"Career Opportunities are the Ones that Never Knock"

by John Scott

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All Change

This has changed to the point where there is little if anything that is guaranteed. The old model assumed a steady-state economy, relatively fixed company hierarchy over time and an unchanging relationship with customers, technology and markets.

"Nobody owes you a career - you own it as a sole proprietor."

Andy Grove, Intel

Individual expectations of careers have changed greatly, driven by this organizational dynamic, but also by wider societal change. It would be difficult to imagine advising an 18-year-old to work hard at school, go to university and then find a job as a definition of a good life. They would rightly laugh at this irresponsible advice because the world has changed greatly. And yet for those of us beyond our early 30’s, this advice was well-intentioned and entirely persuasive.

Companies are making different offerings and individuals are seeking different experiences, including the opportunity to enhance their employability. There has been a number of articles in the UK press recently about young professionals in their 30’s taking late gap years – in effect, walking away from their careers at the very point when they ‘should’ be particularly focussed.

Changing Roles for HR

As the corporate environment has changed so too has the contribution of HR to career development. If ever it were possible to coral and marshal human talent in such a way that it could be developed and managed, that possibility has now gone. Along with it manpower planning, succession planning, career grids, structured job and role descriptions and so ever on. We should perhaps be grateful for the passing of such bureaucracy.

"The more unique we are - the better we will do. And, as opposed to physical resources, knowledge grows with usage and is portable – you can take it with you when you leave. So, if you really want to build a good life – and/or just make money – the route to success couldn’t be clearer; get at it and get going. The power is yours to use and abuse."

Ridderstrale & Nordstrom, Funky Business

The new model will demand of HR a very imaginative and flexible response.

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John Scott is a London-based European HR consultant. The article benefits from a reading of Ghoshal and Bartlett’s The Individualized Corporation and its title is taken from "Career Opportunities" by The Clash.

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