So much has happened in the engineering industry since my last market update. Here we summarise the key talking points but please reach out to us if you wish to discuss these, or any other topics in more detail!
A Brief Overview
Prior to Christmas, Omicron hit with a vengeance just when companies were getting set to welcome their staff back into their offices. Everyone had had a busy, challenging and somewhat stressful last couple of years and many were looking forward to the break and re-connecting with colleagues in the New Year.
Although this presented a lot of new challenges and roadblocks, thankfully, it has been dealt with fairly swiftly in comparison to previous strains and current restrictions are being eased that will allow people to return to the office more freely.
A New Phase
This now leads into an interesting new phase within our industry as companies grapple with how they approach flexible working and the new balance that people have had since Covid first hit. Companies are implementing a wide variety of policies when it comes to this and there is no one glove fits all approach across the industry. Different approaches have different benefits and I couldn’t even begin to cover them all here now, but it will be interesting to see if there becomes a new industry standard as we move forward.
The Great Resignation
There is also talk of ‘The Great Resignation’ as people search for roles that better match with their ethical viewpoints, decide to pursue new careers altogether, or simply look for a company that offers them the flexibility, benefits and numeration that they are perhaps not getting in their current role.
Again, I couldn’t begin to go beyond scratching the surface on that here, but from my own experience I would say that the term ‘Great Resignation’ has been picked up by the press and run with and the reality is far different from what it would suggest. There is still some degree of hesitancy among a large proportion of the workforce with a fear of last in, first out, should there be more impacts upon our economy from Covid or other market forces. However, the industry has shown itself to be robust and with such a strong pipeline of work that this shouldn’t come into your thought process at all.
International Boarders
A final recent change that is worth noting is that with the borders now open, some see this as being an answer to the talent short market that we find ourselves in. However, again from what I am seeing, this might help to ease the problem slightly in the long-term, but it certainly won’t be a golden bullet solution anytime time soon.
What’s Next?
All of this is food for thought for a lot of people as they grapple with what is best for their long-term careers and what working environment would they be most happy working in. Are there better opportunities out there or do they find where they work a rewarding and professionally challenging environment where they enjoy working each day?
I have a passion for building genuine networks with people and adding value to them; so am always here to give advice or be a sounding board even if you are not looking to move companies right now. I have recruited into this space for nearly 10 years in Australia and am across the market in terms of opportunities as well also market trends, challenges and potential solutions.
Why not check-out our Jobs Board to browse a selection of opportunities that are out there that might be of interest.
Stay safe and well!
Steve
0403 915 522 / [email protected]
