In January I took part in The New World of Work at Cambridge University's Judge Business School. Through the day I coached a number of women all of whom had just returned to work after maternity leave or were about to do so. I anticipated that these sessions would focus on matters of work/life balance, time management, etc. Instead they all focused on problems and dissatisfactions in their careers such that every one of them wanted to talk about finding a suitable alternative career direction.
This won't come as a surprise to the authors of a London School of Business and Finance (LSBF) report that found that 47% of the UK professional workforce are looking to change careers. The implications of this - both in terms of potential staff turnover and the lack of engagement - are enormous. The percentage was much higher (66%) in millennials (18 to 35 year olds) - of these 54% intend to make a career move in two years or less. If we are to retain talented and performing people we need to ensure that they are finding their work appropriately rewarding. This is becoming increasingly important; the millennial generation is less willing to accept the conditions that older workers take for granted.
What are the key factors in career satisfaction? These vary from person to person (and an effective line manager will be attuned to these needs in his or her team) but are likely to include:
- clarity of role and goals
- appropriate recognition of value and contribution
- meaningful work that has a clear purpose
- work that enables each person to express his or her skills and attributes
- opportunity for advancement
- to be respected and supported
In our work we find that reports of career dissatisfaction almost always come as a surprise to the manager and employer. An effective, and simple, first step is to understand what satisfaction means to each person and then to ensure that it is meaningfully assessed.
38% of UK professionals surveyed don't want to make a major career change at this time because they report being satisfied in their jobs. Those engaged and performing well will predominantly be found among that 38%.
This won't come as a surprise to the authors of a London School of Business and Finance (LSBF) report that found that 47% of the UK professional workforce are looking to change careers. The implications of this - both in terms of potential staff turnover and the lack of engagement - are enormous. The percentage was much higher (66%) in millennials (18 to 35 year olds) - of these 54% intend to make a career move in two years or less. If we are to retain talented and performing people we need to ensure that they are finding their work appropriately rewarding. This is becoming increasingly important; the millennial generation is less willing to accept the conditions that older workers take for granted.
What are the key factors in career satisfaction? These vary from person to person (and an effective line manager will be attuned to these needs in his or her team) but are likely to include:
- clarity of role and goals
- appropriate recognition of value and contribution
- meaningful work that has a clear purpose
- work that enables each person to express his or her skills and attributes
- opportunity for advancement
- to be respected and supported
In our work we find that reports of career dissatisfaction almost always come as a surprise to the manager and employer. An effective, and simple, first step is to understand what satisfaction means to each person and then to ensure that it is meaningfully assessed.
38% of UK professionals surveyed don't want to make a major career change at this time because they report being satisfied in their jobs. Those engaged and performing well will predominantly be found among that 38%.
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