Foreign Pastures, Greener Grasses -- The Grass Is Always Greener
- Are there still organizations which actually uphold the values they tout? "Why work here?": achieve a wonderful work life balance, challenging work, career development, competitive salaries and comprehensive benefits -- the mantra of the majority of corporate recruitment propaganda. "You'll never be bored", "With flexible work hours and on-site facilities to make balancing work and life more convenient than ever".
- In reality, the values presented map to a work-life balance that includes at least 8 hours of work on weekends, preferably during meal times, and social events, challenging work that involves dealing with politics rather than actually doing what you are hired to do, competitive salaries and benefits because you're never balancing enough "life" to see them, and never being bored as a result of performing mundane monotonous mindnumbing tasks.
- The past few years in the IT industry have represented quite a downturn. Employers called the shots, were able to draw on endless numbers of seemingly skilled workers at substantial cost savings because the marketplace was inundated with individuals who couldn't find work. Add to that the fact that recruiting was down, and you had a cakewalk for employers. Morale? Team building? Skills development? Who cares! If our employees aren't happy, we'll glady show them where the revolving door is, because for every employee that leaves, there are hundreds happily waiting to take their spot. But times are changing. Companies are starting to regroup and hire again. Recruiters are coming out of the wood work looking for "talent". And employees who have been idly waiting for a change in the job market are polishing their resumes.
- So what's wrong with this picture? Isn't it all good? Employers have gotten used to the notion of staff being "replaceable". As such, they've also gotten comfortable with the idea of "mishandling" their employees. Why treat people better than you have to to merely keep them doing their job, after all, you pay them, so they should do their jobs. Even if that means they work extra hours, weekends, are on call 7x24, carry a pager and do four people's jobs. All this for no additional cost, because you pay them salary, with no overtime, and because if they won't do it, someone else will and won't complain about it.
- Meanwhile, employees carry on, working away, and all the while cursing at the injustice of it all at the coffee machine and on lunch breaks. IT managers, on the other hand, continue to shine because they've been able to draw on over-qualified candidates for under-qualified work.
- I've long been a believer that a manager does not need to have the skillset his or her employees have -- I'm no longer a believer. Managers need to understand what is required for a job, what is involved with the job, and how to assess the skills required to do the job. How does a manager hire for a position if they don't understand what's involved? You get a recruiter to do it for you. Which is another quagmire. Very few recruiters are actually good at their jobs. Yet another field that's booming because of financial potential as opposed to ambition and motivation. Welcome to the swampland of IT.
- I'm sure that there are companies out there that do believe in training, retaining and rewarding their staff, but there are too many that could care less.