When Becky Phillips, a pharmaceutical industry scientist, has looked for work, one phrase in job ads has turned her away from applying to otherwise promising-sounding opportunities: “fast-paced environment.”

“Usually fast-paced sounds like that would be fun, like you’re going to make lots of progress on projects,” Ms. Phillips, 34 years old, said. “But, I think in practice, it just means that there’s no work-life balance.”