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Dinosaurs in the corporate world come in all shapes and sizes. There are people who have mentally retired and are just hanging on until their pension and other benefits kick in. It would be good for their company and themselves if they took premature retirement. But they look at the money they would earn in the few years they have left and decide they can’t afford to lose it. Thankfully, the voluntary retirement scheme — with a handsome severance package — is gaining acceptability in India.
Then there are people working in dead-end companies. Some organisations are in this category because of the very nature of the sector they operate in. Do you see a future in a company making manual typewriters or slide-rules? Or makers of metal buckets, who once powered industry on the outskirts of Calcutta? Every business has its day. Those that do not change with the times will die.
Like sectors, professions too have a limited lifespan; even motherhood which has survived for millennia may not be vital in the future. Experts say that professions that involve physical interaction — nursing, healthcare, sports — will thrive for longer. But in other places, a machine or a chip can replace you. Think of the setters of Sudoku puzzles. They spent days ensuring that each one had a unique solution. Today, a computer can do the same job in less than a minute.
The US Bureau of Labour Statistics regularly publishes a report on occupational employment projections. Its latest analysis, which gives projections up to 2014, makes for interesting reading. The occupation at the head of the largest job decline list is farming. Others near the top of the list include clerks, secretaries, textile workers and (surprise, surprise) computer operators and telemarketers. Look carefully and you will see that even new-age jobs that require no special skills are headed for extinction. You will find this in computer programming too: an expert in one language will be unemployable if he doesn’t make the effort to learn the latest in the field.
Work life requires you to keep abreast of the times. Good employers make sure you go through regular training programmes. But it is also necessary to show a bit of initiative on your own.
“The problem is that people are sometimes so comfortable in their jobs that they don’t see the writing on the wall,” says Mumbai-based HR consultant Shashi Rao. “They can see that their company is downsizing, but they feel they will be the last person to be affected. And the biggest danger is the loyalty factor.”
HR experts say that employees often convince themselves of the virtue of loyalty. They accept being passed over for a promotion; they settle for a lower increment. They claim their company needs them and they are prepared to make some sacrifices. The truth is that they continue in adversity because they have nowhere to go. Over the years, the organisation has sapped their vitality and risk-taking ability. They are afraid of the unknown. “This is why people so often come back to their old jobs,” says Rao. “But think of the people who have worked only in one company. They don’t have a familiar place to return to.”
Loyalty to your employer did mean something in an earlier age. No longer. In fact, employers look down on the “loyal”. When times change, and brighter staff can be hired, they are put out to grass. The more ruthless organisations simply hand them the pink slip.
But the truth is that in today’s world, the employee is a very valuable asset. An organisation will treat you well if you have self-respect. If, however, you work yourself into a dead end, don’t expect anybody to throw you a lifeline. No one is sure how or why the dinosaurs became extinct. Perhaps they died of shame.
HEADED FOR THE EXIT
Record stores
Camera film manufacturing
Crop dusters
Gay bars
Newspapers
Pay phones
Used bookstores
Piggy banks
Telemarketing
Coin-operated arcades
