Running with the
hare and hunting with the hounds
As young men we were forcefully
reminded to stick to our employers for long periods of time and to make that
career move only when we had grown firm roots in the present job, growing
strong wings which would enable us to fly to another branch of the tree. We
were also taught to acquire skills and brush up our knowledge, put them to use
through attending courses and move steadily through the rungs. No wonder the old timers have very less to
show by way of change of employment and miles to measure by way of loyalty.
However the present lot are a
restless group like the cat on a hot tin roof jumping from one job to the
other, without so much a glance at their records. The brave ones start looking
for better jobs, even before settling into their latest commitments. They have
no qualms and are not singularly guilty of offending any party. They also do
not lose sleep over how they would answer the interviewer on the reasons for
wanting to leave this new job. It is almost as if the entire world works in
synchrony. This act of job hopping and searching jobs are almost a ritual to
the new generation of job seekers, and progress seems to be measured by the
number of jobs changed as advertised on your social networking site profile.
Watch out also for the excuses being offered for quitting besides the usual,
even holidays on account of personal trips, excursions and leave for family
functions count amongst the reasons for quitting.
Why and what are the reasons for
this shift in attitude? And how do prospective employers see this growing
trend? The first and foremost thought that comes to mind is the fact the
present generation is an over ambitious lot. They want to keep pace with
changes and more often want to outrun and outperform their peers and
competitors, so much so that they are constantly trying to jump over their
shadow. Materialistic yearnings keep
them excited and focused on the task of being one up on their peers and
competitors. It is considered a sin not to dream about the good things in life
and work towards attaining them. This streak starts right from the time of
acquiring a professional qualification.
The question that floats in discussion
forums is what is the ROI (Return on Investment)? Even an admission to enhance
your knowledge is weighed in terms of the monetary input into the course and
the returns are calculated in banking terms. Not only is the return calculated
in monetary terms but the question that follows is, in how much time? It does
not take a wise man to understand that you have a lifespan to reap dividends.
No wonder once you get that qualification, you start setting a price tag on
your output. Some are successful and end up with placements that pay them
according to their desires. A lot many adding up to a majority end up with pay scales
much below their expectations. So in an effort to match aspirations to actual
output they keep jumping jobs to reach the target, akin to a new hand at golf
trying to put the ball in the hole with multiple putts.
In this mad rat race they lose
sight of their long term goals, skip otherwise good offerings for monetary
considerations, runoff (milder word for absconding) from their employers
without giving a damn about the consequences of their actions, and then when
their past comes to haunt them they cut a sorry figure and try every trick in
the book to wriggle out of difficult situations. They skip count the rungs in
the ladder of progress and success. Their eyes are constantly fixed at the top,
the very apex they struggle to reach remains out of bounds and the individual
is left panting and with multiple falls and injuries to self and self-esteem.
They play the snake and ladder game without realising that snakes dwell alongside
the ladder and the fall is steeper than the rise.
On the employers’ side, with the
advent of the IT revolution, there are many employers willing to take on people
due to compulsions of project deadlines which force them to skip normal trade
ins putting up a welcome sign. The HR department is flooded with queries and
disputes, which are irritate able and that can be done without. These irritants
also contribute to slowdown in productivity. Normal recruitment rules and laws
are given a go by in order to meet deadlines and be one up on competitors. Knowingly and unknowingly rules are broken
and new ones framed without reason, flinch and without consequence to their
effects on the law.
All this has put a lot of stress
on the HR department of firms where policies and rules are tweaked to make
allowance for the project efficient and make way for the discards. In the
bargain recruits suffer because of anomaly of rules and its applications. What
previously was considered apt is not now, e.g. in the old days a probationer
could tender his resignation and be relieved in 24 hrs.’ time, now the employer
would want to drag the days and squeeze every ounce from him before he can be
relieved and as a bargaining chip his relieving letter and final settlement is
withheld. Even if the law forces his hand he will seek his pound of flesh
during the verification drive. He also knows that scramble for the law is a
long drawn process which normally an employee would not opt for.
No use blaming either party
because it is the combined greed and a mad rush to run up the stairs skipping
steps, coupled with the maddeningly competitive environment that has
contributed to the lowering of safety standards (in terms of following the rule
book) in organisations, where utter chaos prevails with the outcome being
wasted labour which could otherwise have been put to more sensible use for the
good of the organisation.
When will it change and how?, I
guess there is already an undercurrent of feeling within the hierarchy of the
top ups that doing away with the ageing work force for the young ones was
probably a mistake, a step taken in haste and the difference in perception, was
a serious case of overlook which will need to be rebalanced in the coming days.
The oldies in organisations add a balance to work life, work morals and
organisational functioning and can show the way acting as a deterrent to the
jumpstarts of today. They can therefore take cheer, for good days should reappear
for them sooner or later.27th August 2014
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