June 2022 - Finding some Balance in the Imbalance
Preparing for a monthly blog, I do a lot of scrolling through social media to determine what people are currently talking about. Well, welcome to Grad 2022 season! Families are so relieved that ceremonies could occur this year, that postings are all over the place this week. Congratulations to all the high school and post secondary students that are making their way out into the working world. A friend’s son graduated last week, and my husband asked him what he was looking forward to the most. The son’s father chirped in quickly “paying rent.”?The son responded, “I don’t know, I’m really quite anxious about the whole thing.”
After 2+ years of studying virtually, being locked-down and released in a recurring fashion, limited social engagement, giving up sports and connected relationships – why would we be surprised of his answer? Add to that the confusion of the people that are adulting through all of this. We admittedly have anxiety over how to make the right next moves in our own working lives.
·????????Alberta's retiring boomers may leave labour shortages in their wake. Experts say there's still time to prepare (1)
·????????If you’ve stayed put at your company during the Great Resignation, you’re paying a price for your loyalty (2)
·????????Switching Jobs? Here’s How to Make Sure You Won’t Regret It. (3)
·????????CEOs keep up positive talk while preparing for a recession (4)
·????????Ontario’s right-to-disconnect policy is in effect. Here’s what employers have come up with (5)
·????????Elon Musk tells Tesla staff to return to office or quit (6)
Anyone that is hiring right now knows the current market is tight. Employers are reconsidering everything from timelines, salary ranges, work-life balance options and benefits to attract the right candidates in. It appears the employee is holding the cards in the relationship, but I question at what point or cost will tides turn OR will balance occur and harmony exist? One thing I have determined lately is there is no such thing as balance in our world; people are standing at polarized sides of each debate with such force that we cannot expect there to be a win-win situation in anything.
Hiring and retention conversations are not new. Building successful, reliable teams has always been an ongoing strategic practice. 25 years ago, I remember a conversation with my neighbor, a General Manager of an oil and gas supply company. He told me that the life span of an employee, at their current position, was 2-3 years. If he could not promote them within this period, they should move to another company because their commitment to the team and the team’s commitment to them will decline after this time. He was very upfront with his staff that there was an expectation for everyone to succeed, and if not with him, then with someone else. It is something I have never forgotten.
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His risky strategy to build a successful team could have backfired, but I expect it did not. His genuine concern for an individual’s contribution within the overall team dynamics was admiring. His commitment to not retaining just to keep a seat warm or not laying off because the seat has temporarily cooled is the proper decision. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of companies right now that are reconsidering their employment policy decisions over COVID because they are now in staffing predicaments. In return, no employee should ever be so arrogant that they do not realize the possibility of becoming irrelevant in their own work environment.
You can find a career that will justify ‘job hopping’ for pay and promotions just as fast as you can that rewards through its internal systems. I can name highly successful people in both. The one thing I can say to a new graduate is, do not expect things to be the same tomorrow as they are today. If you do, the next imbalance shift will leave you with regrets. The same goes for every managing professional.
R.
PS – CREW Network and CREW Calgary are developing strategic initiatives to connect with high school and post secondary students about careers in Commercial Real Estate. CREW Calgary’s program development is underway, building off CREW Network’s global Career Outreach program. https://crewnetwork.org/about/career-outreach