When unemployment began skyrocketing, I thought of Charles Handy, the British business philosopher who, at one point, ranked second only to Peter Drucker on the list of influential business thinkers. His breakthrough book was The Age of Unreason. This was a great read in the early 1990s. But, as time passed, reading Handy was akin to reading Nostradamus.
Organizations, Handy noted, would shrink to the simplest core of employees possible. Everyone else would become “just-in-time workers”, as in employed only when necessary for the good of the core. The core, of course, would be the owners and senior executives.
Essentially, Handy predicted the onslaught of outsourcing, independent contractors, free-lancers, free agents and every other employment structure that has obliterated what, not too long ago, had been the informal notion that once hired, employment would continue into the indefinite future.
Most importantly, Handy predicted that secure jobs would exist for very few. This prediction was not entirely gloomy. Indeed, for some who felt potentially chained to a single company for 40 years, the notion of a job and career shifting world was positively liberating.
The tenets of Handy’s predictions are mostly commonplace now. But, many parents are still frozen in time by their career development from twenty years ago. They intellectually understand that the world of work has radically shifted. Many, in fact, experientially understand due to their own job shifting. Yet, many parents are not doing what they can to adequately prepare their children for the daunting employment landscape ahead.
I am an optimist by nature. In this spirit, I clearly see Handy’s world unfolding in a way that will leave some small part of the workforce delightfully engaged. Having developed expertise and credentials in areas of market demand, these workers will successfully navigate the new world of work. They will likely have far more interesting, stimulating, and varied careers than their parents. Indeed, the smart, well-educated, hard working students will likely be among those who benefit greatly from this new world of work.
But, my optimism is also tempered by knowing that there will be a major downside for those who do not develop high level skills and credentials.
I think the job seeking landscape of the near future will resemble a nomadic battlefield.
Job seeking warriors will have some combination of credentials, skills, and contacts, to help them battle for preferred jobs, gigs, and projects. The best of the bunch will create their own work.
Your child’s future success will depend in no small measure on having developed himself well enough to deal with these new challenges. As a parent, the best thing that you can do for your child’s future employment in the daunting new world of work is ensure their abilities are honed at an early age.
Organizations, Handy noted, would shrink to the simplest core of employees possible. Everyone else would become “just-in-time workers”, as in employed only when necessary for the good of the core. The core, of course, would be the owners and senior executives.
Essentially, Handy predicted the onslaught of outsourcing, independent contractors, free-lancers, free agents and every other employment structure that has obliterated what, not too long ago, had been the informal notion that once hired, employment would continue into the indefinite future.
Most importantly, Handy predicted that secure jobs would exist for very few. This prediction was not entirely gloomy. Indeed, for some who felt potentially chained to a single company for 40 years, the notion of a job and career shifting world was positively liberating.
The tenets of Handy’s predictions are mostly commonplace now. But, many parents are still frozen in time by their career development from twenty years ago. They intellectually understand that the world of work has radically shifted. Many, in fact, experientially understand due to their own job shifting. Yet, many parents are not doing what they can to adequately prepare their children for the daunting employment landscape ahead.
I am an optimist by nature. In this spirit, I clearly see Handy’s world unfolding in a way that will leave some small part of the workforce delightfully engaged. Having developed expertise and credentials in areas of market demand, these workers will successfully navigate the new world of work. They will likely have far more interesting, stimulating, and varied careers than their parents. Indeed, the smart, well-educated, hard working students will likely be among those who benefit greatly from this new world of work.
But, my optimism is also tempered by knowing that there will be a major downside for those who do not develop high level skills and credentials.
I think the job seeking landscape of the near future will resemble a nomadic battlefield.
Job seeking warriors will have some combination of credentials, skills, and contacts, to help them battle for preferred jobs, gigs, and projects. The best of the bunch will create their own work.
Your child’s future success will depend in no small measure on having developed himself well enough to deal with these new challenges. As a parent, the best thing that you can do for your child’s future employment in the daunting new world of work is ensure their abilities are honed at an early age.