. We're also on Facebook & Google+.