Broken Promises. And changing markets

My Wife and I are not natural skiers. My skiing ‘ability’ and ‘experience’ consists of performing snow ploughs on the slopes of Garmisch-Partenkirchen for just one day having lived in Munich.

In February we decided to take our daughter skiing for the first time. It certainly was a day of two halves. The first instructor-led session was filled with frustration. Imagine a 10 year old; “this is stupid”, “I hate this” and “can we just play with the icicles?”

Then in the afternoon we had a different instructor. His strategy was centred around offering chocolates and sweets to entice her to the top of the mountain. And it worked! Because what goes up must come down.

Like any other kid she didn’t want it to end and wanted to do it ASAP.

So when we asked our daughter what she wanted to do for her 11th birthday, I suspected that I knew the answer…..

“Skiing!”

The link to recruitment

I’m always humbled when people call to discuss their career with me. Because clearly they value my unique ability to provide a professional opinion from a finance perspective coupled with being a recruitment consultant.

I always ask if they have discussed their concerns with their line manager. Because communication and feedback can usually help resolve most problems.

Last week was no different. Again I explored this concept. But I wasn’t expecting their response “David I spoke to them last year. And they said that they would look into it” I was shocked! The reason I was surprised is because of the time scales. One year! And a lack of action. Usually people expect miracles in a week. But come on - one year?!? It’s unfortunate but people break promises.

Nothing has been said or even actioned since their last conversation. It’s a real shame. Because this person genuinely doesn’t want to leave.

Usually people’s frustrations are centred around the following items:

1. The ability to choose where to work to get the best outcome.
2. They want feedback.
3. They feel there is a lack of appreciation and recognition.
4. They want access to development and stretch opportunities.
5. Support from their line manager.
6. Empowerment.
7. Being more involved in decision making.
8. Money but this is almost always newly qualified accountants only.

So. Numbers 1 to 7 are 100% free!! Yet people/line managers/’leaders’ fail to realise that most people are not motivated by more money.

It’s becoming more common for people to call me. And I suspect that more people will start to look for a job. So if you are considering looking for a job I would encourage you to start looking sooner rather than later because in my opinion the market is about to turn driven by candidate behaviour, a recession and company cutbacks.

My final thoughts

If you are a line manager and you’ve made promises which you have broken you may still have time to act. Because in a candidate short market you will struggle to replace them. And ignoring the problem won’t lead to a positive outcome. Equally when was the last time you had a truly productive conversation centred around your direct reports career?

Because more and more candidates are calling me. Their sole motivator isn’t money and actually what they want is entirely free!

And if you are a candidate seeking a new role. I would encourage you to start thinking about your route to market now. Because I believe the market is about to turn, meaning that there will be less jobs. More competition. And it will be more difficult to get the new job you seek. So start planning your search now. If you need help you know where to find me.

Finally, as a growing business I do have capacity to support more recruitment campaigns. So if you or anybody you know needs my help please pass on my details. And with 100% of my Trustpilot reviews being rated as excellent (44 reviews in total) I know that they will have a good experience.

Stay lucky. Stay Jammy!

David

PS. If you have a recruitment need, need an independent sounding board or career mentor please contact me here www.jammyrecruitment.com