Career
issues within a commodity job market |
Mentoring |
By
David Thatcher |
If I were to ask you if you felt that the job arena has moved
towards a commodity mentality, would you agree with this statement? |
For many people, the multiple frustrations felt as they attempt
to develop their careers is further compounded
by the corrosive nature of the commodity approach to hiring staff. Companies
that treat the human component of their business as a commodity are
creating an inherent weakness within the structure. This weakness is
that of demotivated and despondent key workers, expected to make a
significant contribution in support of the business that is competing
within an increasingly complex business environment. |
In the past, we explored some of the areas where organizations
have found it difficult to align their business requirements with the
talent available for hire. If you consider a business model to be the
sum of all of the components that drive the business then any flaws
in the model will affect the company’s effectiveness and, this can have
a direct influence on how they go about hiring and retaining staff.
Its worth re-visiting some of these sensitivities. |
The human component is complex and the value to the business in a new-start up or within a rapidly changing market is both difficult to determine, and hard to quantify. It is vital that the hiring criteria reflect business needs, and qualities inherent in the right person for the job. But unfortunately, this does not always happen and for many businesses, eager to establish a regional presence or take advantage of alliance possibilities, this blunder can be costly. Who should they hire and how should they determine their suitability for the purpose? |
It becomes increasingly more difficult when attempting to make a move within a market that misunderstands what an individual has to offer and is under business pressure to make the right choice. This often translates to the practice of playing safe by recruiting from within the ranks of directly linked past experience. Sometimes, this automatically filter-in a range of lower cost-base nationalities and this fuels a commodity binge. |
Recruiting models can be inaccurate and this leads to hiring unsuitable people or those whose aspirations and expectations cannot be fulfilled under the existing business structure. |
This point is not surprising when you look at the variety of business forms and role functions within many organizations. Add to this the somewhat nebulous nature of many job titles and, we can see why the hiring process is so difficult. |
Company structure influences career satisfaction. Some companies for example, have an operating platform in which commercial decisions are ultimately passed to the finance department for evaluation. This may make sense, but bear in mind that non-finance managers are often skilful at evaluating investments and so when they hire someone who is capable, yet subject all of their decisions to ‘second guessing”, this becomes a major demotivator. |
Chemical engineers are an excellent example of professionals who are capable of determining complex business cases, often having to assess business and political risk. |
It is the lack on understanding of the capabilities of certain types of professionals that often leads to bad hiring decisions, as the incumbent feels manacled, often being second-guessed and subsequently quits. |
Another problem that has a detrimental effect on business and the individual is the fact that often, companies believe that they can attract high caliber staff and will try to recruit these people paying as little as possible. They mistakenly benchmark the value of the position against talent available from a comparatively lower cost-base country. This becomes a dilemma, for how can you get away with hiring on “the cheap”, staff who are often below the mark as they may not have the “relevant experience” and, then expect them to perform? Another drip-line to commodity based hiring. |
Conversely, the business requires a staffing level that suggests a cross-section of nationalities that most likely come from a lower-cost base. The danger now is one of establishing a precedence, for if you are able to “kick-off” the early stages with staff drawn from these ranks then there is a strong argument to suggest that this will influence the hiring decisions to take the business through growth. |
From the career advancement angle, what on earth is the motivator to move to such a position when there is a perception of “value erosion”? |
A round up of the main issues: regional growth and the turbulence and instability within the markets, the “whirlpool” effect, alignment with protocols such as WTO, difficulties associated with assessing the value of “human capital”, the nature of company form and its influence on career satisfaction, company attitude to job titles and the impact this may have on job enrichment, avoiding being “shaped” by some job agencies and the difficulties associated with the hiring process, changes in technology and the demands placed on today’s managers, incorrect business model causing bad hiring decisions, and in addition the impact of external pressure resulting in companies establishing hiring barriers and a weakening US Dollar. |
In addition difficulties associated with disparate hiring practice across the region and, the effect this has on the job seeker, company arrogance, seasonality and a commodity mentality demands a re-think about the long-term value of the hire and, from the individuals perspective it means vigilance and a good plan to market. |
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Ends- Based in |