When Changes Collide

All transitions involve a change in one or more variables to reach a desired goal. Management of change does not happen in a vacuum and there are always external forces at work to exert enough pull to drive the best laid plans off course. In fact, those forces can cause change to happen where none was planned. Many recent college graduates are facing the reality of those forces when searching for work. The first clue is often when they stumble over last year’s graduates who still have not found a job. When these students entered college there was an expectation that education makes a difference. While it is still easier to find work with a degree than without one, it is not the guarantee of employment that it once was. Many find that they are steeped in nightmarish debt without that dream job to console them. Something has to change.   

Benjamin Disraeli said, “Change is inevitable. Change is constant.” Truer words have never been spoken. We have a certain amount of influence over change, but cannot ignore that there are factors that influence our lives that are out of our control. Many of those influencers today have to do with economic factors and not something we can change. What are some of those factors?

1. Employment and the Economy – Every month we hear encouraging news that the US unemployment rate is falling. On the other hand, Fortune Magazine reports that the number of Americans in the labor force is the lowest point in 35 years. The labor participation rate in August fell to 63.2% of people over 16 who either have a job or are actively looking for one. The last time it was this low was August of 1978.
2. Hiring and the Economy – As reported by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) the average monthly increase forcast for Q3 is 175,000 jobs. Good news, but the rate is too slow to guarantee a return to a healthy labor market. To fill the gap of 8.3 million jobs would take another six years… not good news for job seekers. The number of people who want full time jobs has not changed in over a year.
3. Job Search and the Economy – Job seekers that are willing to add flexibility to their list of personal characteristics are being hired at record rates. Reuters reports that one major problem is that 75% of the 1 million hires this year are part-time and many are low paid. Employers are tentative and hiring employees that are either disposable if things get worse or hirable when the economy is better. The often unspoken rule of engagement also includes the fact that there are still questions about the Affordable Care Act that many believe will drive up business costs.
4. Recruiting and the Economy – When times are good recruiters search for that elusive new hire that is typically employed and will probably be the last to be laid off if things are bad. Highly desirable professionals are more hesitant to assume the risk of jumping to a new company and a management team they don’t know. Couple that with the depressed housing market and there is an additional burden in relocation for a better job.

So is this a tale of doom and gloom? No. On the contrary it is a report of the facts that are necessary for people to make intelligent decisions and to plan for personal change. It points to a detour on the road to a goal and that things must change over the way things were planned in the past. First, never give up! Don’t be a dropout of the job market because something didn’t happen in your projected time frame. New jobs are happening, but the ones who are most knowledgeable about the market and keep an eye on the changes will get there first. Job seekers must also face the fact that they may have to take a step backward in order to be in position for that future step forward. Nobody should plan to settle for less than their dream job, but each job seeker has to mount a campaign of change that makes them better than the millions like them. In a down economy, recruiting goals will change and there cannot be prejudice against qualified unemployed workers who are willing to go to work. Where possible, remote technology can supplement on-site presence to improve efficiencies and reduce cost.

Changes that happen without plans may become obstacles unless there is a new plan to recognize them and detour around them.

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